TikTok is a force to be reckoned with.
According to Wordstream, the video-focused app continues to kill it, coming in at #6 just behind Facebook, YouTube, WhatsApp, Instagram and Facebook Messenger as the world’s most popular social media platform. As a comparison, Twitter doesn’t even make an appearance on the list until #15 — though it did beat TikTok in popularity in the US. In fact, TikTok is so hot it’s even got #1 Facebook worried. On March 30, Facebook-owning-entity Meta’s president Mark Zuckerberg mentioned Facebook “Reels” numerous times throughout the recent earnings call and pinpointed it as his top investment area for 2022.
Reels is a near copy of TikTok and though popular, it struggles to be as original as its competitor. Facebook can’t seem to score as much user-generated content as they hoped with many users simply regurgitating their favorite TikTok videos. Meta, hoping to change this, acknowledged that they must embrace the industry trend of short form video to capture the youth — 60% of TikTok’s users are ages 10-19, whereas Facebook’s are 25-34 and Boomers. Director of product for Reels, Tessa Lyons-Laing told Vox’s recode that, “It’s absolutely a core part of our young adult strategy. It’s one thing we’re going to continue to invest in for that reason.”
All this should give you a high-level view of the popularity of TikTok. It’s no secret short videos is where it’s at. So, when considering which platforms you’re going to tackle to promote your business — and better to do some well then attempt them all and do a shoddy job — TikTok, though it slants younger, may be worthwhile to amp up your brand/online presence.
Recently the site made two announcements that could be beneficial to the adult industry.
As reported on by TechCrunch, TikTok partnered with GIPHY to bring users a library with tens of thousands of memes, gifs, clips with sound and more to add to videos. This opens a world of creative possibilities. To use the feature, you tap the “Library” icon on the sidebar of the screen. There you’ll be able to scroll through endless content — a search bar lends more specificity if you know what you’re looking for. When you find the clip you want you can then edit it to the desired length to pop into your final product. Once that’s done you simply go back to the shooting page and continue capturing video.
The other new feature TikTok announced is a The Watch History update. This allows users to search videos they’ve seen. The idea seems like a no brainer, but until now, finding a video you loved after seeing it was a little like searching for a needle in a haystack. Watch History lets users pull up videos they’ve accessed as far back as seven days ago. Good news for content providers who now can be sure their videos are easily accessible to be shared again and again by their fans. Unfortunately, the much-needed update is still being tested and is currently available to only select individuals. TikTok had no comment on when it will be ready, but users have pressured them for such a feature for quite some time so it’s hopeful that they’ll be getting it rolled out soon.
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Alyssa Collins hails from Minnesota, where snowy days were the perfect excuse to stay warm inside and write. Over the years, she turned that joy into a career and has authored numerous articles for various publications (under pen names). Email Alyssa via alyssa@ynot.com.
Header image via Pexels.com.
