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DTC 538 - TikTok’s Ad Placement Features, Kizik’s Growth, and Customer Behavior   Wednesday, April 17, 2024 We thank this kind person for their contribution. BFFs 🐱 🐶 Good morning, After CeraVe made a big splash with their unconventional Super Bowl campaign, they are again showing off their creative advertising chops with a fake rom-com trailer promoting their lotion in their ‘The One Under The Sun’ campaign. This is great for consumers who crave a break from traditional advertising and want something entertaining. The campaign will appear on socials and also select movie theaters and streaming services. Here’s what you’ll find in today’s DTC: - TikTok rolls out new important features for ad placement controls. - How footwear brand Kizik scaled into a $150 million dollar brand. - And… How well do you know your customers and their habits? You’re reading this newsletter along with new subscribers from: Pathloom, Kromanti Rum, and Slick Inbox. 👋   PLATFORM UPDATE 🔧 TikTok’s New Ad Placement Control Features TikTok has made key changes in its TikTok Ads Manager tool that gives advertisers more control over where their content shows up. The two new ad placement features are called Category Exclusion and Vertical Sensitivity. Category Exclusion: allows advertisers to control whether their ads run next to four non-standard categories: gambling and lotteries, Violent Video Games, Combat Sports, and Youth Content. Vertical Sensitivity: Advertisers can select their vertical and exclude vertical-related content that might misalign their brand positioning and show their brand off negatively. Advertisers can choose from 11 different verticals: Pets, Beauty, Food, Fashion/Retail, Travel, Technology, Financial Services, Automotive, Gaming, Professional Services and Entertainment. New Brand Safety Hub: The platform has also introduced a new brand safety section within TikTok Ads Manager. Advertisers can set brand safety and suitability preferences at the account level and apply those to future campaign builds. This will simplify the process and save brands time and effort. Why this is important: Ads that appear alongside irrelevant or harmful content can negatively impact your brand image and go against your messaging. For example, a health and wellness brand that talks about relaxation techniques wouldn’t want their content to appear next to a video about violent video games. In contrast, strategically placed ads can be more effective and serve as a valuable touchpoint. The takeaway? These new ad placement controls make it easier to protect your brand and ensure your campaigns appear the right way.   HANDBOOK 🤑 Slang, Aesthetics, Dupes, Little Treats: Are You Keeping Up With Gen Zalpha? Gen Zalpha has $500 BILLION dollars in spending power. Can you talk their talk and walk their walk? PRZM’s [65+ page handbook]( can help you optimize your content and tailor your messaging across channels for maximum Gen Zalpha exposure. Here’s a taste of [what’s inside](: 🌱 From Influenced to Influence: Moving from passive consumption to active influence. 🛍️ Shop and Drop: In a world of shifting styles and aesthetics, Gen Z battles consumer FOMO with creative solutions. 🤖 Generation GPT: Exploring Gen Z and Gen A’s evolving relationship with technology, from AI skepticism to a desire for authenticity. Gen Zalpha’s spending power is expected to grow 3x faster than other generations. If we were you, we’d: 👇 [Get The Ultimate Gen Zalpha Handbook]( *Sponsored   PODCAST 🎧 How Kizik’s Became a $150+ Million Dollar Shoe Brand In this episode of the pod, we're diving into the innovative world of [Kizik]( with Brett Swenson, a key player in the brand's meteoric rise. Discover how Kizik is revolutionizing the footwear industry by blending cutting-edge technology with fashion-forward designs. 👟 Brett explains: "We've learned that it's important to just lean into who we are and celebrate that. Brands must remember to stay true to who they are as the business evolves and grows." In this podcast, we cover: - The Genesis of Kizik: Learn about the brand's journey from concept to scaling in the competitive DTC space. - Strategic Evolution: How Kizik is redefining its demographic focus and product offerings to cater to a fashion-conscious audience. - Marketing Mastery: Insights into Kizik's successful use of video marketing and humor to create a compelling brand narrative. Listen to uncover the strategies behind Kizik's growth and how they're making waves in the footwear industry. 👉 You can listen to the full episode with Brett [here.](   🌐 IN THE SOCIAL SPHERE How well do you know your customers? The more data you have on them, the easier it is to recognize whether a change in behavior is temporary or long-term. Can't view the image? [Click here](   ⚡ QUICK HITS    🔓 Discover untapped revenue in your Shopify store. Black Crow predicts patterns in your shoppers' behavior so that you can drive more orders, faster. [Book a 30-min. consultation and get a $100 digital gift card.](*   📰 NEWS - Google [retires ad customizers for text-expanded and dynamic search ads.]( - Adobe’s new AI Assistant [can explain lengthy documents to users and will cost $4.99/month.]( - Heinz [collaborates with Mattel and releases a limited edition pink ‘Barbiecue sauce’ for Barbie’s 65th anniversary.](   SPONSOR DTC 📥 Got a B2B Biz? Join dozens of B2B companies finding demand-gen success through our niche community of 160k brand leaders and founders this year. [Talk to our team to learn more](.   Have you heard our latest podcasts? - 🌱 Epic Gardening’s [Strategic Leap from Content to Commerce]( - 🔍 Neil Patel on [AI’s Impact on Marketing and Future Trends]( - 🎵 [AKNF 391](: Strategies for Brands and Creators to Maximize TikTok Engagement - 🧔🏻 Anthony Mink on [Live Bearded’s EOS and Disrupting Legacy Capitalism]( - 🔑 [AKNF 389:]( Unlocking SEO Success in 2024 - 💰 Rick Cadotte on [Four Sigmatic’s TOFU strategy after Meta challenges]( Don’t forget to [rate the DTC Podcast]( on Apple (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️) DTC Newsletter is written by [Rebecca Knight]( and [Frances Du](. Edited by [Eric Dyck](. Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up [here](. Please note that items in this newsletter marked with * contain sponsored content. [Direct To Consumer]( Pilothouse, 1011 Government St., Victoria, BC V8W 1X6, Canada [Advertise with DTC]( | [Work With Pilothouse]( [Unsubscribe](