Your Author's Next Bestseller Might Be One TikTok Live Away

This Is Not Your Teenager's Dance App Anymore

Let's get this out of the way first: yes, TikTok once meant lip-syncs and viral dances. That was then. Today, TikTok is a full-scale commerce platform with over a billion active users, built-in shopping infrastructure, and one of the most powerful word-of-mouth engines on the internet. For the publishing industry, it has already rewritten the rules of what makes a book a bestseller.

I regularly host live shopping events on TikTok, connecting passionate readers with the authors and books they love. And I'm here to tell you something directly: if the authors you represent are not on TikTok Shop, they are missing sales that are happening right now. And so am I — because if a book isn't listed on TikTok Shop, I can't feature it in my live events without receiving a penalty from TikTok.

This post exists to fix that. By the end of it, you'll understand why TikTok Shop matters for your authors, and you'll have everything you need to get them set up.

The BookTok Revolution: By the Numbers

Before TikTok Shop, there was #BookTok — and it changed everything.

What started as readers enthusiastically posting videos of themselves reacting to their favorite books grew into one of the most culturally powerful literary communities in history. The numbers are impossible to ignore:

•        370 billion+ total views have accumulated under the #BookTok hashtag, with more than 52 million videos created under the tag.

•        45% of TikTok users have purchased a book after seeing it featured on the platform.

•        Books featured on BookTok see an average 600% increase in sales.

•        In 2025 alone, BookTok-recommended titles generated over €800 million in revenue in Europe and drove an estimated $760+ million in U.S. revenue tied to TikTok-discovered titles.

•        A third of readers ages 16–39 now discover new books through TikTok — more than through traditional media.

You've seen what BookTok can do. Colleen Hoover's It Ends With Us — published in 2016 — climbed back to #1 on bestseller lists in 2021 purely on the strength of TikTok word-of-mouth. Indie author Olivie Blake self-published The Atlas Six, went viral on BookTok, signed a major publishing deal, and landed on the bestseller lists. Debut authors with no marketing budgets have documented going from selling a few copies a week to earning five-figure monthly incomes from a single viral TikTok moment.

That's the organic, content-driven side. Now TikTok has added the infrastructure to turn that discovery directly into sales — without the reader ever leaving the app. That's TikTok Shop.

What Is TikTok Shop — and Why Does It Matter for Authors?

TikTok Shop is TikTok's built-in e-commerce platform. It allows sellers — including authors and publishers — to list products directly inside the TikTok app. Buyers can purchase with just a few taps, without ever navigating to Amazon, a publisher website, or a retail store.

Products listed on TikTok Shop can appear in multiple places:

•        In-feed shoppable videos: Creators tag products directly in their video content.

•        LIVE shopping streams: This is where book influencers like me host events — and where the rules matter most.

•        A dedicated Shop tab on the seller's TikTok profile.

•        The TikTok Shop marketplace: A browsable storefront where TikTok users can discover products independently.

Here's the critical piece for you as a publicist or PR agent: when I host a live shopping event featuring an author's book, TikTok requires that any item I mention for purchase be listed on TikTok Shop. If it isn't, I receive a penalty from the platform. That means if I'm hosting an author on my show and their book isn't on TikTok Shop, I simply cannot sell it during the live — no matter how much the audience wants to buy it.

That's lost revenue for your author. Right now. During a live event. With an eager audience already watching.

Who Needs to Set Up a TikTok Shop Account?

If your client is a self-published or independent author managing their own book sales, they can set up a TikTok Shop seller account directly as an individual or small business.

If your client is published through a traditional publisher, the conversation may need to go to the publisher's marketing or digital team — but it's a conversation worth having. Some publishers have already set up TikTok Shop accounts for their titles; many have not.

Regardless of the publishing path, the bottom line is the same: the book needs to be findable and purchasable inside TikTok. What follows are the exact steps to make that happen.

Step-by-Step: How to Set Up a TikTok Shop Account

What You'll Need Before You Start

•        The author or rights holder must be 18 years or older

•        A valid U.S. government-issued ID (Passport, Driver's License, or State ID)

•        A valid U.S. address

•        An active U.S. bank account for receiving payouts

•        For businesses: EIN (Employer Identification Number) and business registration documents

•        A W-9 form for tax purposes

•        A TikTok account (or the ability to create one)

Good news on timeline: Most U.S. applications are approved within 24–48 hours. There is no minimum follower count requirement to open a seller account.

Step 1 — Go to the TikTok Seller Center

1.     Navigate to seller.tiktok.com (the official TikTok Seller Center for the U.S.).

2.     Click "Sign Up" to create a new seller account, or "Sign In" if the author already has a TikTok account they want to link.

3.     You can register using a TikTok account, email address, or phone number. A verification code will be sent to complete the signup.

Step 2 — Select Your Business Type

4.     Under Seller Information, choose your business type:

•        Individually-Owned Business: Best for self-published authors managing their own sales.

•        Corporation: Best for publishers or formally registered publishing businesses.

5.     Enter a Shop Name. This can be the author's name, pen name, or imprint name — whatever best represents the brand.

Step 3 — Upload Identity Verification Documents

6.     For individual sellers: Upload a clear photo of the front and back of a Passport, Driver's License, or State ID.

7.     For corporations: Upload your business registration documents and EIN confirmation.

8.     Complete a W-9 form for tax purposes.

9.     Submit and wait for TikTok's review — typically 24–48 hours.

Step 4 — Link a Bank Account

10. From the Seller Center homepage, click Link Bank Account.

11. Enter the Account Name, Bank Name, Bank Account Number, Email, and Address.

12. Important: For individually owned businesses, the account name must match the registered name exactly. For corporations, it must match the company name.

13. Click Submit.

Step 5 — Set Up Your Shop Profile

14. Submit your Shop Name, logo, and a compelling shop bio. For authors, this is an opportunity to share their genre, writing style, and who their books are for.

15. Add product categories (Books & Literature is the relevant category).

16. Configure a return address and shipping preferences. TikTok recommends offering free shipping to maximize conversions — many sellers build shipping costs into the product price.

Step 6 — List Your Books as Products

17. Once approved, go to Products → Add Product in the Seller Center.

18. Upload high-quality cover images (multiple angles and lifestyle shots perform well).

19. Write compelling product descriptions — include genre, comparable titles, and reader appeal, not just a plot summary.

20. Set pricing, inventory quantities, and shipping options.

21. Submit for TikTok's product review (typically 1–3 business days).

Step 7 — Connect with Creators and Affiliates

Once the shop is live, authors and publishers can open their products up to TikTok's Affiliate Program, allowing creators like me to tag and sell their books in our content and live events — at no upfront cost to the author. We earn a commission on sales we drive. This is the engine that makes TikTok Shop so powerful for books: it turns every book influencer, podcaster, and enthusiastic reader with a TikTok account into a potential sales channel.

Key Links to Get Started

TikTok Seller Center (U.S.) — Create your account: https://seller.tiktok.com

TikTok for Business Help Center — Shop setup guide: https://ads.tiktok.com/help/article/set-up-tiktok-shop-using-tiktok-seller-center

TikTok Seller University — Registration walkthrough: https://seller-us.tiktok.com/university

TikTok Shop Affiliate Program: https://seller.tiktok.com/university/essay?knowledge_id=10001316

The Bottom Line

TikTok is not a trend. It is not an experiment. It is a marketplace — one where books are being discovered and purchased by the millions, every single day. #BookTok has already proven that this platform's readers are passionate, loyal, and fast-moving. TikTok Shop has added the infrastructure to turn that passion directly into sales.

The authors and publishers who are getting on TikTok Shop now are building a presence in one of the fastest-growing retail channels in the world. The ones who wait are leaving money on the table — money that readers are actively trying to spend.

Getting your clients set up takes less than an hour. The approval process takes 24–48 hours. And once their books are live, they become part of every live shopping event, shoppable video, and creator affiliate campaign that features their titles.

I'd love to feature every one of them.