Whether you like it or not, TikTok is on the track to become the most important social network for marketing.
So if you’ve been hesitating, contemplating, or blissfully unaware (we don’t blame you), Tiktok is something you should pay attention to if you’re a marketer.
For some people it comes as no surprise. We’ve seen how TikTok and user-generated content have taken over the marketing space. TikTok is a place for highly-consumable, entertaining, authentic content. And that’s a goldmine for marketing.
After all, 80% of consumers say their purchasing decisions are impacted by average people (like every other person on TikTok). Meanwhile, only 10% of people said influencer content resonated with them in an authentic way.
This is significant. Up until recent years, Instagram has been the go-to place for marketing. With the influencer market being valued at an estimated $1.7 billion, it’s been a solid place to invest.
But now, TikTok has climbed its way into the spotlight, showing that people are starting to prefer the TikToker chilling in their sweatpants over the Instagram influencer on their picturesque Bali vacation.
This article is sort of a wake-up call, or a sign that you should follow through on your TikTok curiosities. Because just as David Letterman once mocked the internet’s potential (explained by none other than Bill Gates), time will come when TikTok naysayers will inevitably be proven wrong, and receive the disrespect from the already-dead meme “Ok boomer”.
Jeez, time moves too fast with these trends. In any case, TikTok has become the new thing. But to what extent?
TikTok has grown exponentially compared to Instagram and Facebook
If you’re reading this article, chances are you know about Hootsuite and their wonderful blog. Thanks to Hootsuite, we can see just how much TikTok is outpacing its steady competitors. The following stats are pulled from their Top 9 Social Media Trends to Prepare for in 2022.
In September 2021, TikTok surpassed the 1-billion user mark, making it the 7th most popular social network in the world. Excluding messaging networks like FB Messenger and Wechat, it’s the 4th most popular social media network after Instagram.
That’s already impressive, but wait until you see the growth. In January 2021, it had 689 million users — a 45% increase in 9 months. It gets even bigger; the global user base grew by 1157% between 2018 and 2020. Meanwhile, Instagram’s monthly active users only grew at a rate of 6% in 2020.
OK, so that’s plenty of growth, but what about searchability? Turns out, TikTok dominates this space too. Over the year, search demand for TikTok grew by 173%, versus 22% for Instagram Reels, and a 33% decrease for Instagram Stories.
As for a general opinion on TikTok, 24% of marketers said TikTok was their most effective social platform for reaching their business goals, a 700% increase over 2020.
Why is TikTok becoming more and more popular?
For TikTok users, it’s simply fun and easy to use. It’s what Vine could’ve been if it had supported its users in the way TikTok does. It’s a creative space where people can dance, create, and brand themselves — an increasingly important thing to do.
The support TikTok provides for its users is effective as well. It introduced helpful business tools in 2020 and 2021, including ads, business profiles, and a creator marketplace that makes it easy to partner with creators.
But even so, it’s interesting to note that not every marketer believes in TikTok’s ability to grow their business. In fact, most businesses continue to bet on the ol’ reliables — Instagram and Facebook. In Hootsuite’s survey, only 35% of respondents said they planned to increase their investment in TikTok.
This smells like an opportunity. TikTok has had profound growth, yet marketers have yet to saturate its space. Is now the time to take a look at TikTok? We suggest you think of it this way: if TikTok completely blows up next year and becomes the #1 platform for marketing (leaving you little room for entry), will you regret not getting into it earlier?
Final thoughts
Hootsuite recommends being at the front of the wave rather than behind it. We reckon that’s sound advice.
Secure your TikTok handle, get yourself familiar with the app, and learn about TikTok marketing strategies. It can’t hurt, can it?
What’s more interesting to us is that we’ve seen this before, when people dismiss new trends, or fail to act on its potential. It happened with social media — Instagram who sits at #1 now — and it’s happened with cryptocurrency — where people have made eye-watering fortunes.
We’re not saying you should put all your eggs into the basket, only to prepare for what’s to come and stay in the know so that you’re not blindsided by the prodigious rookie.
That’s all we have this time! We’re wishing you the best with your 2022 marketing, and hope you can keep your sanity through the rapid, ever-moving marketing space that’s bound to involve TikTok.
