How Canadian Financial Brands are Reaching Audiences on TikTok in 2023

Purpose of This Research

• ‍Identify which Canadian FIs are activating on TikTok (both paid and organic)‍
• ‍Identify what objectives FIs are trying to achieve on TikTok‍
• ‍Identify top-performing content themes and tactics on TikTok

In order to determine if Canadian FIs should be activating on TikTok and how they should be activating on this platform.

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Key Takeaways

Should FI brands have a presence on TikTok?  If so, how should we overcome the concerns of a crown corporation being active on TikTok?

• The risks and concerns of activating on TikTok include:
  -Concerns over data privacy and security
  -TikTok ban on government-owned businesses in Canada
  -Possible downsides associated with how a brand is perceived when it's present on a platform that has been prohibited

• However, let’s consider the following facts:
  -81% of FI brands are already advertising on TikTok with huge budgets. RBC spent $666K in just six months. 
  -55% of FI brands currently have an active organic TikTok account
  -According to a study by Citizenlab, it was found that TikTok collects the same data as Facebook

• Furthermore, FI brands have seen positive results from TikTok:
  -520M ad impressions generated in the past 6 months (April - October 2023) amongst the competitive set 
  -Scotiabank has a significant audience size of 32K TikTok followers
  -Scotiabank generated 9.8M organic video views in the past 6 months
  -Scotiabank successfully launched a viral TikTok series called “Pay it Forward” generating 765K average views per video

• Given the positive results generated from Canadian FI brands, and the fact that 81% of brands are advertising on the platform, there is a compelling business case to accept the risks and activate on the platform. 

How should FI brands active on TikTok?

• ‍i) Have an active organic profile: There is a white space opportunity as Scotiabank is the only brand with a significant presence on TikTok. On top of this, the brand has found success on the platform, generating 10M views between April and October 2023.
  If having an organic presence is not possible due to ethical reasons, consider:
  

• A) Running paid advertising:  All brands in the competitive set except Wealthsimple and CWB are actively running ads on TikTok, with brands like RBC spending $666K in just six months. Remain competitive by activating on this platform. In addition, all competitors except TD are allocating more than 10% of their TikTok ad spend budget towards Alberta. 
• B) Working with influencers: Scotiabank works with a variety of TikTokers such as Zachery Dereniowski and Peter Nguyen

What should the main objective on TikTok be?

• Upper funnel brand awareness (ToFu) should be the main goal for both organic and paid content on TikTok:
  i) 79% of TikTok ads are less than 15 seconds long. Short-form content is ideal for introducing your brand to a broad audience, but may not provide enough time for consideration or conversion-focused content.
  ii) The majority of brands in the competitive set are focusing on a top-of-funnel strategy on both organic & paid.
  iii) The nature of TikTok’s platform is focused on entertainment, with the user base being skewed towards a younger demographic. Users are more interested in discovering and watching entertaining & educational content.

Who should I be targeting on TikTok?

• ‍Target the younger Gen Z audience, but be mindful of the white space opportunity for older millennials.
  ‍i) It is clear that the majority of competitors are targeting students. A majority of the top organic posts feature student campaigns.
  ‍ii) There are untapped audiences amongst the older millennials such as millennial moms who represent a large portion of TikTok’s user base. None of the competitors are currently targeting this audience as they are largely focused on students and Gen Z-ers. 

What tactics result in top-performing TikTok content?

• To create top-performing TikTok content, incorporate the following tactics:
  i) Don’t be afraid to showcase the bold & fun side of your brand’s personality. RBC, who is traditionally more conservative on platforms such as Instagram or YouTube, ran ads featuring a popular TikTok comedian to raise awareness of their “Split with Friends” feature on mobile. 
  ii) Partner with TikTok creators to capitalize on their audience & reach: Top performing videos featured popular TikTokers such as Peter Nguyen (3.9M followers) and Zachery (17M followers). 
  iii) Give your own spin on popular TikTok trends, don’t just copy it: Scotiabank created their own version of the “What I spend in a day” trend but made it relevant to earning points for their credit cards as well as the “Next Person” trend. 
  iv) Provide solutions to everyday financial problems in an entertaining way: A common theme throughout many of the top performing ads and videos is that they provide a solution to a problem:
  -This video shows viewers how they can afford big expensive trips by earning Scene+ points
  -Scotiabank conducted street interviews to ask Canadians for money saving tips
  -RBC worked with an influencer to bring awareness to their “Future Launch” program which helps students navigate the tough job market 
  v) Incorporate emotion-based marketing: Scotiabank’s organic TikTok video for their “Pay it Forward” series went viral. This series evokes an emotional reaction, as viewers witness Canadians helping each other during times of need.
  vi) Run contests to increase followers & reach: Scotiabank works with the same creator for every contest to increase brand recognition. 
  vii) Create content specifically for the TikTok platform. Do not simply repurpose advertisements from other channels. Only four competitors are doing this. 

Are FI brands using influencers in their TikTok Strategy?

• Use influencers to provide social proof, product testimonials and entertaining organic style posts to boost brand relevance. 
  -Choose creators that will resonate with the younger TikTok audience who are masters at TikTok humour.
  -Boost your brand image by using influencers to amplify the impact of supporting meaningful things such as charities, community sport initiatives, fundraising, and buzzworthy events. 
  -Highlight a product’s benefits and show the use case for them to reach an organic audience who otherwise would not be reached via owned advertising and posts. 

Are FI brands receiving negative press from being on TikTok? 

• ‍No significant negative press is occurring on owned TikTok channels for FI competitors. 
  -While there is the occasional customer complaint, there are no complaints significant enough to have a tangible negative effect on any of the FI brands' reputations. 
  FI brands can manage negative comments on their channels by either turning off the ability for users to comment, or by manually deleting any inflammatory comments. 

Are FI brands linking back to their site or apps? 

• Paid advertising creative can be used to lead to both landing pages and app installs. 
  -The majority of competitors are running awareness and consideration ads with CTAs to check out different banking products or mobile apps.
  -Due to limitations of tracking features in measurement tools, it is not currently possible to track TikTok landing pages. 

Is there an ethical dilemma in advertising on TikTok given the government ban of TikTok on FI devices? 

• While there is a ban on having TikTok on government and bank devices, this does not affect the ability to advertise or post on TikTok as a business. 
  -The federal TikTok ban is intended to protect user privacy and government information from being compromised and applicable to government/bank devices only. This is because of TikTok’s data collection methods presenting a cyber attack risk. 
  -This ban does not conflict with utilizing an ad agency or devices without access to sensitive bank/government networks and proprietary programs from posting or using the app. A phone without access to anything but TikTok would suffice for the purpose of posting branded content.  

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High-level overview of the TikTok landscape for Canadian FIs.

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Half of the competitive set has an active organic TikTok account.

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All competitors except Wealthsimple and CWB are advertising on TikTok. 

*Since Wealthsimple only spent $653 on advertising in the past 6 months, we have determined that the brand is not actively advertising on this platform.

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Majority of brands use TikTok to raise brand awareness (top-of-funnel).

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High-level overview of the Paid TikTok advertising landscape. 

*Since Wealthsimple only spent $653 on advertising in the past 6 months, we have determined that the brand is not actively advertising on this platform.

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Only four brands are creating videos specifically made for the TikTok platform. Other brands are simply repurposing ads from IG, and YT.

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Only four brands are creating videos specifically made for the TikTok platform. Other brands are simply repurposing ads from IG, and YT.

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TikTok advertising spend by brand. 

*Spend is a directional approximation and does not include retargeting, or behavioural targeting. *Geo = Canada

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RBC and BMO are investing significantly in TikTok ads. In the past 6 months (April - October 2023), they spent $666K and $650K respectively.

*Spend is a directional approximation and does not include retargeting, or behavioural targeting. *Geo = Canada

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The competitive set generated 520M impressions, with RBC in the lead at 140M with a CPM of $4.76.

The average TikTok CPM is between $9.5 - $10. 

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All competitors except TD are allocating more than 10% of their TikTok ad spend budget towards Alberta. 

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The majority of TikTok ads (79%) are less than 15 seconds long. 

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Royal Bank of Canada

Work with TikTok influencers to speak to the Gen Z audience.

RBC collaborated with TikTok influencers to highlight specific features (Split with Friends) and initiatives (RBC Future Launch) that are catered to students.

Tactics Used:

• ‍Partner with creators who have a distinct persona on TikTok: Since Peter Nguyen is widely known for his comedic skits, RBC’s ad features his many well-known characters to advertise “Split with Friends”. 
• ‍Provide a solution to a problem: This video starts off by stating a common problem amongst students (i.e: tough job market) and provides an immediate solution (i.e: RBC Future Launch). 
• ‍Don’t be afraid to showcase your personality: The ad featuring Peter Nguyen showcases the fun and bold side of RBC, which is something that is not shown on other platforms such as Instagram. 

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Scotiabank

Choose an audience (i.e. travellers) and show them how you can help them achieve their goal.

The top two TikTok ads target the travel audience and show viewers how to gain extra points to go on their dream vacation. 

Tactics Used:

• ‍Hook the audience with a question: This video starts by posing a question to the audience “where would you travel if you could go anywhere in the world?”

• ‍“What I spend in a day” trend: This video takes on a different approach to this trend by showing viewers how she earns Scene+ points by doing everyday activities such as grocery shopping at Sobeys or watching a movie. 

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High-level overview of the organic TikTok landscape. 

*Bad press is defined by tangible negative brand impact on owned channels. It ignores minor negative “trolling” comments, and individual complaints. 

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Competitors are using TikTok to reach the Gen Z audience. A majority of the top posts are targeting students.

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Number of TikTok followers by brand. 

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There is a white space opportunity in the organic TikTok space. Scotiabank is the only brand that has a significant presence on TikTok, with 32K followers. 

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Total organic video views by brand.  

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Scotiabank generated a significant volume of organic video views on TikTok at 9.8M over the past 6 months (April - October 2023).

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Pay it Forward

Showcase genuine moments of Canadians supporting one another to connect with the audience on a personal level.

The “Pay it Forward” campaign featuring Zachery Dereniowski (17M TikTok followers) went viral with each video generating an average of 765K views. The series features a social experiment designed to demonstrate the generosity of Canadians.

Tactics Used:

• ‍Emotion-based marketing: The "Pay it Forward" series evokes an emotional reaction, as viewers witness Canadians helping each other during times of need.
• ‍“Next Person” trend: Scotiabank did their own take on the “Next Person” trend which asks viewers if they would like to take an item or give it to the next person. 

Views: 797K | Eng: 21K

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Views: 733K | Eng:19K

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Contests

Increase reach by running contests catered to the interest of your core audience.

Scotiabank ran multiple NHL contests on TikTok where viewers can get a chance to win tickets to a hockey game or receive gift cards to NHLShop.ca.

Tactics Used:

• ‍Follow & tag to enter the contest: An easy way to increase engagement is to require contestants to follow and tag a friend to enter the contest. 
• ‍Ask engaging questions: Scotiabank required viewers to comment the jersey number of their favourite player to enter the contest, giving the brand an opportunity to further engage with their audience.
• ‍Have a consistent brand voice: All contest videos feature the same creator to increase brand recognition. 

Views: 486K | Eng: 7.4K

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Views: 302K | Eng:1.2K

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Scotia on the Streets

Provide diverse perspectives on financial topics by going to the streets and asking fellow Canadians!

Scotiabank ran street interviews asking Canadians to share their money-saving tips & tricks.

Tactics Used:

• ‍Pose a question at the end to viewers: At the end of each video, the host asks viewers to share their own money-saving hacks, increasing engagement.
• ‍Give everyone a chance to speak: Each street interview includes a wide range of participants, spanning different ages, genders, and ethnic backgrounds.

Views: 612K | Eng: 2.9K

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Views: 565K | Eng:3.2K

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BMO Sponsored Athlete

Use star power to add cool factor to your brand and amplify interest in sponsored sports.

BMO teamed up with Alphonso Davies from Team Canada to create a series of branded videos about soccer for the #BMOGrowtheGame initiative which were posted on Davies’ TikTok page. 

Tactics Used:

• ‍Showcase heartfelt moments: Davies is shown ranking young players goal celebrations, giving each player a score of 10, and their happy reactions.
• ‍Use Upbeat Music: Amplify video impact by adding music to make the video more enjoyable. 
• ‍Video Effects: Video effects like stop motion and montage are used to tell the story effectively without words.

Views: 379K | Eng: 48.1K

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Views: 250K | Eng:11.7K

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Buzzworthy Events

Support good causes and get access to exclusive events.

CIBC and RBC used creators to promote their upcoming events, CIBC Run for the Cure and the RBC sponsored Taylor Swift Eras Tour in Canada. 

Tactics Used:

• ‍Voiceovers: Use voice overs over to share news of your event and any contextually relevant information that will enhance its impact. 
• ‍Have a Call to Action: Encourage users to participate or sign up for events by providing links and clear instructions in videos. 
• ‍Use Captions: Use captions to complement the voiceover and reiterate the most important details of your message.

Views: 3.8M | Eng: 8.4K

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Views: 191K | Eng:7.5K

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Testimonials

It’s always better when you hear it from a friend.

Creators can be used to give testimonials to audiences, explaining how they use products as part of their success stories, and showing product benefits like earning points on purchases. 

Tactics Used:

• ‍Show Lifestyle Applications: Share specific and relatable ways to use products and how it would benefit audiences to participate. 
• ‍Product Placement: Show influencers using bank products in their videos to illustrate ease of use and help integrate it into their stories. 
• ‍Montage with Voiceovers: Can be used to tell an impactful story that showcases product uses and benefits within a short video.

Views: 3.8M | Eng: 10K

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Views: 28K | Eng:2K

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Brands Included in the Analysis