Driving the news: TikTok rolled out new ad solutions at Advertising Week, aiming to help brands achieve authentic community engagement. The offerings include automated Performance Tools, enhanced Measurement Capabilities, and advanced Privacy Technologies.

Why it matters: With over 1 billion users, TikTok has evolved into the de facto global entertainment hub and a prime destination for advertisers seeking to reach a (mostly) younger audience.

The big picture: TikTok's new AI platform, Smart+, automates the ad creation and deployment process, simplifying everything from creative development to audience targeting. It aims to make ad campaigns more accessible and effective for brands. Key features include:

• Out of Phone: Retail (a cheeky play on OOH/DOOH) allows brands to showcase TikTok content in physical retail locations. The tools are designed to lower ad campaign costs and boost engagement beyond online and in-app.

• GMV Max helps merchants enhance their gross merchandise value through automated TikTok Shop campaigns.

• Privacy-Enhancing Technologies (PETs) enable advertisers to gain insights using first-party data with robust privacy measures.

By the numbers:

• Advertisers using Smart+ Web Campaigns have seen a 52% improvement in return on ad spend, according to TikTok.

• 61% of TikTok users have made purchases after seeing content on the platform.

• Merchants using GMV Max experienced an average 30% uplift in Gross Merchandise Value.

• Conversion Lift Studies showed an average conversion lift of at least 25%.

Competitive edge: The automated performance tools launched on October 7, 2024, and aim to streamline various aspects of advertising, making it a formidable competitor to AI-driven ad tools from Meta, Microsoft, and Google.