In brief
In manual targeting, the Interests and behaviors field opens on five tabs: - Interests: interest categories, organized in a tree (news and entertainment, games, tech and electronics, beauty, travel…). - Purchase intent: people who show an intention to buy in a product category. - Video interactions: people who have interacted with certain videos on TikTok in the last 15 days. - Creator interactions: people who have followed or viewed certain types of creators. - Hashtag interactions: people who have viewed certain hashtags in the last 7 days (seasonal hashtags such as back to school or Black Friday).
Why it matters
Each tab describes a different signal. Purchase intent is closer to a decision; interactions are recent; interests are more general. Combining them without thinking can shrink the audience.
The steps
- In manual targeting, open Advanced targeting.
- Click the Interests and behaviors field.
- Choose a tab, expand the tree and check the categories; search saves time.
- Look at the categories recommended for your industry shown under the field.
- Set the purchasing power (all or high) and, if useful, the devices (system, version, model, connection, carrier, device price).
- Check the audience gauge.
Pitfalls to avoid
- Ticking too many very specific categories: the audience becomes too narrow.
- Confusing "interest" with "purchase intent".
- Targeting devices by a tight price range for no reason: the audience can collapse.
Frequently asked questions
Are video interactions up to date? They rely on a recent period (15 days for videos, 7 days for hashtags).
Should I always add interests? No: in automatic targeting, the algorithm explores them on its own.
Key takeaways
- Five tabs = five different signals.
- The narrower the audience, the higher costs can climb.
- Industry recommendations give a starting point.
Practice in TRIALO
Open the selector in a manual ad group, tick two interests then a purchase intent: compare the estimated audience size at each step.