Humans of TikTok: Meet our F&B Grocery Shoppers
If you’re an advertiser, you’ve probably wondered: Are my target audiences even on TikTok? Chances are, they are—you just have to know how and where to find them.
TikTok can be best described as a kaleidoscope, encapsulating the dynamic nature of people and content on the platform. Here, content has been democratized thanks to our creative canvas and highly personalized algorithm that reaches people from all walks of life. By creating and engaging with short-form videos, people grow their interests and passions without limits.
One audience group that has persistently pursued its passion for new food experiences is our food and beverage (F&B) grocery shoppers. F&B videos such as kitchen hacks and food reviews are among the most popular types of content on the platform. And they go viral not just because they’re novel or funny—it’s because F&B grocery shoppers find them useful too!
Among grocery shoppers, 39% watch F&B videos online multiple times a day¹, with TikTok being their #1 preferred platform for packaged F&B content. These audiences are their household's primary decision-makers, and trends and recommendations from TikTok help them decide their next big food purchase. Among these decision makers, we have found that 41% of these audiences are from high-income households, a staggering 1.3X the amount of F&B decision makers found on other digital platforms²!
Let’s learn more about them one by one.
Meet your F&B grocery shoppers
Mindful Munchers: Where functional benefits drive food choices
For some, food goes beyond mere sustenance—it’s key to achieving holistic health and wellness. In fact, 78% of APAC consumers³ seek out food with additional health benefits, such as immune support, improved gut health, and stress reduction. These types of consumers make up our Mindful Munchers.
It’s easy to spot them at the grocery stores—they’re usually scanning ingredient lists and nutritional labels before putting food items in their basket. They’re also digitally savvy, following healthy eating gurus on TikTok to stay on top of the latest food trends and nutrition hacks to support their balanced lifestyle.
Tastebud Explorers: An appetite for new and exciting flavors
E-commerce is making international products more accessible than ever, whetting people’s appetite for diverse flavors. In Asia Pacific alone, online grocery sales will reach US$720 billion by 2025⁴, reflecting increasing demand for specialty foods from around the world.
Our Tastebud Explorers are leading this boom, driven by the hunt for new and exciting tastes. These fearless foodies are always on the lookout for the latest food hacks or limited-edition flavors. They take inspiration from TikTok reviews, community recommendations, and shop-with-me hauls from fellow users to prepare for their next epic food adventure.
Comfort Seekers: Food as self-care
It’s been said that food is a balm for the soul—and 65% of global consumers agree⁵ that treating food as a form of self-care and a catalyst for emotional connection.
Our Comfort Seekers drive this trend, treating food as a reward and a centerpiece for special occasions. While new food trends might catch their eye, they always come back to what’s familiar—may it be their favorite cereal from childhood, or a warm cup of tea. But, they still turn to TikTok for product reviews and decadent recipes that might feed into their next happy-eating experience.
So, how do you reach these F&B grocery shoppers on TikTok?
Given the sheer number of users on TikTok, now at one billion monthly active users worldwide, how might advertisers reach their target audiences more efficiently and effectively?
With the right targeting strategy, you can reach these diverse F&B grocery shoppers on the platform. Building a custom audience profile for existing customers is a great way to start nurturing loyalty. Then, you can widen your prospects by targeting broader audience interests, behaviors, and spending power.
Engaged users from previous branding campaigns can also be retargeted, effectively utilizing existing relationships and maximizing campaign reach. To further expand on your targeting settings, you can also adopt the Smart Targeting, Targeting Expansion, and Lookalike Audience features on TikTok Ads Manager.
Here's a quick example of targeting recommendations you can use for your next campaign to give you a better understanding of how this works and reach out to TikTok's F&B shoppers:
Download our F&B Shoppers Targeting cheat sheet here.
With TikTok being a kaleidoscope of users and experiences, it may seem daunting to try to reach out and engage with your target audiences. But with the right tools and an effective targeting strategy, you can capture key audiences that will boost your business and bring significant revenue uplift.
Indeed, there’s a compelling reason why F&B videos are always trending on TikTok—F&B grocery shoppers and household decision-makers are hungry for bite-sized content rich with information that can make their kitchen life and wellness journeys that much easier. Using our tried-and-tested targeting strategies above, you too can reach the F&B grocery shoppers on the platform to deliver high-impact content that can influence their purchase decisions.
Hungry for more audience insights? Visit Humans of TikTok!
Sources:
TikTok-commissioned survey with Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG) decision-makers in APAC (N=6,573), conducted by Kantar Profiles in 2023
GlobalWebIndex, Jan-Sep 2023
Mintel, “APAC Food & Drink Trends 2023”
iResearch, “Asia Pacific Online Grocery Market Report 2024”
Technomic, “The Emotional Connection with Food”, 2023
TikTok commissioned study conducted by Kantar Profiles on attitudes and behaviours of F&B consumers in APAC (ID, SG, TH, PH, MY, VN, KR, JP, AU) in February 2024 (N=2,700)