Tik Tok is still on everyone’s radar.
At the start of this month, we reported that many users on Twitter claimed having seen a video ad on the app.
The reports keep coming on new ad testing on the platform, this time they look more like real social media ads, with tags and options that we have seen before on Instagram.
What’s certain is that Tik Tok has caused a stir on social media this year as one of the only apps outside the Facebook family to be on the top 5 most downloaded apps last December.
ByeDance wants to compete with Snapchat
User-generated content (USG) is one of the strongest tools of social media.
Challenges have been the undisputable kings of viral content and word of mouth.
This is just the tip of the iceberg for ByteDance, the mother company of Tik Tok, for the social media of music challenges and dubbing videos.
It’s reported that the company is testing right now with a 2D filter for photos, tools for sharing hashtags and challenges, adding 3D images and augmented reality, both of which are still in “coming soon”.
Tik Tok is enjoying a big boom with teenagers attracted by the brand challenge content, like the Jeannie challenge.
Jeannie is a Korean idol who recently launched her solo album after having success with the K-Pop group BlackPink.
To promote her new album, Jeannie invited her fans to dance like her.
The best video would win a chance to meet her.
Engagement on this tool is one of the most sought out things by brands this year because it appeals to younger audiences that are no longer interested in more classic mediums, like TV and who are no longer interested on Facebook.
The only problem that Tik Tok faces right now is the social scrutiny of handling user-generated content, especially from young people.
After all, the app works 100% with short video content that requires more a more body-active role than just recording your daily life like on Snapchat; so it’s normal to think about user safety first and then if the app can be monetized or not.
Facebook, the biggest copycat
Tik Tok’s success has been so great that Facebook is starting to test for ways to implement something similar on its platform.
That sounds familiar, doesn’t it? The same exact thing happened on Snapchat’s success and now we have Stories on Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp
The way Facebook is testing this is through what they call “LOL”, using funny videos, clips that work like GIFs and memes to attract teenagers back to the app.
The insight of Tik Tok
Since the platform is yet to be monetized, as much as brands are asking for it like a kettle of vultures flying around it, the takeaway from this is that fun and fresh engagement is what calls teenagers.
Not much is needed to make them turn their attention to an app or brand.
All you need is engagement and connection. The more you connect them to eachother and other people their age with good and fun interactions, the more they’ll like your product.
However, it has to be done with honesty, teenagers can smell a phony a mile away and nothing will ever make then turn their attention to something that’s trying too hard or isn’t fresh.
As brands and agencies, it is on us to experiment with these kinds of content in preparation for when Tik Tok or any other brand starts monetizing this content successfully so we can be fully prepared for when the time comes to use it.
sources:
www.mobilemarketer.com
www.techcrunch.com
www.socialmediatoday.com