How to Make a TikTok Store

Thinking about selling your products directly on TikTok? Good call. The platform has officially moved beyond a place for dance trends and is now a powerhouse for e-commerce, letting brands tap into millions of users ready to shop without ever leaving the app. This guide will walk you through exactly how to set up your own TikTok Shop, from meeting the requirements to making your first sale and beyond.

What Exactly is a TikTok Shop?

A TikTok Shop is a shopping feature fully integrated into the platform that gives businesses a new way to showcase and sell products directly to the TikTok community. It’s not just about running ads that link out to your website, it's a native storefront that removes the friction between seeing a product in a video and actually buying it.

You can feature your products in three key ways:

• Shoppable In-Feed Videos: A small shopping bag icon appears on your regular videos. Users can tap it to see the featured products and add them to their cart.
• LIVE Shopping Streams: You can host live video events where you demo products, answer questions, and offer special deals. Viewers can purchase items in real-time by tapping pinned products during the broadcast.
• Product Showcase Tab: A permanent shopping tab (marked with a shopping bag icon) is added to your profile page, acting as your brand's digital storefront where users can browse your entire product catalog at any time.

The biggest advantage here is the seamless experience. A user can discover your product, add it to their cart, and check out without ever closing the TikTok app, which dramatically increases conversion rates.

Before You Start: Eligibility and Requirements

Before you get started, it’s important to know if you're eligible. TikTok has some specific criteria you need to meet to open a shop. Getting these in order first will save you a lot of time and potential headaches.

Primarily, you must:

• Be Located in a Supported Region: TikTok Shop is currently available in the United States, the United Kingdom, and select countries in Southeast Asia (like Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, the Philippines, and Singapore). This list is growing, so always check the latest on the Seller Center website.
• Have a Registered Business (in most cases): You will need to provide official business registration documents or be a verified sole proprietor. This means you’ll likely need details like your business name, address, and an Employer Identification Number (EIN) for corporations or a Social Security Number (SSN) for sole proprietors in the U.S.
• Sell Eligible Products: TikTok has a clear list of prohibited and restricted products. As you’d expect, this includes things like alcohol, weapons, tobacco, drugs, and certain medical items. Make sure your products are on the approved list to avoid having your shop shut down.

Your Step-by-Step Guide to Setting Up a TikTok Shop

Ready to get started? Once you've confirmed you meet the requirements, the setup process is quite straightforward. Here’s a breakdown of each step.

Step 1: Sign Up via the TikTok Seller Center

Your journey begins at the TikTok Seller Center portal. You can find this easily by searching for "TikTok Shop Seller Center" or going directly to seller.tiktok.com for your respective region.

You’ll be given two options for signing up:

• Sign up with your TikTok Account: This is the recommended route. It automatically links your shop with your existing TikTok profile, which is where your product tab will appear. Make sure you are logged into the correct TikTok account you intend to sell from.
• Sign up with Phone & Email: You can also create a Seller Center account from scratch using your phone and email. You will have to link your TikTok account manually later on.

Choose your option and follow the initial prompts. If you have an existing TikTok Business Account, that's the best one to use.

Step 2: Provide Your Business Information

Once you’re in, you’ll need to complete your profile verification. This is where you hand over all your official business details.

You’ll be asked to choose your business type, likely between “Corporate” or “Individual” (i.e., a sole proprietor). The documents you need will depend on your choice.

• For Corporations: You will need to provide your business registration information, company name, address, and EIN. You will also have to give information about the primary business owner.
• For Individuals/Sole Proprietors: You may need to provide personal identification, like a driver's license or passport, and your SSN.

Double-check every detail. Any mismatch between your documents and the information you enter can cause significant delays in the verification process.

Step 3: Awaiting Verification

After you submit your information and documents, you play the waiting game. TikTok's team will review your application to verify your identity and business credentials. This process can take anywhere from a few hours to a couple of business days. You'll receive a notification once your shop has been approved.

Step 4: Connect Your Bank Account

While you wait for full verification, you can usually take care of a few other setup tasks. The most important one is setting up your payment information so you can actually get paid. In the Seller Center, find the Finance section or look for "My Account" > "Account Settings" > "Payment Information." Here, you’ll securely link the bank account where your earnings from sales will be deposited.

Step 5: Add Your Products

Once your shop is approved, it’s time for the fun part: adding your products! Your shop is an empty digital storefront until you populate it with your inventory.

You have two main ways to do this:

Manually Add Products

This is the best option if you have a small, manageable number of products. In the Seller Center, go to the "Products" section and select "Add New Product."

• Essential Details: You’ll have to fill out fields for the product name, a detailed description, and the product category. Be as descriptive as possible.
• Media: Upload high-quality images and even short videos of your product. For clothing or accessories, show them in action. For other goods, showcase different angles and features.
• Variations: If your product comes in different sizes, colors, or styles, you can add these 'variants' here.
• Pricing and Inventory: Set your price for each variant and enter the quantity you have in stock. The system will automatically track inventory as sales come in.

Integrate With Your E-commerce Platform

If you already run a store on a platform like Shopify or BigCommerce, you are in luck. TikTok Shop offers direct integrations with major e-commerce partners, which makes importing your products a breeze.

For example, to connect with Shopify, you'd go to the Shopify App Store, find the official TikTok app, and follow the instructions to sync your accounts. Once connected, you can manage your products, inventory, and orders from your Shopify dashboard, and they will automatically update in your TikTok Shop. This saves a massive amount of manual work.

Strategies to Actually Sell Products on Your TikTok Shop

Getting your shop set up is only half the battle. Now you have to get people to buy your stuff. The beauty of TikTok Shop is that you promote and sell using the content formats your audience already loves.

Go Live: Master LIVE Shopping

TikTok LIVEs are one of the most powerful sales drivers on the platform. A live stream creates a sense of urgency and allows you to connect with your community in real-time. Shoppers can ask questions, see the products demonstrated, and buy them without missing a moment of the stream.

• Promote Your LIVE Event: Announce your live stream a few days in advance using regular video posts and stories. Let people know what you'll be showcasing and if there will be any special discounts.
• Have a Plan: Don't just wing it. Plan out which products you’ll feature and what your key talking points are. But also, be flexible enough to interact organically with viewer comments.
• Pin Your Products: During the broadcast, you can 'pin' different products to the screen, making it super easy for viewers to tap and add them to their cart.

Create Shoppable In-Feed Videos

This is your daily marketing engine. Every time you post a video, you should be thinking about how you can integrate your products naturally. When you upload a video in the app, you'll see an option to 'Add Link.' From there, you can select 'Product' and tag the relevant items from your shop.

Some content ideas that work extremely well:

• Problem/Solution: Show how your product solves a common problem. Think "five things you didn't know you needed." This is the core of the "#TikTokMadeMeBuyIt" trend.
• GRWM ("Get Ready With Me"): If you sell apparel, skincare, or accessories, a GRWM video is a perfect format to showcase items in a natural context.
• Behind the Scenes: Show how your products are made or how you pack orders. This builds brand transparency and trust.
• Tutorials and How-Tos: Demonstrate how to use your product to get the best results. This shows its value and gives viewers confidence to purchase.

Leverage the Affiliate Program

Don't want to create all the content yourself? You don't have to. The TikTok Shop Affiliate Program allows you to collaborate with creators who will promote your products in exchange for a commission on sales.

In the Seller Center, you can set up an affiliate plan for your products. You decide the commission percentage. Creators can then find your products, request a free sample, and make videos about them. You only pay when they generate a sale, making it a low-risk, high-reward marketing strategy.

Managing Your TikTok Shop: The Day-to-Day

Your work isn't over when a sale comes through. A great customer experience is what brings people back.

Order Fulfillment

You are responsible for getting the product to the customer. In your Seller Center dashboards, you can manage all your incoming orders. You will package the item, purchase a shipping label (either through TikTok or your own service), and get it sent out within TikTok’s required timeframe. Be quick and communicative to maintain a good seller rating.

Customer Service

Customers will have questions, issues, or returns. TikTok provides a built-in messaging system within the Seller Center to handle all customer inquiries. Responsive and helpful customer service is essential for building a strong brand reputation.

Final Thoughts

Building a successful business on TikTok Shop is a powerful move that puts your products right where shoppers are already spending their time. The process is straightforward: set up your account in the Seller Center, get your products listed, and then use LIVEs, shoppable videos, and creator collaborations to drive interest and sales directly within the app.

Once your shop is live, creating a steady stream of promotional content is the next big challenge. We know that planning and scheduling your shoppable videos, especially short-form content designed for virality, can feel overwhelming. At Postbase, we built our tool specifically for platforms like TikTok. Our visual calendar lets you plan your entire content strategy at a glance, and because our scheduling was designed for short-form video from day one, you can trust that your posts go live exactly when you need them to, driving traffic to your new shop without a hitch.