Viral Marketing on TikTok vs. Instagram

Written By Guest User

Published by Maxwell Wunderlin [ 5.4.20 ]

TikTok and Instagram are both highly popular social media platforms that allow users to document and share their daily experiences. Although more recently created, TikTok is quickly gaining popularity and a massive global audience that is effortlessly catching up to its predecessor Instagram. 

TikTok has become a global phenomenon.

In 2019 alone, TikTok was downloaded over 1.5 billion times on the App Store and Google Play. Its downloads have increased exponentially and can be inferred to increase even more in the coming years.

In terms of screen-time, TikTok also outranks Instagram with users spending roughly 52 minutes on TikTok and 28 minutes on Instagram. With more time spent on the mobile app, marketers should recognize that TikTok is quickly becoming the place to advertise and increase brand awareness.

According to an Omnicore report in February 2020, about 41% of TikTok’s global audience are between the ages of 16 and 24. These statistics show a larger demographic of young people present on TikTok, as compared to Instagram which only has 30% of users within the same age range.

Although the majority of users are young, the number of American adult users has grown 5.5 times in less than a year and a half.

These statistics are key indicators that show how TikTok is gaining a massive global following, rivaling social mediums which have existed for much longer.

Marketers must become aware of TikTok incredible growth and adapt their strategies to be effective on the app. The best time to implement a social media marketing strategy is now, as the app increases in popularity daily and will continue to outperform other platforms that have been around for years.

What is TikTok?

TikTok is easily the fastest growing social media platform within recent years, reaching a global audience of 800 million monthly. Originally called musical.ly, a Chinese internet technology company called ByteDance Ltd. acquired and merged the applications to create the TikTok we know today.

The main premise of the app is to create and share videos either 15 or 60 seconds long. The interface features looping full-screen videos that the use can scroll through, much like Instagram’s endless-scroll interface.

Active users are contributing to the massive spike in popularity, as seen in the graph below. TikTok’s total revenues have increased consistently in the past 2 years, and is directly correlated with their increasing global rank amongst non-game applications.

In a digital world where most all social media apps share similarities, i.e. exchanging and sharing information through textual and visual elements, TikTok differs from others by effectively segmenting audiences into distinct niches. 

TikTok’s extreme uniqueness comes from allowing users to use the audio from other TikToks within their own creations. This exchange gives users the chance to reinvent and redistribute information, in a similar way that memes are altered and shared on social media. Anyone can give new life to a popular trend by participating in creating their own, most often seen with the endless amount of dance challenges.

Although seemingly simple, this is a revolutionary way that is allowing creativity to flourish. People are inspired by trends within the app to create their own and share it to the global audience.

Made “For You”

The algorithm used by TikTok easily allows for users with little to no following to still gain exposure on the unique “For You” page. This stream of videos, along with the “Following” page, is one of two simple video feeds that users can choose between upon opening TikTok.

The “For You” page differs for each user, as it is a customized stream of videos that the individual user may like. The personalization that TikTok implements is unlike any other social media platform, introducing users to new undiscovered pages and videos each time they open the app.

Going “viral” has truly never been easier than with TikTok, as the algorithm is so effective in sharing undiscovered content to the masses, anyone can gain a large following over night.

By using trending audio and hashtags, users with a small following can still go viral because of the inclusivity of the “For You” page that is unique to each user. This algorithm makes it easy for users to find new accounts that post content similar to what they already enjoy.

Comparing TikTok and Instagram

As an example, Genius is a digital media company that allows users to annotate and discuss the lyrical content of songs. The popularity of music-related content on TikTok is so apparent, that Genius’ page has already gained more of a following than their Instagram account.

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It took Genius years of building a following to gain an audience of 3.2 million followers on Instagram, and now their recently created TikTok page has already amassed an even greater following. This disparity between accounts shows the true distinction between Instagram and TikTok, as users are increasingly interested in video-focused content.

The author of Webs of Influence: The Psychology of Online Persuasion, discusses the importance of video content in saying,

““Video is unique in the immediacy within which it can convey a vast amount of emotional and informational content…we also watch videos because they provoke curiosity by providing a pattern interruption””
— Nathalie Nahai, Web Psychologist

Genius is effectively using TikTok for marketing by simply sharing the content they already have applied to a new format. Cropping preexisting YouTube videos of artists dissecting their song lyrics and making them formatted to TikTok is an effective choice that has clearly helped their following on the popular mobile app.

A well-rounded digital strategy encompasses having a following and posting often on as many social media platforms as possible. Each platform differs due to the demographic of its users, but creating a cohesive brand presence throughout each app is still key. A brand can determine their success through key performance indicators, like number of views, likes, and new followers.

Genius is utilizing new viral marketing tactics on TikTok to increase their brand awareness for a younger demographic. Participating in trending hashtags, using trending audio and video effects, and posting desirable content are all effective choices used by Genius’ TikTok account to increase the likelihood of going viral.

Is TikTok better for brand marketing than Instagram?

Because Instagram has been around for years, its users know when they are being subjected to an ad. The sponsored posts and stories are more apparent as advertisements because its Facebook-powered marketing is extremely targeted and more obvious.

Comparatively, TikTok is newer and so highly engaging that users are less likely to be annoyed with an ad. Whereas on Instagram, users are subjected to a 4 to 1, post to ad ratio, meaning users see one ad for every four posts. With 20% of visible content being advertisements, it is easy to see why users are spending less time on Instagram and more time on TikTok.

TikTok is taking businesses to new levels by blending ads seamlessly into their posted content. On Instagram, sponsored ads are more clearly indicated and thus less desirable to look at from a user’s perspective. Whereas on TikTok, any video can gain attention if it captivates the user within a few seconds. Users are also more likely to watch an ad on TikTok if its is attention-grabbing, and not annoying or intrusive like most sponsored stories and posts on Instagram.

Instagram has been an incredible tool for businesses, but with more than 25 million business accounts, the platform is becoming oversaturated with sponsored ads, not to mention influencer-endorsed posts. Marketers should move their focus toward emerging platforms like TikTok immediately if they wish to remain effective.

To summarize, Instagram is a platform hyper-focused on appearance, whereas TikTok is focused on substance.

Mass amounts of young people are flocking to TikTok because it simply allows for a more personalized experience and this trend will continue indefinitely. Instagram has become the hub of beauty standards and superficiality in recent years, unlike TikTok which has been using a more inclusive algorithm that highlights individuality.

TikTok makes its users feel a sense of belonging because the app is focused on fostering a hyper-personalized experience; this allows for unrestricted and collaborative creative freedom.

 
Guest User
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