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December-01-2019   |   by Rana Adel   |   
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Video-making app TikTok has been making headlines over the past year and is reportedly the fastest-growing app in the world.

But first, who or what is TikTok? And why are people suddenly so interested in it?

 

What is TikTok?

TikTok is a video-sharing app created by Chinese company Bytedance in 2017. Using TikTok, users can shoot, edit, and then share 15-second videos that they can edit and enhance with lots of filters, special effects, and even music and animation.

You can expect that those who like to use this app are naturally teens, though data shows that the majority of TikTok users are aged 24 and under.

Though launched in 2017, 2019 has seen the app rise to stardom, making it the fastest growing social sharing app in the world.

In a comment about TikTok, mother company ByteDance said it was one of the first companies to "launch mobile-first products powered by machine learning technology.” The Chinese company went on to say that it created TikTok “to combine the power of artificial intelligence with the growth of mobile internet to revolutionize the way people consume and receive information.”

What does this mean? It means that TikTok will use artificial intelligence software that allows filters to use facial recognition and fills a user's feed with customized recommendations. Using artificial intelligence software, TikTok should be able to offer its users with their needs and stop what they don't want or like from appearing in the feeds.

 

The Most Downloaded App!

According to data by SensorTower, TikTok was the most downloaded app in August 2019 in terms of overall downloads and across iOS and Android app downloads. In August, TikTok recorded roughly 63 million downloads! That's a huge number even in the world of digital and social media. However, for all of 2019, or so far until the end of October, TikTok has registered 1 billion downloads.


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TikTok is available via iOS and Android app stores.

 

Where Is TikTok Growing?

For digital marketers who are looking to reach the right audiences, it is important to highlight where TikTok is and where it isn't. Naturally, the app is present in some markets more than others.

For example, India registered the highest app downloads for TikTok with 44%, whereas homeland China recorded an 8% increase in downloads in August, according to SensorTower.


TikTok Demographics

So who is really using TikTok? So far it has been teens and people up to age 24. According to 2018 data by App Ape Lab, TikTok users, both male and female, were under the age of 20, making it a strong competitor to Snapchat in that age range.

Around 21.3% of TikTok's male audience was under the age of 20, while 18.6% of female users were in the same age range, App Ape Lab said. Combined that's 39.9% of TikTok's audience base. Meanwhile, people aged 40-49 represented 16.8%, while those above 50 were a meagre 6.5%.

 

 


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How Can Marketers Benefit from TikTok?

Since its launch TikTok has undergone a few upgrades and made a few additions to the platform. Chief among them is the ability to run ads, which can allow marketers to create promotions using paid ads.

In addition, TikTok has created its 'TikTok Creator Marketplace' through which it aims to connect brands with content creators.

Another thing TikTok has done is ban all forms of political advertising, making it standout from social media platforms that allow the dissemination of political messages, like Facebook and Twitter.

TikTok's vice president of global business Blake Chandlee, who had left Facebook to join TikTok, commented saying the “nature of paid political ads is not something we believe fits the TikTok platform experience.”

In its mission statement, TikTok says it wants to be "the leading destination for short-form mobile video. Our mission is to inspire creativity and bring joy.”

 

TikTok vs Snapchat

Many people and users have been curious about the differences between TikTok and Snapchat and they're right. There are many similarities.

Unlike other social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Pinterest, and of course LinkedIn, all of which have different features, TikTok comes additional differences.

"Many consumers use both applications interchangeably for different use cases, Snap being a private, community driven messaging and professional content platform and TikTok being a ‘viral’ short video sharing application," analysts told CNBC in October, noting that TikTok's continuous growth will affect Snapchat and "will likely compete for ad dollars."

This means that Snapchat will continue to see strong competition coming from TikTok, whose mother company ByteDance said it had 700 million daily active users, although across its various apps. Meanwhile, Snapchat reported 203 million daily active users by the end of June 2019.

“Both apps feature vertical, short, user-generated videos. Although teens use the apps in different ways, the allure of watching and creating TikTok videos is currently very strong in this demographic group,” Debra Aho Williamson, principal analyst at eMarketer, told CNBC.

That said, Snapchat is rising to the competition through new updates like its dynamic ads option, which is actually bringing it to a closer level with Facebook's ads.

 

More Background Info on TikTok

TikTok was originally a lip-sync video app called Musical.ly that was acquired by ByteDance and later rebranded to TikTok in August 2018.

In its hometown China, TikTok is known as Douyin. It added 400 million active monthly users in 2018 alone.

It's important to remember that apps like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter are banned in China.

Following its rise to stardom, TikTok has boosted its mother company's valuation to $75 billion, making it the world's most valuable tech startup, according to The Verge.

 

Making Money on TikTok?

Like other social media platforms and app, TikTok is having its share of influencers. But how do they make money? Not as easily as Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.

"To monetize TikTok, one has to monetize their livestream. Users can attach their credit cards and buy emoji for their favorite live-streamers, who can then convert those emoji rewards back into cash," according to Oprah Mag.

 

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