Becoming TikTok Famous: Strategies for Global Brands to Engage Consumers in an Emerging Market

Abstract

This study examines the effects of content characteristics (i.e., informational and emotional characteristics), language, and nonverbal information on social media engagement (SME; i.e., likes, shares, and comments) in the context of global brands operating in an emerging market and implementing TikTok as a tool for social media marketing. The data set comprised 680 posts, 1,527,340 likes, 58,529 shares, and 18,743 comments collected from global smartphone brands’ TikTok accounts specifically targeting Indonesian consumers. The findings confirm that informational content mainly generates higher SME than emotional content. English and code-switched languages generally improve SME, whereas nonverbal information mostly has no significant effects. Furthermore, English and code-switched languages mainly have negative moderating effects on the relationship between content characteristics (both informational and emotional characteristics) and SME. Theoretically, this study provides a preliminary understanding of effective SME enhancement strategies for global brands targeting consumers on TikTok in emerging markets. Practically, the results of this research can provide guidelines for global brands engaging with consumers in emerging markets. These insights can also assist global brands in creating TikTok-famous content.