TikTok Launches E-Commerce Services for US Users in October

On September 12th, according to the information displayed on TikTok‘s official website, it officially launched its e-commerce service called TikTok Shop in the United States. Prior to this, TikTok’s e-commerce had been tested among American users for several months, and currently, 40% of TikTok’s American users have a ‘Shop’ entrance on their homepage. In the future, TikTok will continue to expand the scope of internal testing, and it is expected that by early October, all American users will be able to see the ‘Shop’ on their homepage.

According to the official website, TikTok e-commerce provides users with video and live shopping services. Users can directly purchase products marked in videos and live streams from the “For You” feed. For businesses and creators, TikTok e-commerce offers a series of services including product display pages, storefronts, and the “Alliance Program.” Additionally, TikTok e-commerce has launched the “TikTok Fulfillment Program” to assist merchants in storing, selecting, packaging, and delivering goods. They have also developed a secure payment system in collaboration with third parties.

TikTok has revealed that during the testing phase, there have been 200,000 businesses in the United States joining TikTok e-commerce. Among them, many well-known brands such as L’Oréal, Benefit, Olay, and others have already joined or are planning to join TikTok Shop. In addition, over 100,000 TikTok influencers are participating in TikTok e-commerce services.

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TikTok stated that in a survey, 70% of users said they discovered new brands and products on TikTok, while 83% said TikTok played a role in their purchasing decisions.

In order to simplify the operations for creators and businesses, TikTok e-commerce has also launched services such as business partnerships and channel partnerships. For example, for businesses operating across multiple channels, TikTok e-commerce has partnered with platforms like Channel Advisor and Feedonomics to facilitate their operations.

TikTok also emphasizes on its official website that it is committed to providing a safe and reliable environment for users to shop with peace of mind. The protected user data of TikTok’s American users is stored in the United States and managed by USDS (United States Data Security Team), and the payment information of American users is also managed by USDS.

According to the information, TikTok e-commerce first started testing in Indonesia in 2021, and then gradually launched in markets such as the United Kingdom, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, and others. This launch in the United States is another important move for TikTok e-commerce.