Key Takeaways
- Four brands show how to win with TopView: Balenciaga (shoppable luxury launch), Maybelline (interactive Shaker mechanic), STARZ (creator-led vs. studio test), and McDonald’s Germany (creator content across multiple placements).
- Balenciaga led with its own visual identity and linked the call to action straight to product pages, driving over 4.5 million clicks; Maybelline tied the ad to the product’s shake-to-activate mechanic for a 208% uplift and 55M+ impressions in 24 hours.
- STARZ tested creator-led creative against a studio-produced spot and found creators held attention longer in the premium placement, with stronger watch time and view-through rates.
- McDonald’s Germany shifted budget to creator content via the TikTok One Partner Exchange and ran it across TopView, In-Feed, and TopFeed, cutting cost per thousand impressions (CPM) among Gen Z by 40%.
- GetHookd gives access to over 65 million high-performing ads to study proven hooks before committing to a premium placement, with a Video Scripts generator, Ads Transcription, and Brand Spy to turn those insights into TikTok-ready creative in minutes.
What Makes TopView Different From Other TikTok Ad Formats
TikTok TopView Ads give brands the most prominent placement on the platform by appearing the moment a user opens the app. Because they autoplay in full-screen with sound on before any other content loads, they are designed for maximum visibility.
The most successful TopView campaigns pair premium placement with creative that feels native to TikTok. Brands such as Balenciaga, Maybelline, STARZ, and McDonald’s used different approaches, including shoppable experiences, interactive elements, creator-led content, and multi-format campaigns, but all focused on capturing attention immediately and delivering a clear message. Their results demonstrate that creative strategy often matters as much as the placement itself.
Below, we break down each campaign in detail and share how brands of any size can apply the same principles to their own TopView ads.
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4 Effective TikTok TopView Ad Examples to Inspire You
1. Balenciaga: Shoppable TopView Campaign for the Holiday Season
Balenciaga became one of the first high-end luxury brands to test TikTok’s TopView format, running a Christmas campaign across the UK and France. The goal was to reach a new audience on TikTok and show that luxury fashion could work on a platform known for raw, unpolished content.
The ad showcased Balenciaga’s holiday products against a dramatic space-themed backdrop, with sound-on visuals filling the full screen the moment users opened TikTok.
Each product appearance was paired with a tap-to-shop link that sent viewers straight to Balenciaga’s product pages, turning a brand awareness moment into a direct shopping path.
The campaign drove over 4.5 million clicks to the landing page, and Balenciaga later reused the same creative for two Brand Takeover campaigns.
How You Can Replicate It
You do not need a luxury budget to apply Balenciaga’s strategy. Build the creative around your brand’s visual identity rather than chasing trends.
Link the CTA directly to a product or category page, not your homepage. And if a TopView creative performs well, reuse it across Brand Takeover or In-Feed placements to stretch the budget further.
2. Maybelline: TopView Shaker Ad for the Valentine’s Lipstick Launch
Maybelline used TikTok’s TopView Shaker format to launch its SuperStay Vinyl Ink lipstick over Valentine’s Day. The campaign tied the product’s mechanics to the ad itself, since the lipstick needs to be shaken before use to release its glow finish, and the ad invited users to physically shake their phones to be redirected to Maybelline’s Amazon store.
Maybelline worked with brand ambassador Maca García to front the creative, with the integration developed in collaboration with the TikTok team to align the Shaker mechanic with the product’s natural use.
The campaign generated a 208% uplift compared to an average day and over 55 million impressions in 24 hours.
How You Can Replicate It
Maybelline’s success came from designing the ad around the product’s actual mechanics, not just placing the product inside a generic format.
Build TopView creative specifically for TikTok rather than resizing assets from other channels. Use sound as a core creative element since TopView autoplays with audio on.
Where the budget allows, look for ways to tie an interactive feature to something distinctive about your product’s operation.
3. STARZ: Creator-Led TopView Campaign
STARZ ran a TopView campaign to build momentum for the premiere of Power Book II: Ghost Season 4, with creators producing the ad content instead of using a traditional studio-produced spot. The creators were chosen for their existing audience trust, so the ad came across as a recommendation from familiar voices.
The studio also tested a separate studio-produced TopView creative on the same campaign, which gave STARZ a direct way to compare the two creative approaches. The creator-led versions delivered stronger watch time and view-through rates, confirming that creator-produced content tends to hold attention longer in a premium placement than studio-produced creative.
How You Can Replicate It
The creator-led TopView model works well for entertainment, lifestyle, and consumer brands where personal endorsement carries weight.
Use TikTok One or the TikTok Creator Marketplace to find creators whose content style matches your brand tone. Give those creators enough creative freedom to keep the ad feeling like their content.
Where possible, test the creator-led TopView side by side with the studio-produced creative to see which performs better for your category.
4. McDonald’s Germany: TopView Campaign Built to Win Over Gen Z
McDonald’s Germany ran a TopView campaign to promote its McWrap “Take It Fresh” launch, with the goal of refreshing how Gen Z audiences in Germany perceived the product.
Instead of producing the creative in-house, the team partnered with TikTok creators through the TikTok One Partner Exchange, a program that connects brands with creators who handle the creative and campaign management.
The campaign ran TopView alongside In-Feed Ads and TopFeed placements, so the same creative themes carried across multiple touchpoints. The shift to creator-led creative paid off, with McDonald’s reporting a 40% drop in CPM (cost per thousand impressions) among Gen Z users.
How You Can Replicate It
Shift a portion of your creative budget toward creator-produced content instead of brand-produced assets. Then run that creative across TopView, In-Feed Ads, and TopFeed placements so the same themes carry through every touchpoint.
Track CPM by audience segment as you go, since a drop in any segment shows the algorithm is rewarding your creative with the audience you wanted to reach.
TikTok TopView Ad vs Brand Takeover Campaigns
TopView Ads and Brand Takeover Ads both appear the moment a user opens TikTok, which is why the two formats are often confused. The difference comes down to length, sound, and the ad’s interactivity.
A Brand Takeover is a short, full-screen ad that plays for three to five seconds when the app launches, with no scrolling allowed during playback. The format is built for instant brand impact and works best for a single image, GIF, or short video that delivers one clear message.
A TopView Ad runs longer, up to 60 seconds, with sound playing automatically and full feed engagement available once the ad ends. Viewers can like, comment, share, and follow the brand directly from the placement. That extra runtime and interactivity make TopView the better fit for product demos, storytelling, and shoppable campaigns, while Brand Takeover is suited to short brand reinforcement moments.
TikTok TopView Ad Examples: Summary Table
| Brand | TopView Strategy | Key Takeaway |
| Balenciaga | Shoppable Christmas campaign paired with tap-to-shop product links | Lead with your brand’s distinct visual identity and link the CTA directly to a product or category page, not your homepage |
| Maybelline | TopView Shaker integration inviting users to shake their phones to reach Maybelline’s Amazon store | Design the ad around your product’s actual mechanics so the interactive element feels native to the product itself |
| STARZ | Creator-led campaign run alongside a studio-produced asset to compare creative approaches | Test the creator-led creative against the studio-produced versions to see which holds attention longer in a premium placement |
| McDonald’s Germany | McWrap “Take It Fresh” Gen Z campaign combining TopView with In-Feed Ads and TopFeed via the TikTok One Partner Exchange | Shift part of your creative budget toward creator-produced content and track CPM by audience segment to see what is working |
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TikTok TopView is the closest thing digital advertising has to a guaranteed moment of undivided attention. The brands that use it best are the ones that respect the platform’s creative culture, build for sound-on full-screen viewing, and pair that creative with a single clear objective.
GetHookd is built to support that process. Our platform indexes over 65 million high-performing ads, so you can study the hooks, openings, and creative angles already proven to hold attention in your category before committing to a premium placement. From there, our Video Scripts generator and Ads Transcription tools turn those insights into TikTok-ready scripts in minutes, while Brand Spy keeps you informed on the creative directions your competitors are actively scaling, so every TopView dollar goes behind a concept you already know converts.
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What is a TikTok TopView ad?
A TikTok TopView ad is a premium full-screen video ad that appears the moment a user opens the TikTok app, before any For You Page content loads. It auto-plays with sound on, can run up to 60 seconds, and supports clickable calls to action that link to TikTok pages or external URLs.
How long can a TikTok TopView ad be?
TikTok TopView ads can run between 5 and 60 seconds. Since users can skip after the first few seconds, the opening hook needs to do heavy lifting fast. Most high-performing TopView ads front-load their most compelling visual or audio element within the first two seconds to hold attention past the skip threshold.
What is the difference between TikTok TopView and TopFeed ads?
These two formats are often confused, but they serve different functions. TopView appears the moment a user opens the TikTok app, before the For You Page even loads, making it the very first thing they see on screen. TopFeed appears later in the session, as the first ad inside the For You Page feed once the user starts scrolling.
What industries perform best with TikTok TopView ads?
TopView tends to perform well in categories where visual impact, emotional connection, and impulse response drive consumer behavior. Fashion and beauty brands like Balenciaga and Maybelline have used it to drive both awareness and direct clicks to product pages, while entertainment brands like STARZ have used it for awareness around new releases.
What is the fastest way to validate a creative direction before scaling spend?
The fastest way is to study what is already working in your category, then build off proven concepts instead of starting from scratch. GetHookd gives you access to over 65 million high-performing ads, so you can spot the ones already converting. From there, our AI-powered creative tools help you turn those insights into ready-to-shoot scripts in minutes.
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