TikTok has enlisted the help of tech start-ups to improve its struggling ecommerce operations, as the fast-growing social media platform ramps up a push to diversify its revenues amid a slowdown in digital advertising.
Social commerce, where users can buy items without leaving the social media app, has seen massive success in China. TikTok’s sister app Douyin enjoyed a 300 per cent rise in sales year on year in the 12 months to May, with users buying more than 10bn products.
China’s ByteDance, which owns both TikTok and Douyin, plans to expand this model globally through TikTok Shop, which launched last year in the UK and south-east Asia.