Do you TikTok? Honestly, I tried to join in on the fuss, but I’m obviously not of the age group that watches stupid pet tricks on 15 second repetitive videos. Remember Vine? Yeah, that was short-lived, too, but TikTok may have more staying power with marketers now paying attention.
And, why do marketers suddenly care about TikTok? Because it’s all the rage with teens, exactly as the data say: early teens and even my 18-year-old daughter spend hours guffawing at the ridiculous simplicity of the stunts people pull to get a claim to fame.
I applaud Heidi Thorne for putting up a TikTok to promote her videos. She is reachable on Instagram and TikTok @HeidiThorne. I love this woman for putting herself out there to tell her story and marketing tips.
Back to business…
Marketing Charts says 1 in 3 agencies will increase spend on TikTok in 2020.
Is TikTok Worthy Of Your Time?
Granted, we can dissect every piece of data like this. The fact that an emerging channel like TikTok is making the grade enough to even chat about is noteworthy. Case in point, TikTok’s owner is ByteDance of China. That raises so many red flags about privacy, hacking and tracking of our teens that it’s something to think about.
This week, I attempted to find an international conference calling app to set up a meeting with China. In one year, the U.S. and China no longer communicate on conference calling tools like Skype, What’s App, Zoom, GoToMeeting, Free Conference, and many more. I found DingTone, but to get the app to work, you need to earn free points.
Further, the U.S. military seems to think that TikTok is a danger to armed forces. This is likely due to data collection from the video app accessible to the Chinese government. The Committe on Foreign Investment in the United States initiated a national security review of ByteDance in 2019. It cited concerns about TikTok in espionage, censorship and foreign influence, according to Slate.com.
I went to find Heidi Thorne’s handle for TikTok and noticed my comment about she being a TikTokker. She asked whether I was up there and what my handle was. I replied, “Well, what is the value of me talking to teens…on a platform owned by China?”
Heidi’s blog post on her foray into TikTok experimentation, references Vox, stating that in 2018, TikTok downloaded 1 billion times with 27 million U.S. users.
Ask About Marketing Value
And that, my friends, is the crux of the matter. When considering social media platforms in integrated marketing, look at the value each brings to that mix and audience reach. Determine whether your audience includes Gen Z, the teenagers, in this case, as that is the demographic of TikTok.
As with any social media, you need to be consistent with your content. If you don’t have content suitable for that audience, then you may just be talking to a wall.
So, what do you think? Does a social media app owned by a Chinese company bother you? Privacy concerns are rampant, and I know my email is on many breach lists by now. The bigger question: when will Americans feel threatened by damaging privacy attacks to make everyone take notice and then action?
