TikTok's new AI ad offerings are a mixed bag, agency execs say

TikTok last week deepened its menu of AI-powered advertising tech with the launch of Symphony, a suite of tools that includes a video generator, ads manager and rebranded virtual assistant. The new offerings join a trend that has been building in the social media space over the past year and a half, in which platforms are courting brands with next-gen technology that can expedite the creation and placement of ads. But marketers who spoke with Ad Age voiced mixed feelings about Symphony, praising its promises for optimization but expressing skepticism about its video generation. According to Justine Braun, director of data science at VML-owned Swift Agency, this ambivalence reflects how the ad industry is becoming less spellbound, and more selective, when it comes to generative AI solutions for its businesses. “There’s a big sense of ‘Where do I go to learn about all of these new tools that are popping up every day?’” she said. “Marketers [still] haven’t seen AI tools that have really helped all that much.” Check out the latest Ad Age events and award programs TikTok did not immediately respond to a request for comment. For Devon Schorr, strategy director at Movers+Shakers, the most creative tool in TikTok’s Symphony suite is also its least enticing. Creative Studio is a video generator that can produce TikTok-fit content in as little as a few minutes. Its two main features are “product to video,” which can generate a dynamic post from static product images and information, and “remix video,” which can revise existing posts to fit new categories on the platform. Despite its simple proposition, “product to video” is not very useful, said Schorr. The primary issue is that TikTok users typically prefer to see ads that are entertaining—that is, ads that don’t resemble ads. Posting content that is mainly product-focused is something users do not want, Schorr said. Video generators, such as OpenAI’s Sora and Meta’s Advantage+ ad creation tools, are the newest genre of generative AI. While they may someday pose particular boons for fields like digital advertising, in which quick and versatile video creation is important, they have yet to find a foothold in many actual marketing strategies. One concern is that consumers will reject ads and promotions that appear AI-generated. Brands including Lego and Levi’s have encountered this backlash, spurring others to publicly vow to refrain from using AI in their advertising. Schorr expects TikTok users to also spurn branded posts not created by humans. Diana Perlov, senior director of client success at creator marketing company Open Influence, thinks the AI decision-making of Creative Studio could take away from the personalized feel of TikTok ads. “Remix video,” for example, is meant to re-use old content in fresh ways. Given the onslaught of new content that appears on the platform, whether or not recycling is a wise strategy for TikTok marketing is unclear. More TikTok news: Creators call out shady brand partnerships Another issue with Creative Studio is that it will likely require a substantial amount of feedback before marketers can begin to trust its competence and use it for consumer-facing posts, said Swift’s Braun. She expects the tool will need at least six months to prove its strengths and weaknesses. “Right now, it’s not going to be perfect,” she said. Better optimization and access to performance data Despite skepticism around Creative Studio, Symphony’s other features do have marketers excited. Ads Manager is an integration of an AI-powered system that optimizes ads based on selected criteria. For example, a marketer can set a budget and KPIs, then input their assets, and the manager can automatically determine which audiences to serve those assets and at which times in order to meet the pre-established KPIs. “We’ve been waiting on a tool like this forever,” said Swift, who expects the tool will allow far less experienced data analysts to get the most out of their advertising on the platform. In comparison to Symphony’s simplicity, Meta’s ads manager is complex, Swift said, and doesn’t have the same kind of capacity for hands-off optimization. Meanwhile, Google’s Performance Max manager centers AI in an even more authoritative role, but brands have so far had an unpredictable experience. The other third of TikTok’s AI suite is Symphony Assistant, a rebranded chatbot originally launched as Creative Assistant in February. Assistant is a kind of expert on all things TikTok, capable of helping brands refine their scripts, generate new ideas and develop data-driven strategies for the platform. Perhaps most notable is Assistant’s ability to surface concrete insights that can be immediately helpful for marketers deploying ads. Open Influence’s Perlov, who has had early access to this tool, said it can relay real-time trends, video examples and even top performing ads across verticals. Marketers have previously been limited to data on the performance of their own campaigns, but now can leverage a wider swath of analysis that can inform creative and strategic decision-making. “This makes your search very granular,” she said. AI and TikTok TikTok’s dive into AI ad tech will not be met with unalloyed enthusiasm—as it may have a year and a half ago—as marketers have learned that generative tools are hard to control, said Swift. This reality check is accompanied by significant fears around the technology’s future. Production companies are worried about AI co-opting the creative process, and brands at large have grown weary of the black box surrounding Big Tech automation. One aspect that may be working in Symphony’s favor is that it has been developed by ByteDance, and not some third-party. As the owner of TikTok, ByteDance has unrivaled access to its algorithms and data, and can be expected to be as good a steward as any to brands looking to strengthen their marketing on the platform. That ByteDance is the authority behind Symphony will assuage feelings of distrust in AI and increase brand interest, said Perlov. Also: OpenAI vs. Google—the latest on the AI battle Movers+Shakers’ Schorr sees Symphony as offering particular value to small businesses that cannot afford social media agency partners. For this reason, TikTok may also be helping its case as it faces a potential ban in the United States, she said. The platform has consistently voiced its role in helping small businesses as a reason it deserves to maintain operations as is. Symphony is the latest in a series of AI pushes at TikTok. Earlier this month, The Verge reported that the platform is testing AI-generated search results, which resemble the automatic summaries that Google is highlighting in its own search browser. Last year, TikTok began testing an in-app chatbot called Tako to help users discover and search for content.

TikTok's new AI ad offerings are a mixed bag, agency execs say

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