CASE STUDY: TIKTOK
Introduction
The social media world has recently been awash with short videos posted on currently the most popular video-sharing platform. Tik Tok is a social video sharing app with Chinese ownership that allows its users to record, edit, and share short videos lasting for 15 seconds. Users of the social media platform can liven up the videos by incorporating music, animations, special effects, filters, and so much more. As is common in most social media platforms, Tik Tok subscribers have the ability to like, comment, and follow everything that appears on their feed. The application is compatible with both Android and iOS operating systems, and it was launched outside China in the year 2017. Tik Tok’s parent company, ByteDance, was founded in 2012, and it is based in Beijing. The app was made available in the United States after ByteDance acquired a similar app that was based in Shanghai known as musical.ly on August 2, 2018. Since then, Tik Tik has gone on to double its number of downloads across the globe. Given its success and popularity, a case study of Tik Tok can provide insight into what is required to effectively run a digital media firm.
The rise of Tik Tok has been quite remarkable, given that the app has not existed for that long. Tik Tok originated in China, the only country that Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter are all banned, as Douyin in 2016 before gaining worldwide acclaim after merging with musical.ly in 2018. Since then, the number of Tik Tok users has increased rapidly, with over 400 million active monthly users having subscribed to the app by the end of 2018.[1] The social media app has garnered a lot of appeal due to the availability of an array of video editing options that include speeding up or slowing down the video. The ease at which an individual can edit their videos is a very appealing feature of the video-sharing app.
Tik Tok also provides numerous filters that its subscribers can utilize based on the intended purpose of th video being created.[2] Furthermore, the video-sharing app has a vast catalog of music for its subscribers to choose from when looking for music to incorporate into their videos. Tik Tok usually partners with musicians from across the globe so as to have their music available on their app. As a result, Tik Tok users are often guaranteed that most of the popular songs trending worldwide are available for use on the social media platform that is Tik Tok.[3] The availability of such a variety of music, filters, and video editing options are some of the factors that are contributing to Tik Tok’s efficient attraction and maintenance of its users’ attention.
Other features and factors that contribute to Tik Tok’s ability to attract and maintain its users is the ability to share content on various other social media platforms. Moreover, given that the duration of Tik Tok videos is short, 15 seconds to be precise, content creators on the app need to be quite creative so as to appeal to users in that short period.[4] An ensuing result is videos on Tik Tok end up being very entertaining, thus more appealing to users on the app. Tik Tok also allows its users to access a wide range of content without necessarily having to follow the accounts showcasing the content. The social media platform employs the use of an algorithm that makes it possible for its subscribers to peruse through a never-ending amount of entertaining videos.[5] However, the main defining features of Tik Tok that give its appeal is the duet and react capabilities that enable users to collaborate with each other on their content as well as react to content on other videos. The creative and entertaining content often found on Tik Tok contributes significantly to its major appeal.
Tik Tok is an app that provides its users with an array of amateur videos. The majority of the videos tend to be of teenagers sharing content about their social lives or lip-syncing to their favorite music. People who happen to fall outside the age of 20 will most likely have no interest in such type of content. However, for those who fall under the age demographic mentioned above, then such content has the ability to amass millions of followers as well as views.[6] Some of the restrictions found on Tik Tok often contribute towards the complex nature of the app during the first few interactions within the social media platform. While the sharing of videos is a common feature on most social media platforms, Tik Tok only allows for the creation of video spanning 15 seconds.[7] Even though there exists an option to share longer videos, the maximum length one can opt for is 1 minute.
It is imperative to note that while the majority of the users on Tik Tok are of a younger generation, the app caters to a variety in terms of age demographic. Prominent actor Will Smith, who happens to be 51 years old, had amassed a following of over 5 million people within weeks of joining Tik Tok.[8] Gary Vaynerchuck, a 44-year-old entrepreneur, has also taken a liking to the video-sharing app where he has been sharing content that is more relevant to his age demographic. Tik Tok’s major selling point is the fact that one can post content about anything, be it comedy, music, travel, fitness, or just hobbies.[9] Each category has a lot of content to go through, therefore, providing exposure for creators able to create the short-form video content.
Tik Tok’s business models are seemingly centered around the content created by its subscribers, given that Tik Tok users generate massive amounts of free content on the platform. The app utilizes artificial intelligence to read the habits of its users as well as organize content provided by its publishers. ByteDance, Tik Tok’s parent company, has been able to amass a lot of social media as well as content from rich engagement dat and the numerous users of their products from its variety of products.[10] The tech company employs the use of machine learning algorithms to process the massive data content and refine it so as to boost the content experience. Increasing the quality of the content, in turn, increases engagement on Tiki Tok, thus generating more data for the algorithms to process.[11] This virtual cycle is used in optimizing each phase of the content lifecycle, which is creation, moderation, curation, recommendation, and interaction.[12] ByteDance, therefore, employs the use of AI and machine learning to cater to the content spectrum’s dual nature, that is, content creation and consumption.
Facing competition is inevitable in every business sector, meaning that Tiki Tok has to contend with some competitors in its quest to dominate the social media world. Lasso is a video sharing app that was launched by Facebook in 2018 after the Mark Zuckerberg led social media company noted the meteoric rise of Tik Tok. However, Lasso has not been as fortunate as Tik Tok so far, given that a year after its launch, it had amassed less than 500,000 downloads, with most of them being in Mexico.[13] Another competitor for Tik Tok happens to be another Facebook-owned app called Instagram, which s a photo and video-sharing social networking platform. Instagram was founded in 2010, and it has over 500 million active users daily.[14] Youtube has also been looking into ways it can incorporate video-editing features similar to those on Tik Tok within its app.
Google, the company that owns YouTube, also held talks regarding a possible acquisition with Firework, an app similar to Tik Tok that aims to focus on an older age demographic. China’s largest search engine company, Baidu, as well as Weibo, China’s version of Twitter, have both also expressed interest in Firework.[15] Snapchat is another social media app competing with Tik Tok, whose core subscriber base happens to comprise of mostly teenagers. The release of Tik Tok internationally in 2018 resulted in Snapchat recording its first-ever decline in subscribers, which resulted in additional features being added to the app in a bid to keep up with Tik Tok.[16] Snapchat has gone on to list Tik Tok as one of its main competitors, further highlighting the drastic progress the Chines owned app is experiencing.
There are some tactics that Tik Tok has been employing to help deal with the competition it is facing in the digital media industry. For instance, the social media company’s habit of partnering with renowned artists and availing their music on their platform is helping Tik Tok maintain its subscriber base.[17] ByteDance has also injected billions into advertising efforts for Tik Tok that include the use of major social media influencers. Tik Tok also ensures that its collection of filters and video-editing features is constantly being updated so that its users are always entertained.[18] However, the main strategy employed by Tik Tok as a means of dealing with its competition is the continued use of its machine learning algorithm that utilizes AI to determine the preferred content for subscribers. While other social media platforms involve users having to scroll through the app and like or follow the content they prefer, Tik Tok’s algorithms make it possible for the app to avail content suited to the user’s liking.[19] These strategies have played a key role in ensuring Tik Tok stays ahead of the competition.
The primary focus of commercial media is to avail advertisers with audiences or completing sales of media-related products to customers so as to accrue revenue to fund their continued functions and operations. The content choices of commercial media managers are made on the basis of needing to provide audiences that can be deemed desirable to particular advertisers.[20] Tik Tok’s main strategy employed to help with its monitoring and feedback mechanism is the use of its AI-driven machine learning algorithm. It is thanks to these algorithms that Tik Tok has been able to evaluate their audiences’ interests and likes, thus enabling it to avail content-specific feeds to its subscribers.[21] The processing of information by the algorithms makes it possible for Tik Tok to relate to its clients and audiences and avail the content they want.
Conclusion
Tik Tok is a social media platform that has shown that it has no intention of backing down in the race for digital media domination. The short video has become a mainstay in the self-media era, and it has its development traits. The acquisition of musical.ly proved to be a defining action for Tik Tok since it enabled the Chinese-owned app to spread internationally. The acquisition also meant that Tik Tok’s major competitor had been eliminated, thus easing the battle for market acquisition. The use of machine learning algorithms by Tik Tok has proven to be a game-changer for the video-sharing since it makes it possible to avail content that their users are interested in without them necessarily having to look for it, which is a significant convenience. However, regardless of the success, it is currently enjoying, Tik Tok needs to be wary of competition since other firms are looking to emulate their success.
Bibliography
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Cuofano, Gennaro. “TikTok Business Model: The Rise Of Creative Social Media Powered By AI.” FourWeekMBA, March 9, 2020. https://fourweekmba.com/tiktok-business-model/.
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[1] Janes, DeAnna. “What in the World Is TikTok? Reese Witherspoon’s Son Just Provided an Explanation,” October 8, 2019. https://www.oprahmag.com/entertainment/a29399102/what-is-tik-tok/.
[2] Medium. “TikTok: The App That Everyone Needs to Start Paying Attention To.” Medium. Medium, February 18, 2019. https://medium.com/@WeAreYoke/tiktok-the-app-that-everyone-needs-to-start-paying-attention-to-c1eb1d6a6fbe.
[3] Medium. “TikTok: The App That Everyone Needs to Start Paying Attention To.
[4] Medium.
[5] Medium.
[6] Brandastic. “What Is Tik Tok Used For, And Why Is It so Popular?” Brandastic, February 14, 2020. https://brandastic.com/blog/what-is-tiktok-and-why-is-it-so-popular/.
[7] Brandastic. “What Is Tik Tok Used For, And Why Is It so Popular?”.
[8] Brandastic.
[9] Brandastic.
[10] Brandastic
[11] Cuofano, Gennaro. “TikTok Business Model: The Rise Of Creative Social Media Powered By AI.” FourWeekMBA, March 9, 2020. https://fourweekmba.com/tiktok-business-model/.
[12] Cuofano, Gennaro. “TikTok Business Model: The Rise Of Creative Social Media Powered By AI.”
[13] Nicas, Jack. “Teens Love TikTok. Silicon Valley Is Trying to Stage an Intervention.” The New York Times. The New York Times, November 3, 2019. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/03/technology/tiktok-facebook-youtube.html.
[14] Nicas, Jack. “Teens Love TikTok. Silicon Valley Is Trying to Stage an Intervention.”
[15] Nicas.
[16] Ward, Lexie. “TikTok Competitor Byte Launches and Gains Steam.” IMPACT. IMPACT, February 3, 2020. https://www.impactbnd.com/blog/byte-video-sharing-app.
[17] Sehl, Katie. “Everything Brands Need to Know About TikTok in 2020.” Hootsuite Social Media Management, March 3, 2020. https://blog.hootsuite.com/what-is-tiktok/.
[18] Sehl, Katie. “Everything Brands Need to Know About TikTok in 2020.”
[19] Sehl.
[20] Picard, Robert G. The economics and financing of media companies. Fordham Univ Press, 2011. 2
[21] Picard, Robert G. The economics and financing of media companies. 2