If you want to make money off TikTok, the TikTok Creator Marketplace platform (TCM)  should be high up on your list of priorities. Apart from the TikTok Creativity Program, it’s one of the major ways to monetize your profile.
Since it was launched in 2021, it has been connecting brands with qualified creators to promote products and facilitate sponsorships through influencer marketing campaigns.
But how exactly does the TCM work? And how can you join?
Here’s everything you need to know.
Contents
What is the TikTok Creator Marketplace ?
The TCM is designed to connect brands who want to invest in TikTok influencer marketing with content creators. It allows them to find creators that align with their voice and mission and who’d be an asset in promoting their brand’s products.
The filters businesses can use to pinpoint the right creators include age, content category, gender, and location. Plus, they can take a look at a creator’s core metrics page, their target audience demographics, as well as their video performance trends to check if they’re something they want to collaborate with.
For instance, Benefit Cosmetics used the TikTok creator marketplace API to pinpoint 22 Millennial and Gen Z creators launch of their brow microfilling pen. As part of the Benefit Brow Challenge, the creators featured the pen as well as a new brow dance set to an original soundtrack in their content.
@mielliet24
Millie T is one of 22 creators involved in the Benefit Cosmetics Challenge.
The result? Benefit Cosmetics’s campaign generated 1.4 million impressions and over 3,500 view hours, off just 4.5 minutes of content. Plus, other people joined the challenge and amplified the campaign’s reach and engagement rate through user-generated content.
For creators, joining the TikTok’s official collaboration platform means they get a shot at lucrative brand deals. So, how can you sign up? And what boxes do you need to check?
How can you join the TikTok Creator Marketplace?
To join the TCM, you need to fulfil a few basic criteria. You need to:Â
- be over 18Â
- be located in a country where TCM is available (see TikTok’s ToS)Â
- have a personal account (not a TikTok business account)Â
- have over 10,000 followersÂ
- have over 100,000 likes on your content within the last 28 daysÂ
- have posted at least 3 videos within the last 28 daysÂ
That means that as long as you tick the basic age and location criteria, the TikTok Creator Marketplace is accessible to any creator with high organic content quality, engaged followers, and a knack for winning over TikTok’s algorithm.
Successful TikToker Olivia Henry gives you a run-down on her experience joining the TCM.
If you can check all these boxes, all you need to do to join the TikTok creator marketplace is to just self-apply in the app. You’ll hear back within 24 hours if your application was successful.
The other way to join the TCM is by getting an invitation from TikTok directly. If you’re one of the lucky creators to get one, all you need to do is to accept the terms and conditions.
How does the TikTok Creator Marketplace work?
Once you’ve successfully joined the TCM, you need to complete your creator profile under Profile > Menu > Creator tools > Creator Marketplace > Dashboard > Edit profile
Here you can list:Â
- your official profile picture
- your business email addressÂ
- your business phone number
- links to other social media platforms, like YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook.Â
You can also manage your inbox notifications and set whether you’re currently taking new brand requests. This will give brands a great overview of who you are.Â
Once that’s done, all you’ll have to do is wait for brands to reach out.Â
When you receive a request for a paid campaign, it will show up in the Opportunities tab in the Marketplace as an Action required item. You’ll also get a notification. To move forward, you’ll need to respond whether you’re interested or not. And you’re off! 🚀
There’s another benefit to being part of the TCM. Joining the program will also give you access to the Creator Marketplace Academy, which has useful tips on growing your profile and creating ad-friendly content.
One thing you should know is that, as you’re producing sponsored content, TCM videos can’t be monetized under the TikTok Creativity program.
The Bottom Line: Harnessing the Benefits of the TikTok Creator Marketplace
The TikTok Creator Marketplace is a fantastic way to monetize your channel and find lucrative brand collaborations. The threshold to join is definitely manageable, as long as you focus on producing high-quality content and engaging your audience.
Once you’re successfully signed up, the sky’s your limit!
FAQs
The TikTok Creator Marketplace connects brands to content creators for collaborations and influencer marketing campaigns.
For creators, the TCM is a great way to find brand collaborations and sponsorships, and to monetize their profile.
To join the TCM, you need to be over 18, live in a country where it is available, have posted at least 3 videos in the last 28 days and have over 10,000 followers and 100,000 likes. Once you check these boxes, you can self-apply in the app. In some cases, TikTok will directly send an invite to creators to join.
You can self-apply directly in the app. There are a few requirements: You must be over 18, live in a country where it is available, post at least 3 videos in 28 days and have over 10,000 followers and 100,000 likes. TikTok also occasionally sends direct invites to creators.
There are six requirements to join the TCM. First, you need to have a personal account, be over 18, and live in a country where it is available. Plus, you need to have over 10,000 followers, and within the last 28 days have posted at least 3 videos and gotten over 100,000 likes.
