When it comes to eCommerce, businesses face a crucial decision—where to sell their products to maximize visibility, reach, and profit. Two giants stand out in the modern digital marketplace: TikTok Shop, a relative social commerce newcomer on an impressive upward path, and Amazon, the universally recognized global online shopping titan.
While Amazon has long dominated eCommerce with its massive product catalog and efficient fulfillment. TikTok Shop, on the other hand, is redefining the landscape by bringing social engagement to direct shopping. Choosing between them—or deciding to use both—depends on your business goals, the kind of experience you want to create for your customers, and how much you’re willing to invest in the infrastructure needed to thrive.
In this article, we’ll break down the unique features, upsides and drawbacks of each platform, helping you understand whether TikTok Shop or Amazon—or a combination of both—can offer the best strategy for your business.
TikTok Shop vs Amazon: Top Features
While they both represent highly efficient eCommerce solutions, TikTok Shop and Amazon have their own sets of very distinct features that make both selling and buying on them completely different experiences. Let’s check them out:
TikTok Shop
- Social Commerce: As an integral part of the TikTok app, TikTok Shop combines social media engagement and virality with eCommerce. Users can shop directly from videos, livestreams, or influencer promotions without leaving the platform.
- Live Shopping: TikTok Shop enables real-time selling through livestreams, where influencers or brands can showcase products and interact with viewers.
- Target Audience: TikTok Shop is particularly powerful for businesses targeting Gen Z and younger millennials, who dominate the platform’s user base.
- Seller Tools: Sellers get to use marketing tools like TikTok Shop Ads, TikTok-funded promotions, and advanced analytics within the Seller Center help optimize engagement and sales.
- Affiliate Marketing: The platform allows businesses to partner with influencers and creators to drive sales through the TikTok Shop Affiliate Program.
Amazon
- Search-Based Shopping: Amazon operates as a traditional marketplace where users search for products, compare prices, and read reviews. It is considered by many as the go-to platform for online shopping.
- Prime Membership: With Amazon Prime, customers enjoy fast, often free, shipping, increasing convenience and customer loyalty.
- Global Reach: Amazon has an expansive international audience and fulfillment network, which often makes it the first choice for businesses looking to expand globally.
- Logistics and Fulfillment: Amazon’s FBA (Fulfillment by Amazon) service provides streamlined logistics, allowing businesses to outsource warehousing, packaging, and shipping.
- Product Categories: Amazon supports a vast array of product categories, from electronics to groceries, making it a highly diversified platform.
- Amazon Marketing – Amazon has a variety of advertising opportunities to highlight and promote your products in the Amazon marketplace.
Key Differences
The main difference between TikTo Shop and Amazon is that one is part of a social media app and the other one is a full-fledged online marketplace. Let’s explore their differences across key eCommerce segments:
Sales Approach
TikTok Shop: Focuses on discovery, social and impulse buying. Consumers are often introduced to products through engaging videos and influencers they follow, leading to quick, spontaneous purchases. Businesses selling through the platform often find their sales benefiting from the viral, spontaneous and organic nature of the platform.
Amazon: Relies on intent-based shopping. Customers go to Amazon with a desired product in mind, often comparing options and features and looking for the best deal.
Audience and Reach
TikTok Shop: Its strength lies in targeting younger, mobile-first users who enjoy social shopping. However, its reach is still growing outside of this demographic.
Amazon: With a much broader user base, Amazon attracts consumers across various age groups and demographics, making it ideal for mass-market products.
Marketing Tools
TikTok Shop: Emphasizes content-driven marketing. Brands rely on influencers, user-generated content, TikTok Ads, and viral videos to drive engagement. The platform offers a rich range of ad formats, including Video Shopping Ads, Live Shopping Ads, In-Feed and Top View ads, and more.
Amazon: Offers more traditional advertising options like Sponsored Products, Sponsored Brands, and organic search optimization, focusing on user intent and purchase behavior. Amazon runs its own Ad Server to create, customize and measure campaigns, and a messaging system called Amazon Marketing Stream delivers push notifications on key metrics during campaigns.
Fulfillment
TikTok Shop: TikTok Shop has recently introduced a solution called Fulfilled by TikTok (FBT), although it’s currently an invite-only program. FBT is fully integrated into TikTok Shop and handles everything from storing, picking and packing, to delivery. Sellers not eligible for the program can choose from other TikTok Shop shipping options, namely TikTok Shipping (handled by the platform) and Seller Shipping.
Amazon: Amazon’s FBA service allows sellers to leverage its logistics network for fast, reliable shipping, making it easier for small businesses to scale. The products are stored in Amazon’s warehouses and the company also takes care of packing, delivering and returns.
Benefits and Drawbacks
Any business interested in expanding to either TikTok Shop or Amazon should carefully consider the major benefits and possible downsides of each. Here’s a quick breakdown:
TikTok Shop
Benefits:
- Access to a younger, engaged audience
- Community engagement
- Potential for viral marketing through short videos and influencer campaigns
- Livestream selling and affiliate marketing help boost conversions
- Less competitive
Drawbacks:
- Limited geographic reach compared to Amazon
- Somewhat limited fulfillment options
- The marketplace is still evolving
Amazon
Benefits:
- Massive global customer base with high purchase intent
- Strong logistics network and seamless fulfillment
- Trusted platform for a variety of product categories
Drawbacks:
- Highly competitive, with millions of sellers vying for attention
- Lower potential for brand differentiation compared to TikTok’s creative content approach
- Higher seller fees, especially for FBA services
TikTok Shop vs Amazon: Which One to Choose?
The decision between TikTok Shop vs Amazon depends largely on the nature of your business and your target audience.
On the one hand, TikTok Shop is an ideal choice for brands that want to build a presence among younger audiences and who are comfortable with video content creation and influencer marketing. The platform excels in promoting impulse buys and social engagement, making it ideal for lifestyle, beauty, and fashion brands.
Amazon, on the other hand, offers more reliability in terms of logistics and reach. It is better suited for businesses looking to scale quickly with a broad range of product categories and tap into Amazon’s extensive global network and trusted reputation.
Complementary Strategies
For many businesses, it’s not an either/or situation. Using both platforms can create a more holistic eCommerce strategy.
Specifically, TikTok Shop can be used to generate buzz, create brand awareness, and target younger consumers. Brands can sell directly through TikTok Shop, send customers to their website, but they can also use the platform to drive traffic to their Amazon store for purchase, where logistical advantages like Prime shipping can close the sale.
Amazon can be your primary marketplace for scalable operations, while TikTok Shop acts as a creative marketing channel that leverages social trends to engage customers on a deeper level, while boosting brand awareness and loyalty.
Wrapping It Up
Both TikTok Shop and Amazon have unique strengths that can benefit your business, depending on your goals. If your business can benefit from social engagement and creative marketing, TikTok Shop offers an exciting platform. On the other hand, if logistical efficiency, customer trust, and broad reach are your priorities, Amazon is a tried-and-true solution.
By using both platforms in tandem, businesses can harness the power of social commerce and the scale of a traditional marketplace, creating a well-rounded strategy for growth.
As both a TikTok Shop Partner and an Amazon Marketing Agency, GrowMojo is just the right ally for any business looking to leverage the potential that comes from the two popular eCommerce platforms. Contact us today to find out how we can help you get there.
