TikTok

TikTok Whitelisting: How to White Label Creator Content on TikTok

TikTok whitelisting instantly transforms creator videos into top-tier ads. This post explains how to whitelist TikTok content and why brands should do it.

woman filming a makeup tutorial

“What’s the deal with TikTok whitelisting?” 

We’ve been getting this question a lot

Shoppers on TikTok rely on creators' recommendations to find products and make purchases.

We know all too well that TikTok creators boost ad engagement and performance. That’s why brands feature influencers so heavily in their campaigns.

But what if there was a way to streamline the process of making creator ads? 

What if you could take a viral creator video and run it as an ad on your account ASAP? No repurposing, waiting and needless back-and-forth required.

By whitelisting creators on TikTok, you can do exactly that. Want to learn more? Keep reading!

What is TikTok Whitelisting, Anyway?

TikTok whitelisting is the process of obtaining access to a creator’s videos to promote on your brand’s account. White-labeled videos are also known as Spark Ads.

Translation? You take a piece of organic content and transform it into sponsored content.

 Here’s the short of how the process works: 

  • Creators provide permission for brands to promote their videos. 
  • Brands set up their TikTok ads as normal. Details such as campaign goals and budget are the same as any other ad. The difference? Brands use the creator’s whitelisted video instead of uploading their own.
  • The whitelisted video gets published as an ad on the brand’s account. The creator’s original video will also remain live on their account.

Know how TikTok says “Create TikToks, Not Ads”? That’s what white-labeling is all about! 

Typical branded content on TikTok runs from the creator’s account with an #ad disclosure. With whitelisting, you promote creator content from your brand account and present it as your own.

Examples of TikTok Creator Ads in Action

Creator campaigns are among the most popular types of TikTok ads thanks to their authenticity.

Chances are you’ve seen your fair share of Spark Ads in the wild. Let’s look at a couple of creator ad examples that popped off on TikTok in the past.

Colorful and perfect for recipe videos, BlendJet’s portable blender is a hit among TikTokers. 

In 2021, the brand ran a Spark Ad campaign featuring lifestyle influencers, foodies and fitness creators. These creators put together a variety of how-tos and mixing hacks showing off the BlendJet in action. 

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Source: @blendjet

The authentic, #TikTokMadeMeBuyIt-style content blew up. The results of the campaign?

  • 28 million impressions
  • 407,000 clicks
  • 12,000 conversions

Below is another brilliant creator ad example from Little Moons. When the brand went viral on TikTok for their delicious mochi desserts, demand was so high that they couldn’t keep them stocked in stores. This resulted in a flood of user-generated content from customers trying to hunt them down.

Little Moons capitalized on the buzz with a Spark Ad campaign. They ran a one-day-only creator ad announcing that their desserts were available at UK’s Tesco chain.

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Source: @littlemoonsmochi

The results of this creator campaign were staggering, including:

  • A 1,300% in-store sales increase
  • 6.7 million campaign impressions
  • A 4.54% engagement rate

Both case studies highlight the power of putting creators front-and-center in your ads. With whitelisting, the process of building creator campaigns is seamless and streamlined.

What Are the Requirements for Whitelisting on TikTok?

Here’s the good news: TikTok actually makes the process of making creator ads pretty easy.

But before we get into the steps of white-labeling videos, there’s a bit of housekeeping to do.

Below are the prereqs to Spark Ads for both brands and creators:

TikTok Whitelisting Requirements for Brands

  • Make sure your account is able to run ads. Shocker, right? You’ll need access to the TikTok Ads Manager. If you’re already advertising on TikTok or have run campaigns in the past, you’re golden. 
  • Know which creators you’ll be requesting content from. Is there a creator that regularly shouts you out? Or maybe a customer video’s going viral and you want to keep the momentum going? Nice! Ideally, you should run Spark Ads with creators you already know and have open communication with. 
  • Be prepared to coordinate with your creator(s). There are a couple of minor details to hash out prior to whitelisting TikTok creators. This includes which video to promote and the duration of your campaign. This can all be decided in a brief email or DM, though.

Note: although it is possible to find influencers through the TikTok Creator Marketplace, this post focuses on whitelisting creators you already have relationships with. If you’re not quite there yet, check out our posts on contacting TikTok influencers and brand ambassadors.

TikTok Whitelisting Requirements for Creators

  • Enable your account to share videos with brands. We’ll explain the process below! Thankfully, only a few quick taps in your TikTok settings are required.
  • Be ready to share the code for the video you whitelist. This is also super simple and straightforward. 
  • Be prepared to follow up with the brand. For example, brands might want to discuss performance metrics and interactions for a whitelisted video.

How to White-Label Creator Content on TikTok Step-by-Step

Now, let’s say you have a positive, working relationship with a creator and want to get the ball rolling on a campaign. Here’s a rundown of the whitelisting process.

Step 1 (Brand): Pick the TikTok Video You Want to Promote

No surprises here — you can’t run ads without a video!

Review your creator’s content and decide which video would best translate to a TikTok ad. To narrow down your choices, consider:

  • Recent organic content that’s seen strong engagement
  • Creator posts that have gone viral
  • Videos that highlight your latest products or promotions

View counts can clue you in on potentially strong ads. Likewise, you can always reach out to your creator to see which of their branded posts have been crushing it lately. 

For this post, we coordinated with our own creator (Hi Alexa!) to explain how whitelisting works. We’ll be working with her videos to document the process.

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Unlike Instagram, whitelisting on TikTok doesn’t give you blanket access to their account assets. In other words, you do need to specify a particular video to promote before moving forward.

Step 2 (Creator): Enable Ad Authorization and Share the Video Post Code

This is the only step in the whitelisting process that directly involves your creator. 

At this point, creators will need to authorize the brand’s account to use their content. They’ll also need to provide the unique code for the video you want to promote.

If your creator has partnered with brands in the past, chances are they’ll know what to do.

If not, don’t sweat it! Creators simply need to go to their TikTok account settings. From there:

  • Select “Creator tools” and turn “Ad Settings” on
  • Enable “Ad authorization” (this prompts the creator to authorize content for promotion) 
  • After selecting a time frame, tap “Authorize”

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This screen will also provide a video code for creators to share. Brands will need to coordinate getting the code from their creators. This can be done via DM or email. 

And yes, your code should look like a jumbled mess of numbers, letters and special characters!

Once you have access to the video code, the creator’s role in whitelisting is done for now.

Step 3 (Brand): Authorize the Video to Run as an Ad (Paste the Post Code)

From here on out, the brand is in control. Here’s what’s next now that you have the video code:

  • Log into TikTok Ads Manager
  • Select “Assets” on the top bar and then “Spark Ad posts” on the left-hand side
  • Click the “Apply for Authorization” button in the middle of the screen

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This is where you’re going to paste your creator’s video code. Assuming you have it, pop the code into the search bar and proceed.

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If the code is correct and the video is valid, a preview will appear. You’ll also see a few details about your whitelisted video such as length and resolution. Then, click “confirm.”

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After receiving confirmation of authorization,  you’ll be prompted to go create your Spark Ad.

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Step 4 (Brand): Define Your Ad’s Audience, Budget and Goals

At this point, you’ll fill out the specific details of your ad campaign. This includes your audience, budget and objectives.

Because all of the above is dependent on your individual business, we won’t get too into it. . 

If you’re new to TikTok, you can use the “Simplified Mode” for speedy ad creation. On the flip side, “Custom Mode” provides a more in-depth creation process for fine-tuning your ads.

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When you reach the “Identity” and “Ad Details” sections of ad creation, you’re almost at the finish line!

Step 5 (Brand): Select Your Creator’s Video and Submit the Ad

This is where you’ll link your creator’s video with your ad. 

  • Under “Identity,” click the checkbox (“Use TikTok account to deliver Spark ads”)
  • Under “Ad Details,” select “Ad format” and then pick your creative (“Single video”)
  • Select “Use other authorized account or post”
  • You should see your creator’s account pop up — click on their name
  • Select “TikTok Post”

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You’ll then be prompted to look through the creator’s authorized content. Find your whitelisted video, select it and click “Confirm.”

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You should see a preview of your Spark Ad in action! From here, you can fine-tune the details of your creatives, captions and targeting based on your campaign. When it’s good to go, click “Submit.”

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That wasn’t so bad, was it?

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Why TikTok Whitelisting is So Valuable for Brands

With millions of consumers rushing to TikTok, brands are eager to reach more social shoppers.

And creators are key to making it happen. 

This is especially true on TikTok where recommendations and product discovery are central to the platform. To wrap things up, we’ll highlight why the white-labeling process is worth it for brands.

Creators Instantly Improve the Performance of Ads on TikTok

The numbers don’t lie: creators boost ad engagement in a big way.

From more interactions to greater reach and brand recall, featuring creators is key to getting the most out of our campaigns. There’s a reason why the best brands on TikTok lean so heavily on creator content.

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Source: TikTok

Creator interactions also go hand in hand with long-term sales. The modern customer journey sees buyers bounce between multiple platforms and pieces of content before taking action. Since TikTok is a hub of product discovery, having a strong creator presence can translate to sales over time.

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Source: TikTok

Remove the Guesswork from Your TikTok Advertising Strategy

Marketing is often a matter of trial and error. Trust us: we get it.

Thing is, creator whitelisting helps you identify ad content your target audience will love.

Think about it. If an organic video performed well on Tiktok organically, it’d likely be a strong candidate for an ad.

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Source / Source

Rather than wrack your brain for fresh TikTok campaign ideas, you can promote organic content with a sense of confidence.

Add Much-Needed Variety to Your Brand’s Feed

An underrated bonus of influencer whitelisting is that you can break the monotony of your “traditional” content. If you’re solely posting product videos, an off-the-cuff video from an influencer might be a welcome addition to your feed. 

You might also learn the style of videos that creators produce is something you can emulate yourself. This includes how-tos, tutorials and showcasing products in action.

Gather Valuable Data to Grow Your TikTok Presence

Between the dark funnel and restricted ad targeting on the horizon, anything you can do to gather more customer data is a plus. 

Ad campaigns themselves are a great way to learn more about your target audience. Of course, that comes with a price tag.

But when you run Spark Ads, consider the data and performance of the original post are visible to the creator. Through influencer whitelisting you can gather three sets of customer data per ad versus just one. This includes:

  • The organic post’s view count and engagement prior to the campaign
  • Paid campaign performance when the ad goes live
  • How the organic post continues to perform post-campaign

Boost the ROI of Your Influencer Marketing Efforts

Brands rightfully want to see a strong ROI from their influencer campaigns.

Getting more out of your creator partnerships means taking action after their content is live. 

Food for thought: every piece of creator content is a potential ad. 

And so influencer whitelisting is a valuable next step for brands that want to maximize working with creators.

For example, white-label ads allow you to build campaigns without filming or editing a frame of content.  You already have existing creatives proven to perform organically. That’s huge time and resources saved.

Influencer whitelisting is a cost-effective advertising opportunity by default. That said, how well Spark Ads perform versus other social ads is telling. 

A recent case study from Hootsuite highlights how the company experimented with a Spark campaign that resulted in a $0.002 cost per view. The study notes that TikTok’s ad platform isn’t nearly as saturated as Instagram or Facebook. How’s that for stretching your influencer marketing budget?

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Awesome TikTok Creator Ads Start with Awesome Creators!

More engagement. Awesome creatives. Less money spent.

The recent buzz around creator whitelisting is totally justified. If you’re already working with creators and you’re satisfied with your campaign results, testing the waters of white-label ads is a natural next step.

But to run great creator campaigns, you need great creators.

We know firsthand that finding and pitching creators for TikTok campaigns can quickly spiral into a full-time job. Despite the benefits, the process of managing creator campaigns can eat into your schedule before you even have a chance to scale.

That’s why you should let Statusphere do the heavy lifting. We handle everything from vetting and matching creators to getting your products in their hands and reporting on your campaigns. Then, the hardest decision you’ll have to make is which creator posts to boost as they roll in.

Want to know how the process works?  Contact one of our consumer-to-consumer marketing experts today to see how Statusphere can get more creators talking about your brand ASAP.

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