What are TikTok Spark Ads?

You pick a post that already exists on TikTok. If it is yours, you can use it. If it belongs to a creator, they give you an authorisation code that lets you run it as an ad¹.

Two consequences follow. First, the ad is the post: TikTok's specifications say the ad's display name and text reflect the chosen organic post¹. What the creator wrote is, in practice, what people see. Second, the engagement from the promotion lands on the original post, not on a separate ad¹.

The authorisation code has a duration that can be set to fit the campaign¹. Agree it before you plan the flight dates.

Creator content tends to look like the feed it appears in. Spark Ads let you put money behind posts that already read that way, rather than producing a separate ad. It sits naturally next to UGC in ads, which is content made by people outside the brand and reused in campaigns.

Creative wears out, so one good post is not a plan. Watch for creative fatigue and test new posts against old ones. How to run that test is in creative testing framework.

Two practical points. Agree with each creator, in writing, what you may do with their post and for how long. And check how the post is labelled: see TikTok commercial content disclosure. For anything legal, your own lawyer decides.

For ZFD: We judge a Spark Ad on new customers and margin, not on likes. If you want help with the channel, see TikTok Ads for ecommerce brands.