It feels like AI is permeating every corner of our online life. And now, on TikTok, at least, they’ll be invading our pop-ups too.
This is because TikTok has developed Smart+, an AI-powered tool that automates every single part of the ad-buying process, including distribution optimization and the development of creative assets.
What is TikTok’s Star+?
TikTok claims that on Star+, marketers can “simply input their assets, budget, and targeting goals, and Smart+ automatically creates or selects the best creative asset.” Advertisers can choose to use the tool for individual campaign stages or automate the whole advertising process.
That being said, it looks like Star+ can be pretty lucrative. In a blog post, TikTok claims that Smart+ can, on average, improve return on ad spend by 52%.
The platform then cited a recent beta Smart+ campaign for Ray-Bans. According to TikTok, this beta campaign reached a 50% reduction in cost-per-acquisition and a 42% increase in return on investment.
The release of Smart+ follows the 2024 release of TikTok Symphony, which is now integrated with Smart+.
While the Symphony generative AI ad suite posed plenty of possibilities for companies, it also had some troubling implications. Namely, the threat of creators being removed from the ad-making process entirely.
While the ad-buying process is a little different from ad-making, it’s still a process that involves creators. Smart+, in turn, could still risk the livelihood of the creative force that made TikTok possible in the first place.
