Shopify Launches TikTok In-App Shopping

Shopify and TikTok on Tuesday (Aug. 24) unveiled TikTok Shopping, bringing organic Shopify product discovery and shopping tabs to TikTok.

Shopify customers with TikTok For Business accounts will have the ability to add shopping tabs to their TikTok profiles and sync their product listings into a mini storefront that links to their online stores during the checkout process. The partnership is in the pilot phase in the U.S. and U.K. and will soon be made available to select Canadian Shopify merchants, followed by a wider release in future months.

“Creators are paving the way for a new kind of entrepreneurship where content, community and commerce are key,” said Harley Finkelstein, president of Shopify, in the joint announcement. “By enabling new in-app shopping experiences and product discovery on TikTok for the first time, Shopify is powering the creator economy on one of the fastest-growing social and entertainment platforms in the world.”

Shopify and TikTok are also teaming up on product links, allowing Shopify merchants to tag products in TikTok posts and TikTok users to shop in the Shopify storefront or click on a tagged product in a TikTok video that takes them to the merchant’s online store.

“Our community has transformed shopping into an experience that’s rooted in discovery, connection and entertainment, creating unparalleled opportunities for brands to capture consumers' attention,” said Blake Chandlee, president, global business solutions at TikTok, in the joint announcement. “TikTok is uniquely placed at the center of content and commerce, and these new solutions make it even easier for businesses of all sizes to create engaging content that drives consumers directly to the digital point of purchase.”

Related news: Shopify And Its Merchants See Success With Shop Pay Installments Rollout

Shopify opened the Shop Pay Installments feature to all U.S. merchants in June, with purchases made using the buy now, pay later (BNPL) product tripling in the second quarter compared to the previous three months.

Shopify expanded its partnership with Affirm in June to allow all eligible merchants selling on the platform to use Shop Pay Installments, a move that saw one in four merchants using Shop Pay Installments generate 50 percent more orders than those using other payment types.