ASPCA, TikTok Collaborate to Showcase Animals & Save Lives

We often share techniques for using social media to engage potential adopters, and we’re excited to tell you about a fresh, exciting way to target a demographic that may be new to you.

There’s been lots of buzz about how popular the TikTok app has become. Formerly known as Musical.ly, TikTok is a social media app for creating compelling, short videos. Check out this New York Times article about the meteoric rise of TikTok and how it’s changing the face of social media.

The ASPCA is partnering with TikTok on an initiative that begins August 16, 2019 and goes through Thursday, August 22. For every U.S.-based app user who posts an animal video using the hashtag #PetBFF, TikTok will donate $1 to the ASPCA.

And as part of this partnership, TikTok is offering an incentive for shelters and rescues. Shelters and rescues that join in the next week are eligible to receive personalized support about account creation and best practices, as well as TikTok creator involvement. If you would like help opening an account, please email: tiktokforgood@tiktok.com.

Now over 500 million users strong, TikTok is especially popular with a younger demographic. Brands and celebrities have been jumping on TikTok to raise awareness about their work, speak to their fans, and leverage the popular short-form video format.

If you’re not already on TikTok, consider creating an account to snatch up your shelter or rescue’s username. Tap into one of your social media-savvy employees to start creating content, or see if any of your volunteers have a particular interest in TikTok.

3 Top TikTok Tips

1) Most TikTok videos are made to music, and there are usually specific snippets of songs that become popular at a given time. For example, this song has been trending on TikTok, and many users have leveraged that song to showcase adoptables.

2) TikTok videos are typically 15 seconds in length, and they are shot vertically. See if you can capture some adorable or interesting content of animals on your phone, and find a relevant song that you can use with it. Here’s an example of how the ASPCA showcased rescue horses against “Old Town Road” by Lil Nas X, another popular song on TikTok.

3) Humor is a major draw on TikTok, especially when what’s happening the video correlates with the song. There have been a variety of successful videos made to the song “Baby Shark Dance,” and many of them showcase adorable animals like this one. Don’t forget to use relevant hashtags!