Battle of the Back to School Influencer Campaigns

TikTok vs Instagram: Which Platform comes out on top?

Instagram is clearly the bigger platform for back-to-school influencer campaigns, generating 1,686 sponsored posts compared with 1,067 on TikTok. It also leads in total engagement, with 687,575 likes and 60,067 comments, compared with 428,969 likes and 7,005 comments on TikTok.




But when we look at likes per post, the gap almost disappears: Instagram averages 408 likes per post, compared with 402 on TikTok. In other words, while Instagram is seeing significantly more back-to-school influencer content, TikTok posts are generating almost the same level of like engagement on average.

The Instagram trick driving 5x more comments on sponsored content

The biggest difference between the two platforms comes in the comments.
Instagram posts generated an average of 36 comments each, compared with just 7 on TikTok. While this seems like an enormous disparity, it isn't necessarily a reflection of audience engagement alone. 


















When we looked at the posts generating the most comments on instagram, we noticed something interesting.
A common tactic among Instagram influencers is to actively encourage comments by asking followers to respond with a keyword, such as “RECIPE”, to receive additional information via DM. This type of call to action is far less common on TikTok, meaning that the significantly higher comment rate on Instagram is partly driven by the way creators structure their sponsored content.

The TikTok ranking

#1 Vistaprint

#2 H-E-B

#3 Aeropostale

#4 Superdrug

#5 Aeropostale, again

The Instagram ranking

#1 Costco




#2 Miniso

#3 Shein

#4 Usmile

#5 Pilot

Three things influencer marketers can learn from this back to school season

1. Engagement metrics don't always tell the full story.
   Although a creators stats may be the first thing we pay attention to, it's also important to understand where those metrics are coming from. Quantity doesn't automatically mean quality.
   
   

2. Back-to-school is bigger than school supplies.
   Just because an event or trend isn't immediately obvious for a brand doesn't mean that they can't also ride the wave. This is clearly demonstrated with the fashion, beauty, food, tech, and lifestyle brands that all show up in our rankings.
3. Platform matters.
   Although they share similar engagement stats, the same campaign strategy doesn't necessarily translate between TikTok and Instagram. Strategies should be adapted for the chosen platform.