‘Shoppertainment’ seen to boost holiday spending

By Miguel Hanz L. Antivola, Reporter

SMALL BUSINESS owners must leverage “shoppertainment” and Filipinos’ gift-giving culture this holiday season to build community, create immersive shopping experiences, and drive sales, according to short-form video and e-commerce platform TikTok.

“Holiday trends are affecting overall shoppertainment content with stories about festivities and spending time with families,” Life Dawn Cervero, vertical head for food and beverage at TikTok Philippines, told BusinessWorld on the sidelines of the company’s Holidays For You briefing on Tuesday.

“Over September, we saw a lot of people talk about their holiday preparations. In October and November, it’s about the kinds of gifts they are going to give or want for themselves. By December, we see that converting into actual purchases,” she added.

Shoppertainment is e-commerce that aims to attract consumers with content to help drive sales.

It is projected to expand to a market value of over $1 trillion by 2025, according to the Boston Consulting Group.

“There is a fundamental shift in consumer-based brand interactions, and consumers now seek engaging, exciting, educational, and entertaining experiences with brands,” Ms. Cervero noted.

TikTok Philippines reported a 117% year-on-year surge in the number of sellers joining its Shop platform from January to July, it said in an e-mail interview with BusinessWorld.

“From discovery to purchase, the platform triggers desirability and action, and this peaks in December, where as much as 70% of Filipino TikTok users made an online purchase last year,” Ms. Cervero said.

Amid the rise in shoppers on the platform during the mega sales and “ber” seasons, TikTok noted that 70% of Filipino consumers are looking for Christmas inspiration, 63% are seeing how Christmas is celebrated globally, and 56% are staying connected with family and friends, based on a consumer behavior study it commissioned from research firm Toluna.

The study showed that 97% of users acted after watching ads on the platform, with 61% adding items to their carts after seeing entertaining content and with 50% taking advantage of limited time offers.

The use of top hashtags, such as #TikTokMadeMeBuyIt, #Holiday, and #GiftIdeas, also boosts product discovery on TikTok’s For You page, it added.

The top product categories on the platform include beauty and fashion, consumer electronics, and food and beverage, according to the study.

Ms. Cervero noted that brands and small businesses must find a shoppertainment niche that works for them in terms of content, creators, partners, and even account managers.

“It opens so many more doors for them and opportunities to not only sell their products but also build communities with their customers,” she said.