Insights into TikTok's Culture, Strategy, and Monetization

(00:00) Ray’s background

In this video, Ray Cao, the global head of monetization product strategy and operations at TikTok, shares insights into the culture, strategy, and monetization of the platform. He discusses TikTok's core principles and values, emphasizing the company's focus on autonomy and growth as a startup. Ray also highlights the platform's success as one of the biggest advertising platforms, generating nearly $10 billion in advertising revenue. The conversation delves into TikTok's culture, hiring process, working hard, OKRs and planning, and tips for succeeding on TikTok's ad network. Viewers can gain valuable lessons and insights from TikTok's success, making it an interesting business to learn from.

(04:55) Cultural differences between Google and TikTok

In this podcast, Ray Cao discusses the cultural differences between Google and TikTok. He highlights three main differences:

• TikTok has a strong customer-centric approach, considering the needs of both advertisers and regular users and creators on the platform.
• TikTok takes a more flexible and experimental approach to product development, with a focus on optimizing the platform through engineering and experimentation.
• The approach to global prioritization at TikTok differs from that of US-born companies, as TikTok launches products and initiatives in markets like Southeast Asia before North America. These differences make TikTok unique in the tech market.

(08:24) Fine-tuning the algorithm for different markets

In this segment of the video "Inside TikTok: Culture, strategy, monetization, and more" with Ray Cao, the discussion revolves around fine-tuning the algorithm for different markets. The speaker emphasizes the importance of understanding local culture and behavior in different markets, highlighting that technology can only do so much, and it's essential to have local talent to fine-tune the machine. The speaker shares insights from their experience in market research in Southeast Asia, emphasizing the significance of understanding cultural nuances for successful market penetration.

(12:15) Examples of fine-tuning the algorithm

In this segment of the video "Inside TikTok: Culture, strategy, monetization, and more" with Ray Cao, the discussion focuses on fine-tuning the algorithm and product to work in different cultures. Examples of fine-tuning the algorithm for different markets are provided, such as introducing content relevant to the culture, like food, new technology, and consumer electronics products in Japan. The speaker also emphasizes the importance of human input in working with technology, particularly in making more interesting and influencing decisions for advertisers. The use of both machine and human expertise is highlighted as crucial in analyzing trends and making recommendations for the platform.

(15:11) Core principles and values of TikTok

In this segment of the video "Inside TikTok: Culture, strategy, monetization, and more" with Ray Cao, the discussion focuses on the core principles and values of TikTok. The speaker emphasizes the importance of context over control within the company's culture. He highlights the need for team members to think beyond their specific roles and collaborate across departments to solve problems. The speaker encourages proactive thinking and reactive doing, emphasizing the importance of collaboration and full visibility towards contributing to the company's growth. This approach to teamwork and problem-solving is seen as crucial for successful product development and go-to-market strategies.

(19:34) Hiring at TikTok

In this segment, Ray Cao discusses the hiring process at TikTok, emphasizing the importance of hiring high-quality and high-caliber individuals who exhibit curiosity, discipline, and the ability to prioritize effectively. He highlights the significance of autonomy and freedom in the company's culture, and the need for employees to be open to learning new things and not get stuck in their own ways. Cao also stresses the importance of discipline and collaboration within the organization, and mentions the company's aspiration to train employees to excel in their long-term careers.

(21:38) Embracing the “always day one” mentality

In this segment of the video "Inside TikTok: Culture, strategy, monetization, and more" with Ray Cao, the focus is on embracing the "always day one" mentality at TikTok. Key points from the subtitles include:

• Emphasizing the importance of hiring people who are curious, disciplined, and prioritize well
• Cultural values at TikTok, such as the idea of "context not control"
• The "always day one" mentality, emphasizing the hunger for growth and avoiding complacency
• Encouraging a mindset of continuous innovation and growth, even as the company matures
• The unique advantage of close collaboration between the engineering, product, sales, and data scientist teams at TikTok Overall, the video highlights the cultural values and mindset that drive TikTok's operations and continued growth.

(25:09) Collaboration between teams

In this segment of the video "Inside TikTok: Culture, strategy, monetization, and more" with Ray Cao, the discussion focuses on the collaboration between teams at TikTok. The speaker emphasizes the importance of having a structured meeting format, where engineering leaders, product leaders, and sales leaders come together to make decisions, address blockers, and celebrate achievements. This structure is aimed at keeping everyone together and building consensus, not just at the leadership level. Additionally, the company places importance on exposing product managers and R&D teams to market information through immersive experiences with clients, allowing them to gain insights and understand the challenges faced by users of their product. The speaker highlights the concept of having leaders "feel the heat" by being involved at the forefront, ensuring a deep understanding of the challenges faced by the users.

(28:38) Amazon’s cultural influence

In this segment of the video, Ray Cao discusses the influence of Amazon's culture on TikTok's operations. He notes that TikTok has benefited from learning and adopting the best practices championed by Amazon, such as the "day one" idea and the memo culture. Cao also mentions the influence of other industry peers, such as Google, and emphasizes the importance of implementing these practices in a way that fits TikTok's unique needs. Additionally, he highlights the importance of fast-paced innovation and the value of constantly pushing for improvement, using the metaphor of running the second half of a marathon faster than the first half.

(31:14) Setting up the product organization for speed and innovation

In this segment of the video "Inside TikTok: Culture, strategy, monetization, and more" with Ray Cao, the discussion focuses on setting up the product organization for speed and innovation. The key points covered include the global setup of product teams to acquire talent and market knowledge, with teams located in different global locations. The strategy involves deploying resources globally and focusing on key markets to penetrate. Additionally, the speaker emphasizes the need for continuous reiteration and adjustment of product team settings to cater to the fast-growing nature of the company. This approach is described as unconventional but necessary for running faster with a rigid approach, which has been beneficial for the company's growth.

(35:38) Building the go-to-market team

In this segment of the video, Ray Cao discusses his experience building the go-to-market team for the advertising business. He reflects on the challenges he faced, including the pressure to hire 100 people within six months, which led to compromising on quality. Cao also emphasizes the importance of embracing a more flexible and client-focused approach, highlighting the need for leaders to stay engaged in the market and not distance themselves from the reality to drive better performance.

(40:18) What makes people successful at TikTok

In this segment of the video, Ray Cao discusses the reasons behind why some people may not be successful at TikTok. He emphasizes the importance of adaptability and the understanding that working at a startup or a fast-growing company like TikTok is a lifestyle, not just a job. Cao also highlights the importance of creating a team culture where employees' career goals are aligned with the company's goals, and he expresses support for team members who choose to leave for opportunities that better suit their ambitions.

(43:02) Thoughts on putting in long hours

In the video "Inside TikTok: Culture, strategy, monetization, and more" with Ray Cao, the discussion of putting in long hours is addressed. Ray emphasizes the importance of working hard and putting in long hours to be successful, especially in a company like TikTok. He acknowledges that it's a personal choice and depends on one's excitement and life stage. Ray also mentions that while he doesn't want to force his team to work long hours, he believes that the quality and value of work are crucial, and the times when one goes all in and works hard are the most impactful and proud moments in their career.

(44:40) OKRs and planning at TikTok

In this section of the video, Ray Cao discusses the use of OKRs (Objectives and Key Results) at TikTok. He emphasizes the importance of company alignment and using OKRs as a system to ensure that everyone is working towards the same goal. Cao acknowledges that there is room for improvement in terms of aligning OKRs across different teams and achieving them by the end of each quarter. He also mentions that TikTok has an annual planning cycle but often makes iterations and pivots on a quarterly basis to adapt to market changes. Additionally, he highlights the need for a structured and innovative approach in the go-to-market and sales strategies to keep up with the dynamic environment.

(49:12) Tips for how to be successful on TikTok

In this section of the video, the speaker discusses tips for being successful on TikTok, targeting regular creators, businesses trying to create viral content, and advertisers. The main tips shared include being unfiltered and showcasing what you're really good at, embracing the TikTok culture and community, understanding user behaviors and preferences, and creating content that is relatable and unique. The speaker also provides examples of creators who have successfully embraced their unique identities and created original, relatable content to gain popularity on the platform.

(53:49) Tips for advertising on TikTok

In this segment of the video "Inside TikTok: Culture, strategy, monetization, and more" with Ray Cao, the discussion focuses on tips for advertising on TikTok. The speaker emphasizes that TikTok is emerging as a significant advertising network and offers advice for success as an advertiser on the platform. Some key points include:

• TikTok is suitable for a variety of businesses, and success depends on embracing the platform and understanding the community.
• Advertisers should create their own internal creative team dedicated to TikTok and produce a lot of creative content to test and learn about the platform and the community.
• TikTok requires a different approach than platforms like Facebook and Google, and advertisers should leverage the tools and resources provided by TikTok for optimal results.
• It's important to test and learn on TikTok, as the platform operates differently from others, and engaging with the sales team can provide valuable guidance.
• TikTok is effective for building brand awareness and driving actions, such as through TikTok Shop and inspiring user behavior, leading to a full-funnel solution for advertisers.

(01:04:03) Getting started with TikTok Ads

In this segment of the video "Inside TikTok: Culture, strategy, monetization, and more" with Ray Cao, the focus is on getting started with TikTok ads. Ray recommends starting by creating a business account on TikTok and experiencing the platform as a user to understand its nuances. It is suggested to post videos organically to gauge the response before investing in ads. The recommendation is to run at least 10 different ad creatives per week for a month to understand the platform's potential. Additionally, leveraging automation solutions and AI Creator Trends on the platform is advised, and tools like CapCut are available to facilitate content creation. Ray emphasizes the learning curve but assures that the results will be surprising.

(01:08:42) Common mistakes to avoid with TikTok advertising

In the video "Inside TikTok: Culture, strategy, monetization, and more" by Ray Cao, he discusses common mistakes to avoid with TikTok advertising. He highlights that a common mistake people make is instantly wanting to do remarketing or very small niche targeting on the platform, which limits their reach. Cao recommends a broader targeting approach at an early stage, as it helps to understand the platform better. Many advertisers have seen significant differences in their campaigns by following this approach.

(01:09:44) Ray’s favorite TikTok account

In this segment of the video "Inside TikTok: Culture, strategy, monetization, and more" with Ray Cao, the host asks about Ray's favorite TikTok account. Ray shares that he recently found a lady who does silent baby product reviews, which he finds hilarious and shares a link to her account. He also mentions following a magician on TikTok who creates cool magic using everyday items, inspiring Ray in his own hobby.

(01:10:54) Where to find Ray

In this video, Ray Cao discusses TikTok's culture, strategy, and monetization. He encourages viewers to reach out to him on LinkedIn to discuss go-to market challenges and product philosophies. Ray values feedback and recommendations, and appreciates leveraging the audience's insights to improve his own community. The host expresses gratitude for Ray's insights into TikTok's operations and encourages viewers to subscribe to the podcast for more valuable content.