We Went Viral On TikTok

January 23, 2022

Last week we went Viral on TikTok.

Not once, but a few times. Since then, it’s been nothing short of amazing. Our daily sales have skyrocketed, and our main concerns are inventory issues now. 

Good problems, am I right? 

So I want to share what we did, what led to us going Viral, what we learned, and what our plan is going forwards to keep the momentum going. 

The Back Story

I was lucky enough to have a call with a certain well-known influencer and marketer lately, whose name might rhyme with Lary Dee. He essentially told us to go all-in on TikTok, both organic and paid. In his opinion, you can build a $100m DTC business on TikTok alone. 

Before this, we weren’t doing much of anything on TikTok organically. I was spending about $750-$1k a day profitably, but our organic game was lacking. 

I had a sinking feeling that we were really missing the boat by not investing into TikTok organically and it turns out I was right. 

So we made a few videos, not expecting too much. The first video we just said we were new to TikTok, and asked what questions people had for Bobbi. (My mom, and founder of Jones Road Beauty). 

The second and third videos we made are the ones that really took off. We just did some video replys to users' questions. The first one was about makeup tips for 50+. The second one was Bobbi responding to someone asking about contouring their nose, and Bobb is very anti-contouring, so she responded with a very authentic, positive answer. 

I know everyone is going to ask to see the videos, so here are the links: 

Fortunately, these videos were also picked up by Allure, Prevention.com, The Stylist, Yahoo News Syndication, New Beauty, and more, which I am sure contributed to the surge in traffic. 

I definitely would be lying if I said I planned this whole thing, and it’s obviously an unfair advantage to have Bobbi as the founder and face of the company. But there was a method to our madness. I knew that Bobbi is great on video, and I also know she speaks in soundbites, which can do well in short-form video.

I also love when she is polarizing, as long as it’s in a positive way. So I helped to “write the copy” and guide the strategy in a way that I thought would work well on the platform. 

I knew that TikTok is not the place to be pushing product. Instead I wanted to do to things, which she is best at:

  1. Teach how to apply makeup in a really simple, digestible way

  2. Talk about body positivity, embracing oneself, etc.

Some videos we only did one, some we did both. For example, I wrote the copy for this one and told Bobbi exactly what to say.

Although it was a how to/ educational video, I weaved in some brand pillars around body positivity and embracing who you are. It's subtle, but like I wrote about in this issue, weaving your pillars into every touchpoint with customers is how you create a really strong emotional connection.