Digital Marketing Strategies on Short-Video Streaming Platforms: A Case Study of TikTok

Abstract

With the rapid rise of short-video streaming platforms, TikTok has emerged as a highly influential digital marketing channel, reshaping the ways in which brands connect with consumers. This study focuses on TikTok’s marketing strategies and operational mechanisms, exploring its platform ecosystem, content dissemination patterns, and commercial conversion pathways. Through literature review, data analysis, and case studies, it examines TikTok’s closed-loop marketing model of “content–interaction–conversion,” while addressing issues such as content homogenization, misleading promotion, and imbalanced traffic distribution. The research proposes optimization strategies, including refining algorithmic mechanisms, fostering niche content development, and enhancing transparency in collaborations between brands and Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs). The study concludes that in the realm of digital marketing, TikTok must seek a balance between expanding traffic and ensuring the long-term sustainability of its user ecosystem, so as to safeguard the healthy development of its marketing environment. This paper provides some suggestions on digital marketing strategy of a streaming media platform.