TikTok TopView Ads: Booking, Creative and Launch Planning

How a TopView ad works: takeover first, then the feed

When the app opens, the video starts full screen with sound. The first 3 seconds work like a takeover, after which the video turns into an in-feed post that users can like, comment on, share or use to visit the brand's profile. So we are dealing with two different viewer behaviors: people who see it by default at app open, and people who then choose to stay with it in the feed.

We build the creative plan around this. In the first 3 seconds, the brand and the core message must be clear even with the sound off. The rest should flow like a regular TikTok video; a TopView that unfolds like a TV commercial gets scrolled past the moment the takeover ends. TopView can be set up with Spark Ads or non-Spark formats; running it from the brand's organic account is usually the better choice for keeping engagement on the profile.

How far in advance should you book TopView?

TopView inventory is allocated on a first-come, first-served basis. TikTok recommends that brands wanting all of a day's impressions book at least 60 days in advance; inventory availability can be checked up to 225 days ahead. For dates such as the November sales period, the run-up to a public holiday or a big match day, this lead time matters even more in practice.

That is why we discuss TopView within the annual marketing plan, once dates are set. We use seasonal behavior analysis to pin down which weeks are critical for your category and ask TikTok for inventory availability on those dates. For projects where the launch date may slip, we do not move to a booking; we only monitor availability until the date is confirmed. Before booking, we clarify the following:

• Date and share of voice (all or part of the day)
• Targeting: age, gender, interests, language, operating system and location
• Interactive add-ons: options such as Gesture, Story Selection, Shake Surprise and Super Like
• Creatives for the follow-up In-Feed and Spark Ads wave

After TopView: the In-Feed and Spark Ads follow-up wave

TopView is not a sales campaign on its own. If we do not recapture the audience that watched TopView with auction-based In-Feed ads and Spark Ads in the following days, most of the interest it creates goes to waste. So we build launch week as a single plan: the TopView day followed by a 7-14 day performance wave. We also track branded search and direct traffic growth in GA4 over the same period.

We cut the creatives for this wave from the same shoot as the TopView. When users see the scene from app open again a few days later as a short variation in the feed, they remember the brand more easily. Shooting several extra versions in the same session, at 15 seconds, 30 seconds and in a creator style, is far more economical than setting up the crew a second time.

TopView: when do we recommend it?

How we manage TopView

1. Date selectionWe set the target day based on the launch calendar and open talks with the TikTok representative with the 60-day booking window in mind.
2. Inventory requestWe get inventory availability from TikTok for the date, share of voice and targeting.
3. Two-layer creativeWe write separate scripts for the 3-second takeover and the in-feed section, and test sound-off viewing.
4. Follow-up waveWe prepare In-Feed and Spark campaigns targeting TopView viewers in advance.
5. Before and afterWe compare reach, branded search and site traffic with the pre-campaign period.

TopView: metrics and requirements

The Brand Move TikTok Team

To learn more about TopView or other TikTok ad formats, contact The Brand Move TikTok team today.

Contact us now