Shoppable Photos: Invite-only TikTok Shop Affiliate Feature

As if TikTok Shop wasn’t enough of a money printer, this new feature is about to be HUGE for TikTok affiliates. What if there was a way to make commissions without even having to even film a video? Enter, Shoppable Photos.

In TikTok’s own words “Compared to short video and LIVE formats, Shoppable Photos is a low cost selling medium that requires less production time.”

Less production time means even less effort on your part to reap the crazy rewards TikTok shop is offering.

It’s not yet been rolled out to the masses, but we’ve already had a head start from the invite-only release. Here’s everything we already know about Shoppable Photos.

What Are Shoppable Photos?

Think carousels, image slideshows, photo dumps — whatever you want to call it, Shoppable Photos are a series of images that you can add a single product link to. 

TikTok recommends that you use each individual slide to highlight key selling points and showcase important details, but we’re seeing creators put their own stamp on this. Keep reading to find out exactly how they are using carousels 👀

How To Get Access To TikTok Shoppable Photos

If you’ve made the cut for priority access, you’ll have received an email in March. 

The email from TikTok read "You have been selected for early access to TikTok Shop's newest selling tool: Shoppable Photos. You can now add product links to your photos, enabling you to monetize your content faster. Your shoppers can purchase directly from your photos and complete checkout without ever leaving the app."

Judging by a poll we did in The Academy, they’ve rolled it out to around 50% of creators.

If you’ve not yet got access to Shoppable Photos, don’t worry. Amazon has already been running with product linked photos for a while, and we know TikTok Shop is here to compete. As soon as they know that it’s viable, they’ll roll it out.

With that being said, it’s on the creators who do have early access to be responsible with the features. If you do have access, follow the golden rules:

• Don't re-post the exact same photos more than once. TikTok violations are just as likely (if not more so) for still images than they are for video. 

• Don't use photos that you do not own the copyright for. This means screenshots of the product page, seller photos, or other creators images. Take your own.

• Don't spam — the mass rollout depends on creators who do have early access using it correctly. 

Now that we’ve got the golden rules out of the way, let’s take a look at some real-life examples of photos in practice.

How To Use Shoppable Photos The Right Way

If you do have access, I would get going on this straight away. Why?

Because right now this feature is a lay up. As with all of their features in testing, TikTok will push photos just that little bit more. Jump on early enough and you’ll benefit. While carousels are crushing it on TikTok Shop right now, my educated guess is that it won’t always be this way. 

So, sleep on photos. Try these approaches…

1. Tell A Story

This example from @rxthism is more relevant for sellers but has one really important takeaway for you as a TikTok Shop affiliate. Storytelling. You want to take users on a journey. Each slide should lead the audience into the next. Weave in problems, pain points and eventually the solution. Play around with just how much text you have on each slide and see what lands best.

2. Problem, Problem, Solution

If you’re familiar with Brands Meet Creators and our approach to UGC, it won’t be a surprise that  that problem/solution makes the cut. In this example from @progresswithjoshua, not only is the hook strong and relatable, but the image itself evokes emotion. That emotion elicits a response. Agitate the problem a few more times, then provide a solution in the form of a product.

There are so many supplement products featured in the TikTok Games that I think this could do so well for. I’ve not seen many people test them out yet — will you be the first?

3. Highlight A Sale

And finally, an example from @marcdaplugg_ that shows just how easy it is to win with photos. This is a two-slide post that could only have taken seconds to do. 2.6M views and growing. If we break it down, he’s essentially just highlighting a sale of a viral product. While the first image is pretty captivating, it’s really just down to great timing and getting your post out when a product goes viral. If you look at his account, he’s replicated this a few times with success.

If these examples helped you can find a brand new training on Shoppable Photos in the Academy. In the video lesson I breakdown the secret sauce behind six carousels that are killing right now!  Join us there for just $1 a day for your first month.