TikTok, the leading platform for short-form mobile videos, recently concluded its TikTok Unboxed Malaysia event, aimed at introducing innovative branding and commerce solutions to help Malaysian enterprises engage more effectively with their audiences and customers in the digital economy.
The event took place at the Tropicana Gardens Mall Convention Centre and focused on practical strategies for leveraging TikTok’s full-funnel capabilities, which can aid in brand building and accelerating Gross Merchandise Value (GMV) growth.
In attendance were marketing leaders from prominent brands and agencies, including Grab, Dentsu, and MediaDonuts. They shared valuable insights on how upper-funnel activations on TikTok are generating significant business impact, emphasizing the power of content to engage audiences effectively.
The landscape of commerce in Southeast Asia is experiencing a major transformation, largely driven by content-led experiences that integrate discovery with purchasing. TikTok has become central to this evolution, boasting over 325 million users in the region and establishing itself as a formidable player in the commerce landscape. The platform’s rise in content-driven commerce has reshaped how consumers interact with brands, enabling them to build awareness, generate interest, and drive demand all within the TikTok ecosystem. This trend is further amplified by TikTok Shop, a closed-loop shopping platform that combines community, creativity, and commerce to offer a seamless shopping experience.
As Malaysia’s digital ecosystem rapidly evolves, TikTok is encouraging businesses to explore unique digital solutions that can improve audience reach, drive growth, and unlock new opportunities. The platform is dedicated to supporting businesses in their journey by providing essential tools and solutions needed to engage audiences effectively, build lasting brand equity, and achieve strong ROI. Utilizing TikTok Shop and other platform features will allow businesses to convert engagement into sales effectively.
In line with this, TikTok is introducing new solutions and e-commerce guides to help brands unlock their market potential. According to a BCG study, generative AI has the potential to reduce production costs by 5-15%. Recognizing this opportunity, TikTok has worked closely with leading marketers in the industry to innovate its advertising products, aiming to deliver optimal experiences for businesses, creators, and the entire TikTok community.
Brands can anticipate the rollout of TikTok’s new creative AI suite, which is powered by generative AI tools such as TikTok One and TikTok Symphony. TikTok One will serve as a centralized platform for marketers to access various creative tools, giving brands the ability to connect with nearly 2 million TikTok creators and discover top agency and production partners. Additionally, marketers will gain access to insights through TikTok Creative Exchange, TikTok Creator Marketplace, and TikTok Creative Challenge, all accessible with a single log-in.
TikTok Symphony, on the other hand, will offer a video editing suite enabled by generative AI, allowing businesses to scale their content development and creativity on TikTok. This tool simplifies the entire process, from scriptwriting to video production and asset optimization, ensuring that marketers can achieve real results through innovative creative methods.
With these new solutions, TikTok aims to enhance productivity for businesses, encouraging them to create at scale while inviting them to test and learn as the platform continues to simplify and empower creativity that stands out.
In addition to product enhancements, TikTok will release an e-commerce playbook detailing strategies for growth based on successful sellers in the region. The playbook will include crucial tactics such as identifying and nurturing Hero SKUs—products that achieve significant traction through creator-driven engagement. An inflection point is observed when an SKU reaches an average of 30 daily orders over a month, which typically results in a 36% increase in orders in the following month. When daily orders exceed an average of 100, an additional 60% boost is generally seen.
Furthermore, TikTok recommends using a combination of TikTok Shop Ads to maximize reach. Starting with Product Shopping Ads (PSA) can facilitate the first sale, while Video Shopping Ads (VSA) can broaden content reach. LIVE Shopping Ads (LSA) can help create Super Hero SKUs, resulting in a proven 2.4 times growth in GMV for sellers compared to using just two ad formats.
Businesses will also benefit from TikTok’s Business Accelerator on the Seller Center, which offers shop diagnostics and tailored recommendations to promote success. This initiative allows businesses to effectively engage their target audiences, achieving sustainable growth within TikTok Shop.
Delilah Chan, Head of Partnerships for Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia at TikTok, stated, “Our vision for this event is to empower and celebrate businesses by highlighting the creative possibilities they can unlock through TikTok. We want to showcase how brands can not only drive growth but also build meaningful connections with their audiences. This event is about more than just digital tools—it’s about inspiring homegrown businesses to harness the power of creativity, stand out in the e-commerce space, and thrive in today’s fast-moving digital landscape.”
Hatim Azizan, Creative Director at Dentsu Creative Malaysia, remarked, “The rapid growth of AI within APAC presents us with the era’s biggest opportunity to scale. By partnering with the experts from TikTok Creative Exchange, we developed the Face of Courage campaign, creating an avatar that gave a voice to domestic violence survivors to tell their stories while protecting their privacy. By understanding the role generative AI can play in our creative process and empowering that technology with human insights, stories, and ideas, we can solve real problems for our communities in new ways.”
