By: Megan Savary, Editor.
Originally released in 2016, the social media platform TikTok found worldwide fame at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in March of 2020. Now almost one year later, and with the mobile app surpassing two billion downloads worldwide, here is what public relations professionals need to know:
What is TikTok?
TikTok is a free mobile app platform that allows users to post 15 to 30 second videos. The platform started with lip syncing and dancing and has quickly moved into education, activism, and how-to style videos. The platform features popular clips of songs and audio recordings, as well as filters like Instagram.
Everyone’s a content creator
The key difference between TikTok and other social media platforms, such as Facebook and Instagram, is that the centre focus of the application is one endless explore page. Unlike Instagram or Facebook, users do not need an account to view content, making it highly accessible like YouTube, and the more you watch, the more the platform curates content to design a “for you” page.
The “new” Hollywood
With COVID-19 lockdowns restricting most Hollywood events, TikTok creators have risen to viral fame while creating content out of their own homes. 16-year-old Charli D’Amelio, the most followed TikToker, boasts 110 million followers and numerous brand partnerships, with corporations like Dunkin Donuts. Famous TikTokers have bought houses together with the purpose of living together to create content, such as the Sway House in Los Angeles, California. The mass following being attained by TikTok creators shows how the app is shifting how an entire generation views ‘celebrity status.’
Marketers: Meet Generation Z
When it comes to reaching target demographics, Generation Z, or those born after 1996, can be found on TikTok, with Forbes reporting that over 60 percent of TikTok’s users fall into this category. When they’re not making fun of millennials for skinny jeans and middle hair parts, marketers have a strong opportunity to organically reach this demographic through TikTok advertisements and partnerships with the platform’s top creators.
The viral factor: TikTok trends
Viral TikTok trends have created an influence that overshadows other social media applications; the viral TikTok pasta sold out feta cheese in Finland, the age-old drugstore skincare line Cerave is flying off shelves, and DIY tie-dye and whipped coffee had an international moment during the height of the COVID-19 quarantine. Staying on-brand while utilizing TikTok trends is a great lesson in public relations. A good example of this is Canadian NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh following along with current trends while spreading social awareness throughout the platform.
The future of TikTok
Although no stranger to political controversy, TikTok has overcome barriers to become a leader in the social media sphere. The app has been able to shine through as a strong competitor in social media and has emerged as a viral platform for innovative marketing, but only time will tell if this social media site is here to stay.
