Every brand loves to see people engage with content about their products or services on social media.
By collaborating with social media content creators, brands can acquire high-quality user-generated content that converts.
In this post, we’re going to talk about TikTok Creator Marketplace (TCM) and the best alternatives.
More precisely, we'll talk about:
- What each platform has to offer
- Their various features
- Pricing
Before we begin, let's find out what TCM is all about.
Disclaimer: All data is valid as of today June 7th 2022.
What Is TikTok Creator Marketplace?
TikTok Creator Marketplace is a marketplace where brands can find and connect with creators to create TikTok ads for them.
The partnership between both parties can be based on either paid or reward-based marketing campaigns.
You can search for TikTok creators your target audience can relate to or whose community you'd like to tap into.
Creators, on the other hand, can equally decide who they want to work with.
So, how does the TikTok Creator Marketplace (TCM) work?
To begin with, you’ll need to register as a brand and include details about your business such as your logo, phone number, email, and other information.
Then, use their search function alongside different metrics to look for creator profiles that can create branded content for your campaign.
Reach out to your preferred creators and the partnership is underway.
TCM gives you access to accurate data on each creator’s content and analytics for your campaign results.
They’ve also got strict eligibility criteria for anyone who wants to join their creator fund meaning creators are well vetted.
Any downside?
Well, communicating with creators is not as direct as you’d expect.
Brands can only send out invitations to collaborate with the creator or comment on their posts.
Now, let’s get down to business.
Tool #1: Insense
The first alternative tool we look at is our very own platform—Insense.
Insense is a creative platform for brands from different industries that are ready to come aboard the for-consumers-by-consumers advertising revolution.
Plus, we’re officially TikTok Marketing Partners.
Let’s break that down a little bit.
Insense is a tool that helps brands get user-generated content at scale for their advertising campaigns by collaborating with high-quality creators across various industries.
Insense is different from the competition because it brings more to the table: it allows brands and marketing companies to work with many creators simultaneously so they can source a high volume of content.
As we mentioned a little further up, we’re TCM partners which basically means that brands can transfer ad creatives from Insense chat to TikTok Ads Manager.
That being said, it’s safe to say that Insense is a combination of TCM and Billo.
We’re not just saying that…
…even though it’s true!🙂
With Insense, you get to work with creators who have experience creating content that converts with the option to run targeted ads using their TikTok handles (enable spark ads).
So, how do you find TikTok creators using Insense?
First, you need to click on Get Started on our homepage to get logged in or signed up to our platform.
Then, you will be taken to a new page where you’ll see two buttons: Fill out a brief and Find creators.
The fill out a brief section is where you put down details about your campaign the creator should be aware of.
This creative brief helps to streamline your search so that you only attract creators that meet your requirements.
Another option would be to go directly to our Creator Marketplace by clicking on the Find creators button as shown in the screenshot a little further up.
Here’s how our Creator Marketplace looks:
As you can see, the Insense Creator Marketplace gives you access to a number of diverse creators you can work with for successful social media campaigns.
What’s more, you get access to a number of different filters that allow you to set specific criteria, thus increasing the chances of finding creators that will resonate with your brand and audience.
Don’t wanna brag but we do go beyond just helping you find creators; we have features in place to help ensure that those creators are perfect for your campaign.
Insense Features
Brands can easily find creators on Insense using features such as:
- Dedicated customer success manager: You’ll have access to our support team at different phases of the marketing journey from brief creation to managing the TikTok campaign
- Chat: With this feature, you can streamline communications with your creators. You get to chat with creators directly which means that you get to decide on the type of ad creatives to be created and negotiate prices
- Enable spark ads: Obtain permission to use the creator’s content and TikTok handle to run paid ads
- Content Rights: We handle legalities so you don’t have to.
Insense Pricing
Insense has three payment plans for you to choose from with the option to be billed monthly or annually.
You can also schedule a meeting with our team if you need more details about any plan.
Here’s an overview of what each package includes:
- Trial month: costs $450 per month and includes one brand and campaign. It automatically upgrades to the next plan after 30 days.
- Scale plan: costs $400 per month, $300 if you’re billed annually. Includes everything in the trial month plan alongside six advertised brands and an unlimited campaign every month.
- Advanced plan: costs $750 per month, $600 if you’re billed annually. Includes everything in the scale plan and up to 20 advertised brands.
Tool #2: Billo
Billo is a platform where small to medium-sized ecommerce brands can get videos from creators.
It provides brands access to creators at reasonable prices to create ads for their social media campaigns.
Billo is also known for its user-generated content ads for businesses that want more brand awareness and sales.
How’s it like the TikTok Marketplace?
Well, you create a task to get creators to bid on it. Then, video creators apply for the task and you decide who gets the job done.
When it’s done, creators send over the custom-made video content.
Billo Features
Billo provides different features for marketers that need authentic TikTok videos such as:
- Management dashboard: Helps to manage the whole process from creating tasks to sourcing for creators and tracking current tasks.
- Premade templates: Optimizes task creation with a large variety of templates and you can set instructions for custom-made tasks.
- Video editing: This allows you to edit and make changes to the videos before uploading them to any social media platform.
Billo Pricing
Billo’s billing system is on an output basis. In other words, their pricing depends on the type of video you want, the quality, and the quantity.
Below is a more detailed breakdown of their plans:
- Custom-made video: starts at $59 per video and includes you selecting the video length and which professional add-ons you’d like to include
- Premium quality video: starts at $89 per video for a premium shot of your product. It covers how-to, unboxing, and 360 product showcase videos
- Large quantity video: Feel free to contact the Billo sales team for more details of this plan.
Tool #3: Upfluence
The next TCM alternative on our list is Upfluence.
Upfluence is cloud-based search software that helps brands source for creators whenever they want to launch an influencer marketing campaign.
Upfluence helps you build collaborations with creators that drive engagements.
Who can use it?
It’s best for ecommerce businesses of different sizes as it can keep track of the sales from content made by creators.
Upfluence provides brands with information on creators that are best suited to promote their brands.
It also helps generate reports when the project is done.
With Upfluence, brands have access to their database of influencers from top bloggers to popular social media users with insight into who is a better representation of your brand.
They are integrated with different marketing tools that can help your campaign such as:
- Mailchimp
- WooCommerce
- Shopify
- Zapier
- Salesforce
Upfluence Features
Upfluence is able to find creators and leverage the relationship to drive more sales through features such as:
- Real-time insights: provide background information of creators such as engagement rate, growth trends, and real-followers
- Automated campaigns: keep track of different aspects of your campaign on a single platform
- Optimized searches: brands can use different keywords to filter creator search results.
Other important features include regular network updates, e-reputation monitoring, and customer support.
Upfluence Pricing
Upfluence’s pricing structure is split into three categories and is based on subscription.
If you want the price tag for any of the plans on their website, reach out to their sales team.
With that in mind, here’s an overview of each plan:
- Growth plan: great if you want to manage creator campaigns; comes with two seats, and basic tool integration
- Scale plan: ideal if you want to scale your business with creators; comes with five seats, and advanced tool integration
- Enterprise plan: offers 25 seats alongside every feature in the scale plan and white labeling
Tool #4: GRIN
GRIN is a content management software that helps ecommerce brands and marketing agencies build creator partnerships.
They help find and recruit creators in your niche for your marketing campaigns.
GRIN’s philosophy is to first market a product to the right influencer because customers trust recommendations from other customers.
In addition, they can help you streamline your search for a new creator by highlighting users who are registered with your ecommerce site.
This means creators you’ll be presented with are customers who have used and enjoyed your product in the past.
Another option is to create a landing page on the platform for creator applications and share it directly with creators you’re interested in working with.
Considering GRIN focuses on ecommerce brands, they’re integrated with digital marketing systems such as:
- MailChimp
- WooCommerce
- Magneto
- Slack
- Office365
And after you’ve found creators, you can send out emails, get products across to them, and receive notification when the content is ready.
GRIN Features
You can collaborate with creators to grow your business using features such as:
- Influencer discovery: Can help you search for creators based on criteria you set, let the software sieve out creators that are also your customers, or send out creator application links
- Campaign management: GRIN provides the tools you require to launch a creator marketing campaign
- Payment tracking: This allows you to pay creators, keep track of payment history, and analyze your ROI on each of them
GRIN Pricing
GRIN has a customized pricing system.
If you want details about their working system, you can contact their team for more information.
Tool #5: Aspire
The next TCM alternative on our list is Aspire—an influencer marketing platform that drives growth for ecommerce brands.
Aspire helps you engage customers who talk about your products or services on social media so they can create content for you.
Using filters such as keywords, hashtags, interests, demographics, follower count, and more, brands can streamline their search for creators on Aspire.
Then, you can start receiving proposals from the right creators about your campaigns.
Optimize the campaign by customizing unique workflows so your creators know what to do at each stage of the campaign.
Aspire Features
It helps brands connect with creators using some of its features including:
- Quickmatch: provides information about creators based on your preference
- Watchlist: assists in monitoring the social activities of your competition
- Campaign management: helps oversee the different aspects of the marketing campaign including payment and email automation
- Analytics: gives insights into the performance of creators to track who has more return on investment.
- Trackable sales link: keeps track of the success of a creator in your campaign
Aspire Pricing
Their pricing plans are not available on their website.
So for information about pricing, you need to contact their sales team.
Tool #6: HashtagPaid
HashtagPaid—the last TCM alternative on our list is a creator marketplace where brands can find creators to work with.
HashtagPaid uses creator marketing to drive engagement and sales for your product.
You get to create campaign briefs that describe the aim of your campaign, budget, the type of content, and the creator you want.
Creators who are interested and compatible are notified. They ‘raise their hand’ to signal interest along with a brief message of why they’re a good fit.
Plus, they inform you on what strategy they would take.
At the end of the day, you can connect and work with the most suitable creators.
HashtagPaid Features
#paid provides a wide range of services, including:
- Campaign management
- Content amplification
- Fraud detection
- Third-party analytics
HashtagPaid Pricing
They have four pricing plans to choose from.
Below is a breakdown of what you can expect:
- Just Content plan: begins at $499 per month
- Grow plan: begins at $699 per month
- Advanced plan: begins at $999 per month including a success manager and advanced audience demographics
- Scale plan: begins at $1,999 per month including a year-long creator marketing strategy
It’s time to tie this up.
Now Over to You
We’ve come to the end of our comprehensive list of TCM alternatives.
We’re confident it’ll bring you closer to finding a platform that’s the right fit for your brand.
If you’re ready to take your creator marketing to the next level, feel free to book a demo with Insense.
Thanks for reading!
