TikTok has added “Countdown Bidding” as a new option for product listings in selected seller live-streams, which is essentially a virtual auction that’s run within TikTok Live.
As you can see in this example, Countdown Bidding activates an eBay-style auction for your listed products within the livestream, so that viewers can bid on a specific highlighted item. That can help to increase interest in your stream, and boost sale prices, by involving users in a live push to get the item
As explained by TikTok:
“Using Countdown Bidding is easy. First, sellers must create a listing for the item in their shop. To prevent shopper confusion, we label the listing clearly as “auction only”, which disables the option to add the item to their cart. Sellers must provide all the usual details required for collectibles or pre-owned luxury listings, so shoppers have all the details they need to inform their bidding. Sellers can then pull that listing into a LIVE when using the Countdown Bidding feature, and set a starting bid price and timeframe.”
From there, your live viewers can submit bids, which are visible to the audience and the seller. The winner pays at the conclusion of the stream, and the sale is finalized. So all-in-all, a pretty straightforward process.
Though it’s not available for all product types as yet.
“For now, Countdown Bidding is only available in the collectibles and pre-owned luxury categories.”
In addition, TikTok’s also raising the price cap on in-app sales from $7,600 to $13,000, in order to better cater to sales in these categories.
TikTok continues to push its in-stream shopping options, as it looks to convert its massive audience reach into a bigger business. Live sales, in particular, have been a big winner for the app in other markets, and it’s hoping that, eventually, Western users will warm to its in-stream sales options, which will then facilitate significantly more revenue opportunities.
Indeed, the Chinese version of TikTok, called “Douyin,” generated $US490 billion in gross merchandise sales (GMV) in 2024, a 30% increase year-over-year. TikTok reportedly generated around $US30 billion in GMV in 2024, so you can see why the TikTok team is increasingly keen to focus on this element.
And while it hasn’t caught on as yet, there are signs that TikTok users are growing more interested in its shopping options.
In addition to Countdown Bidding, TikTok is also now listing eye and ear care products for sale in the app, while it’s also running a major promotion in the U.K. to boost in-stream sales this Summer.
Maybe, as younger TikTok-aligned audiences grow up, this will become the new norm, in searching for and buying items in–stream. And with hundreds of billions in growth potential, you can expect to see TikTok continue to push the option.
