In TikTok's increasingly prosperous business ecosystem, merchants often rely on giving away samples to promote brand exposure by collaborating with platform influencers. However, many merchants have found that even after careful selection, they still encounter some influencers who are only interested in "getting free products," and after the samples are sent out, the expected promotion does not materialize. This not only causes merchants to suffer losses but also disrupts their marketing plans.

To help merchants reduce this phenomenon, TikTok Shop has recently launched a "refundable" sample policy aimed at increasing transparency in cooperation and safeguarding merchants' interests. The new policy gives merchants more flexible sample shipping options and provides more efficient tracking and management tools.

Key Points of the New Policy: "Refundable" Sample Option

The new TikTok Shop policy focuses on optimizing the sample shipping and management process, especially effectively controlling the issue of influencers not fulfilling their commitments.

1. "Refundable" Sample Selection

In the Affiliate Center, merchants can choose "refundable" samples or directly provide "free samples." If the "refundable" option is selected, and the influencer does not fulfill the cooperation requirements after receiving the sample, the merchant can charge a sample fee. This mechanism reduces the risk of giving away samples for no reason, allowing merchants to cooperate more safely.

2. Optimized Sample Shipping Process

Under the new process, merchants can quickly complete sample shipping operations through the "To Be Shipped" page in the TikTok Shop Seller Center. If auto-approval is set, the system will automatically process sample requests, making the operation more efficient and convenient.

3. Stricter Monitoring and Tracking Mechanism

In the sample request section of the Affiliate Center, merchants can centrally view all sample requests and set a 7-day review period for each order. Sample requests that are not approved within this period will be automatically canceled. Through this measure, merchants can more effectively manage sample distribution and ensure better use of the samples sent out.

How Should Merchants Respond to the New Policy?

The new TikTok Shop policy brings merchants greater flexibility and security, but merchants still need to plan reasonably in practice to truly leverage the advantages brought by the policy:

1. Clarify Promotion Goals

Before cooperation, merchants should clarify promotion goals and cooperation requirements. Only by reaching a consensus can smooth cooperation be ensured, making sure both influencers and merchants are aligned on the objectives.

2. Carefully Select Suitable Influencers

Merchants can select influencers whose audience, engagement data, and content style match the brand's tone, ensuring the accuracy and effectiveness of sample promotion. Suitable influencers will better attract the attention of target users and enhance the effectiveness of cooperation.

3. Establish Long-term Cooperative Relationships

For outstanding influencers, merchants can try to establish long-term cooperative relationships. Long-term and stable cooperation not only helps increase brand awareness among target groups but also strengthens influencers' trust and commitment to the brand.

4. Regularly Evaluate Results and Adjust Strategies Dynamically

The monitoring and tracking tools provided by TikTok Shop allow merchants to track the effectiveness of sample promotion in real time. Merchants can use this data feedback to select high-quality influencers and eliminate unsuitable partners, thereby gradually optimizing promotion strategies.

The Positive Impact of TikTok Shop on the Future

The recent optimization of TikTok Shop's sample shipping policy helps further standardize the platform's transaction process and creates a healthier business environment. Through these improvements, cooperation between merchants and influencers will become more transparent, enhancing merchants' sense of security and optimizing the efficiency of sample usage.

As TikTok continues to improve its merchant tools and policies, merchants can choose promotion methods more flexibly and continuously optimize cooperation processes, thereby increasing their competitiveness on TikTok. In the future, TikTok Shop may introduce more safeguards to help merchants better adapt to changes in the platform's ecosystem.