How Tesco hard-launched on TikTok in the best way possible

Context

Tesco arrived on the TikTok scene later than some of their competitors, who had found success on the platform. They, like their rivals, were there with one primary goal back in 2022: engage a younger audience.

Objectives

• Get more young people to sign up for a Tesco Clubcard
• Drive engagement with the Tesco TikTok account in its first four weeks

Strategy

Tesco and their agency BBH London knew they needed something to catch the attention of young people as they scrolled through their FYP. So the brand leant into the distinctive, and often divisive, voice of the self-checkout – and in particular its personal catchphrase: ‘Clubcard accepted.’
Tesco made its TikTok debut with a video featuring the supermarket’s current checkout voice asking people to ‘duet’ with it – using the app’s split-screen feature that allows users to post a video beside another TikTok. Participants were encouraged to repeat key phrases such as ‘please check my bagging area’ and ‘Clubcard accepted’, and then to post their duet using the hashtag #tescovoiceofcheckout to enter the contest.

Outcome

There were about 3,000 entries to the competition. Tesco gained over 100,000 followers on its new TikTok account in the space of a few days. The original video racked up 1.1 million views in just 24 hours, and at the time of writing had been viewed over 26.8 million times. The campaign drove a 12% increase in awareness, a 4% rise in likelihood to recommend and a 7% average uplift in Clubcard use.