F L A U N T
Sales and media have become increasingly intertwined over the past several decades. What began as ad blocks on radio programming in the '30s and '40s, and transitioned into paid sponsorship deals on television in the '50s and '60s, entered the digital age in a big way throughout the 2010s with the advent of social media. This level of cross-branding between sales and media has reached new heights with the introduction of TikTok Shop to the US marketplace.
Geling Guo, a graduate of the Communication University of China, works as a co-founder of New Beginnings Creator Network (NBCN), a company that has been at the forefront of leveraging TikTok Shop to empower brands. NBCN helps businesses build successful, content-driven e-commerce strategies by harnessing the power of TikTok's unique platform to drive sales and customer engagement.
TikTok Shop has become a game-changing platform that allows creators to monetize their creativity. Geling Guo and NBCN's key role has involved helping businesses to connect with their target audiences through engaging content and influencer-led campaigns. By blending entertainment and commerce, NBCN allows brands to elevate their presence on TikTok Shop, maximizing sales potential.
NBCN began as a self-funded agency. It was a small venture with an average team member under the age of 25, but it has expanded exponentially in the past ten months.
"We started by negotiating with warehouses to sell leftover stock on TikTok Shop,” Geling explains. “I still remember how we all worked together in a cramped room in the Chinese community of Los Angeles."
Within just two months, NBCN helped a company that was selling a mini-fridge for face masks, which became the number one product in the TikTok Shop home living category. Recognizing the potential for significant sales growth, NBCN restructured its operations to focus on becoming a dedicated TikTok Shop brand service provider, helping businesses optimize their presence on the platform.
Geling and her team have since become leaders in content-driven e-commerce, empowering brands to leverage TikTok’s unique video-first approach to connect with audiences and increase sales. By integrating influencer marketing as a tool within broader brand strategies, NBCN has become well-known for enabling businesses to build profitable connections with their target customers.
TikTok Shop has become a powerful platform for creators to monetize their content by promoting products and brands directly to their audiences. By cutting out traditional middlemen, creators can advertise and sell products seamlessly through TikTok, reaching viewers instantly through engaging content.
Geling's unique approach to helping influencers and creators transition from social media stars to successful entrepreneurs is anchored in using creative content to drive sales. She and her team have extensively explored the rapid rate at which TikTok operates, and NBCN works closely with creators to develop content that resonates with their audience while driving e-commerce success.
In addition to assisting social media stars transition to entrepreneurship, NBCN has also helped numerous B2B companies transition to B2C sales on TikTok Shop.
For example, they assisted a T-shirt supplier for TJ Maxx in finding 200 influencers to create short videos for their products, achieving $2 million in sales in just one month. Similarly, they assisted and advised PacSun with a six-day TikTok Shop live-streaming event, during which they gained over $320,000 in sales.
Geling believes that creativity is the key to success in content-driven commerce. Authentic and engaging video content allows creators to connect with their audience emotionally and drive organic sales.
Geling's background in media and film have been immensely helpful on this front. After initially graduating from China's top media school, the Communication University of China, she came to the United States to study film production at the prestigious Chapman University's Dodge College of Film. Following this, Geling became a successful short film producer in her own right, winning numerous awards for shorts such as Drifting Boat and Floating.
The role she and NBCN now play in guiding creators through the content development process is quite similar to that of a traditional producer. NBCN aims to help creators navigate the online marketplace, tapping into TikTok trends while maintaining their unique creative voice, just like a film producer.
Geling's mission with NBCN is to help creators achieve short-term sales and build sustainable, long-term brands. In the fast-moving ecosystem of TikTok, garnering fleeting success is one thing, but developing and maintaining a lasting emotional connection with a fanbase is much more difficult. NBCN provides creators the tools, strategies, and mentorship to turn their passion into a viable business.
Geling is passionate about the future of e-commerce and how TikTok will continue to empower creators and redefine the relationship between entertainment and commerce.
"I am very confident that content-driven e-commerce will become a new form of shopping and will increasingly influence traditional e-commerce and even the offline economy. In the past, shopping was demand-driven. However, in content-driven e-commerce, the consumer might not even know that an automatic curling iron or a mini-fridge specifically designed for skincare products exists until they are drawn in by a 30-second video, which then sparks a strong desire to purchase. This shift turns shopping from being demand-driven to interest-driven," Geling concludes.
NBCN strives to stay ahead of the curve and capitalize on the evolving opportunities within TikTok Shop by supporting creators and brands to navigate this new landscape.
TikTok Shop is a perfect blend of marketing and sales, where every marketing strategy is planned based on sales data, and Geling's team has learned how to maximize its potential.
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