The social media app said it would begin pilot-testing TikTok Shopping with a group of Shopify merchants in the US, Britain and Canada in the coming weeks
TikTok unveiled plans to allow users to buy products while using the video-sharing app in a partnership with e-commerce platform Shopify.
TikTok Shopping will bring new features that help Shopify merchants create engaging, organic content that sends consumers directly to their online store for checkout, making it easy for people to explore and buy the products they discover on TikTok, said a statement from the app owned by China-based ByteDance.
TikTok joins Instagram and Facebook in offering in-app shopping, part of a larger shift toward what is known as social commerce as creators seek out new ways to make money from their audience.
Blake Chandlee, head of global business solutions at TikTok, said the app is uniquely placed at the centre of content and commerce, and these new solutions make it even easier for businesses of all sizes to create engaging content that drives consumers directly to the digital point of purchase.
The TikTok Shopping pilot is currently available to Shopify merchants in the US and UK. A select group of merchants in Canada will participate in the pilot in the coming weeks, and the feature will roll out to additional regions in the coming months. Shopify merchants can request early access to the TikTok Shopping pilot via the TikTok channel for Shopify.
Harley Finkelstein, Shopify president, said the partnership will help boost platform “creators” who promote products online by enabling new in-app shopping experiences and product discovery on TikTok for the first time.
Shopify is powering the creator economy on one of the fastest-growing social and entertainment platforms in the world, he said. We are excited to help this next generation of entrepreneurs connect with their audiences.
The news comes amid rising interest in social commerce that is expected to be worth some $36 billion in the US this year, according to the research firm eMarketer.
An eMarketer report said Facebook was leading this segment, and that an estimated 56 million US residents would be making at least one purchase on the leading social network this year.