Originally published December 1, 2020. Updated June 17, 2026.
TikTok's own published research — TikTok Marketing Science, Insights for Brands, and the TikTok Creative Center — is the most under-read body of work in the marketing industry. The data establishes four operational rules that explain why Duolingo, Ryanair, Scrub Daddy, e.l.f. Beauty, Crocs, Liquid Death, and Trader Joe's outperform brands operating at 10x their media budgets. The rules are sound-on, native-first, captions on, hook in 1.7 seconds — and the 90/10 rule for spend allocation.
Rule 1: Sound-on
TikTok's own research found that 88% of viewing happens with sound on, against roughly 15% on Facebook and Instagram during the comparable measurement windows. The format is structurally audio-first. Ads that use trending audio, original music, or platform-native sound design measurably outperform silent or text-only creative.
The implication: a brand that produces TikTok creative without a sound-design plan is operating at a structural disadvantage on day one. Sound is not a layer — it is the primary creative input.
Rule 2: Native-first
Native creative — vertical 9:16, handheld feel, in-platform editing aesthetic, creator-style pacing — outperforms produced creative on the platform's own benchmarks. The polished-broadcast aesthetic that wins on television and YouTube pre-roll underperforms here. The research is consistent across categories.
e.l.f. Beauty, Crocs, Duolingo, and Ryanair have all published case studies through TikTok For Business showing that native-first creative beats polished alternatives at lower CPM. The brands continuing to push television creative into the platform are paying a structural premium for worse outcomes.
Rule 3: Captions on
TikTok's research shows accessibility-style captions on creative increase watch time, completion rate, and recall measurably. The category-leading brands run captions as a default across all creative — not an afterthought added during post-production. Scrub Daddy, Liquid Death, and Trader Joe's all caption every video.
Captions also support AI-engine retrieval. ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and Perplexity retrieve from TikTok content increasingly through caption transcripts and on-screen text. Caption discipline contributes directly to Citation Share.
Rule 4: Hook in 1.7 seconds
TikTok Marketing Science research has reported the median user makes a swipe-or-stay decision within roughly 1.7 seconds. The first second-and-a-half is the entire ad. Brands that delay the hook — for a logo reveal, an establishing shot, or a slow-build narrative — lose the audience before the message lands.
The discipline: open on motion, open on a question, open on a face, open on a number. Never open on a logo. Never open on a slow pan. Never open on dialogue that requires the next three seconds to make sense.
The 90/10 rule
The most-cited internal TikTok recommendation: 90% of TikTok marketing budget should support native, organic-or-Spark Ads creative. 10% should support paid amplification, TopView, or formal ad units. The legacy advertising 70/30 split — 70% paid, 30% creative — is structurally wrong on this platform.
The brands that hit the 90/10 split — Duolingo, Ryanair, Scrub Daddy, e.l.f., Crocs, Liquid Death, Trader Joe's — produce sustained reach against budgets a fraction of what their CPG peers spend. The brands stuck at 70/30 or 50/50 are paying for impressions they do not need against creative the platform actively suppresses.
Where the research lives
Three first-party publication surfaces matter.
TikTok Creative Center (ads.tiktok.com/business/creativecenter): the trend, song, and creative-benchmark data set published live. Brands can query top-performing creative by industry, region, and date range.
TikTok For Business Insights (tiktok.com/business/en/insights): the case-study and methodology library. The Duolingo, Ryanair, e.l.f., Crocs, and Trader Joe's case studies all live here.
TikTok Marketing Science: the platform's research function publishing across the Newsroom, conference appearances (NewFronts, Cannes Lions, Advertising Week), and academic partnerships. The body of work is the closest thing the platform has to a publishing peer of the Meta Foresight or Google Think Insights operations.
The numbers
- 88% — share of TikTok viewing with sound on.
- ~15% — sound-on share on Facebook and Instagram comparison.
- 1.7 seconds — median swipe-or-stay decision window.
- 90/10 — recommended creative-versus-paid spend split.
- 9:16 — native vertical aspect ratio.
- 7 — case-study brands across e.l.f., Duolingo, Ryanair, Scrub Daddy, Crocs, Liquid Death, Trader Joe's that have published verified TikTok-for-Business performance data.
FAQ
What share of TikTok viewing happens with sound on?
88%, per TikTok's published Marketing Science research — significantly higher than Facebook and Instagram comparison metrics.
What is the 90/10 rule for TikTok spend?
The platform's internal recommendation: 90% of budget to native creative production and organic-or-Spark Ads amplification, 10% to formal paid units like TopView. Inverts the legacy advertising spend split.
How fast do users decide to swipe on TikTok?
Approximately 1.7 seconds according to TikTok Marketing Science. The first second-and-a-half is the entire ad.
Where can brands find TikTok's creative research?
TikTok Creative Center, TikTok For Business Insights, and TikTok Marketing Science publications — all first-party surfaces.
Which brands execute the codebook well?
Duolingo, Ryanair, Scrub Daddy, e.l.f. Beauty, Crocs, Liquid Death, and Trader Joe's all run native-first creative against the 90/10 rule and produce outsized reach for their media budgets.
