Let me be honest with you. When brands ask me how to grow in Vietnam today, my first answer is almost always the same: TikTok. I have spent years helping foreign companies enter Asia, and I have rarely seen a channel move product as fast as TikTok does in Vietnam right now. But I have also watched brands burn money here by treating it like a TV ad platform. It is not. This is my complete guide to doing TikTok marketing in Vietnam the right way, with the 2026 numbers and the lessons I have learned in the field.
We will cover why TikTok works, how the algorithm rewards you, how to sell through TikTok Shop and live, and the mistakes I see again and again. Let us get into it.
TikTok in Vietnam, the numbers I look at (2025-2026)
The audience
- 40.9 million adult users, and it is the fastest growing platform in the country.
- It leads for Gen Z attention, and Gen Z leads online spending.
- Short video is now the default way Vietnamese discover products.
- Over 72% of online shoppers are Gen Z and Millennials.
The commerce side
- TikTok Shop grew about 148% in the first half of 2025.
- It holds roughly 42% of platform e-commerce sales, second only to Shopee.
- Live selling drives a large share of orders.
- Discovery and checkout happen in one app.
Why it works for brands
- The algorithm gives small accounts real reach. Budget helps, but creativity wins.
- Entertainment, not ads, drives discovery.
- Trends and sounds can spread a product overnight.
- Creators and live hosts turn views into orders.
The backdrop
- E-commerce hit about $28 billion in 2025, up 25%.
- Facebook still leads total reach, TikTok leads culture and growth.
- Zalo, with 78 million users, backs up service and chat.
- Mobile first, video first, trend driven.
Why TikTok marketing is different in Vietnam
Here is the mindset shift I ask every brand to make. On most channels, you interrupt people with an ad and hope they care. On TikTok in Vietnam, you have to earn attention by being genuinely entertaining or useful, and the reward is enormous reach, often for free. The algorithm does not care how many followers you have. It cares whether people watch your video to the end. That is a gift for a new brand, because a single good video can reach millions from a standing start.
Let me give you a simple example from the field. A small imported snack brand I advised had almost no following. Instead of running ads, it posted short, funny clips of Vietnamese office workers reacting to the snack. One clip caught a trending sound at the right moment and passed a million views in days. The brand sold out its first shipment before it had even finished its ad plan. That is the power of getting TikTok right in Vietnam.
How to do TikTok marketing in Vietnam, step by step
Step 1: Make native video, not ads
Your first job is to stop thinking like an advertiser. Vietnamese viewers scroll past anything that looks like a commercial in a second. Make short, vertical video that entertains, teaches or surprises, and put the product inside the story rather than shouting about it. Film on a phone. Rough and real beats polished and corporate here. Post often, because volume is how you learn what works.
Step 2: Ride trends and sounds fast
Trends are free distribution, but they move fast. A sound that is hot this week is dead the next. Watch the For You page every day, and when a format fits your product, jump on it within a day or two with a local twist. This is where a local team earns its keep, because they feel the culture in a way a foreign head office never will.
Step 3: Open TikTok Shop and go live
This is where the money is. Set up a TikTok Shop so people can buy without leaving the app, then go live on a fixed schedule. A good live host demonstrates the product, answers questions in real time, and runs limited deals to create urgency. I tell brands to treat live like a weekly TV show with a set time, not a random event. That consistency builds an audience that comes back to buy.
Step 4: Build a creator and affiliate network
TikTok runs on creators, and in Vietnam they sell, not just post. Use affiliate links so creators earn a share of every sale they drive, which lines up their interests with yours. Pick creators who fit your product, and favor engaged mid-size voices over expensive celebrities. Vietnamese buyers trust a creator they follow far more than a brand talking about itself.
What trips brands up on comprehensive tiktok
- Reposting TV or Facebook ads. One European brand ran its global commercial on TikTok and got a few hundred views. Native video fixed it overnight.
- Reacting to trends too late. A trend caught a week after its peak brings almost no reach. Speed is everything.
- Skipping live selling. If you are not going live, you are ignoring the main sales engine on the platform.
- Talking about themselves. TikTok rewards entertainment and creators, not brand monologues.
- Dropping Facebook. TikTok adds to your mix. Keep Facebook for reach and Messenger selling.
The decision this points to
If you want to grow in Vietnam, TikTok is where the momentum is. Make native video, ride trends fast, sell through TikTok Shop and live, and build a creator network, all in local voice. Do that and the reach, and the orders, follow. For the wider picture, see TikTok and the yearly Digital 2025 Vietnam report.
Related reading here: the top digital marketing trends in Vietnam and the latest consumer trends in Vietnam.
Points brands raise about comprehensive tiktok
Do I need a big budget to succeed on TikTok in Vietnam?
No. The algorithm rewards watch time and creativity, not spend or follower count. Small brands with the right native video regularly reach millions. Budget helps you scale what already works.
Is TikTok Shop worth setting up?
Yes. It lets buyers purchase without leaving the app, and live selling through it drives a large share of orders. For consumer products in Vietnam, it is close to essential.
Should I use creators or make my own content?
Both. Post your own native videos and build a network of creators with affiliate links. Vietnamese buyers trust creators they follow, so creators are a core sales channel, not an extra.
Does TikTok replace Facebook in Vietnam?
No. Facebook still gives the widest reach and strong Messenger selling. TikTok adds culture, discovery and fast growth with younger buyers. The best results come from using both.
Where we can help with comprehensive tiktok
At GMA, we help foreign brands turn TikTok into real sales in Vietnam. My team produces native short video, runs TikTok Shop and live selling, builds creator and affiliate networks, and connects it all to your wider marketing. If you want to move fast on TikTok while the reach is still cheap, drop us a line and we will map the first steps together.
About the writer. Philip Chen heads GMA, splitting his time between Shanghai and Southeast Asia.