Much like the great empires of history, social media platforms rise and fall…although at much quicker rates. From the nostalgic days of Myspace and Bebo to the rise of TikTok, digital marketing is ever evolving; and at an alarming pace.
Claude Lukyamuzi never expected the response to his seemingly innocent tweet, "I don't Google anymore I TikTok" to be so divisive and indicative of changing user behaviour.
The viral post received 5,000 comments, 25,000 retweets, and 100,000 likes. Reactions included claims that TikTok is the search engine for Gen Z and assertions that those who agreed with that claim demonstrated that "society is doomed."
In fact, the "dancing app" is now the place to look up restaurant recommendations, travel places, and hacks for packing light for flights.
Similar to how YouTube came to be, TikTok has given professionals in a variety of fields a platform to share knowledge that wasn't always simple to find naturally. These professionals include academics, healthcare workers, lawyers, contractors, and more.
6.6 billion people watched #tiktoktaughtme last month. The hashtag leads to a wealth of video examples of tips and tricks that, for some, have had life-changing effects, such as learning sign language, deep-cleaning a bathroom, or understanding why you choke when a drink goes down the wrong hole.
Since Google began including TikTok videos in SERPs (Search engine results pages),
the platform has started to have an impact on SEO as well. TikTok has completely revolutionised the digital sector.
You already know that the social media marketing landscape is constantly evolving, but it may be moving more rapidly than ever right now. The success of social media, for both users and the platforms themselves, depends on users having a thorough understanding of all facets of digital marketing, including SEO, sponsored advertising, and virtual reality.
Overall, you might assume that working with TikTok implies you can forget about SEO. False! As the social media platform develops, SEO and other facets of digital marketing are increasingly entwined with it.
Videos shared on TikTok are no longer limited to being seen only by individuals watching TikToks on the app; instead, they are now visible in Google's SERPs thanks to a recent breakthrough in the TikTok world.
Since TikTok videos are already showing up in search engine results, TikTok SEO may play a significant role in the platform's future. It's interesting to see that TikToks are far less common on the results pages of other search engines like Bing and Firefox.
But as a result of the most recent change, TikTok videos are sometimes displacing YouTube videos in Google's SERPs. Because of this, YouTube may try to regain its competitive edge by taking steps to expand the number of people who watch its YouTubeShorts, which are videos that are comparable to those on TikTok but haven't really taken off with viewers since their late 2020/early 2021 launch (during the same time as the rise of TikTok).
Could Google be using the inclusion of TikTok in SERPs as a strategy to fend off the possibility of losing market share?
Tiktok already changed Youtube and Instagram with Reels and Shorts, it seems like Google they have taken a preventative step and invited them into their house.
TikTok has also already been trailing location-based feeds, meaning you can choose to see content that is around you. This not only keeps their foot on the jugular of Snapchat, which offers location-based viewing of public posts, but it opens up endless possibilities when it comes to retaining audience attention and keeping users away from Meta’s platforms and Youtube.
TikTok is currently seeing ‘interest-based content’ take over from ‘trend-based content’ as more and more people use the app and follow niece accounts. Whilst TikTok can still offer the dance videos it became popular for, in its inception, you can also learn how to befriend crowds from your garden.
As Ads are now becoming more and more stealthy on the platform, we are already seeing what could be the cracks in the foundations of social media as we know it.
As TikTok and Meta race to be the ultimate ‘one-stop shop’ new platforms such as BeReal have begun to thrive due to their lack of ads and time-sensitive user experience.
Using a randomly selected 2-minute window each day, BeReal users are encouraged to share a picture of themselves and their surroundings, which conveys the app's focus on authenticity.
It almost harks back to early Instagram in a way, as an image-based platform, offering one clear way of engaging with your friends. This could be the start of social platforms revolting against the ‘all in one’ approach and instead reverting back to being a specialised platform for its audience.
For now, TikTok is an empire that is going to keep rising before it falls. How we adjust to its impact on the digital marketing world overall, and its specific influence on Microcontent will be how we keep hold of audiences' attention in the near future.
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