What are TikTok Spark Ads?
Spark Ads are a TikTok ad format that lets you promote real, organic TikTok posts as ads, either from your own account or from a creator's account with their permission. According to TikTok's Business Help Center, the engagement the ad gets (views, likes, comments, shares and follows) is attributed to the original post.
ShoaibUpdated 3 min read
How are Spark Ads different from normal TikTok ads?
A normal ad is a video uploaded straight into Ads Manager. A Spark Ad uses a post that already lives on a TikTok account, so it looks and behaves like a regular video, with the account's name and profile attached.
| Normal ad | Spark Ad | |
|---|---|---|
| Where the video comes from | Uploaded to Ads Manager | An existing TikTok post |
| Whose name shows | Your ad identity | The account that posted it |
| Engagement | Stays on the ad | Counts on the organic post |
How do I get permission to use a creator's post?
TikTok's help center describes three routes:
- Post code. The creator opens the video in the TikTok app, taps the three dots, taps Ad settings, then Generate, and sends you the code to enter in Ads Manager.
- Account authorization. You link a TikTok account (yours or a creator's) and pick from its posts.
- Push from Ads Manager. You push new posts to an account authorized through TikTok Business Center.
TikTok also says you can customize how long a post's authorization lasts.
Why use them?
TikTok lists building trust with authentic content and tapping into creators' audiences as benefits, and because engagement stays on the post, the boost keeps working for that account after the campaign ends.
For setting up the campaign itself, see how to make a sponsored ad on TikTok, and if you're unsure TikTok suits your business, read whether TikTok ads work in Kuwait.
Want Spark Ads run for you as part of your digital marketing? See our TikTok Ads service.