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Would a TikTok Ban Cripple Influencer Marketing?
The Biden administration last week threatened to ban TikTok in the U.S. if the app’s Chinese owners refuse to sell their stakes, raising questions about if competitors Instagram, Snap and YouTube can fill the void for the influencer community.
For the third year in a row, TikTok held the record as the most downloaded app with nearly 40 percent of TikTok’s advertising audience aged between 18 and 24.
Influencer Marketing Hub’s “The State of Influencer Marketing 2023” report found that TikTok is now the most popular influencer marketing channel (utilized by 56 percent of brands using influencer marketing), surpassing Instagram (51 percent) for the first time. Facebook (42 percent) and YouTube (38 percent) follow behind.
Thomas Walters, Europe CEO and co-founder of creator agency Billion Dollar Boy, told Campaign that factors such as TikTok’s personalized algorithm, lack of emphasis on follower count and its shift towards “spontaneous, raw, unfiltered content” are all helping drive the platform’s popularity.
In a recent blog entry, Kolsquare, the influencer marketing platform, said that while facing challenges with conversion, TikTok is “the clear leader when it comes to driving trends and engagement amongst the youngest users of social media” and has an edge in driving awareness over other platforms.
Both the Trump and Biden administrations have said that the app poses a national security threat amid concerns China could tap user data to spread misinformation. On March 23, testimony by TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew before the House Energy and Commerce committee may raise the rhetoric.
Some content creators are seeking to diversify to Instagram Reels or YouTube Shorts, but others doubt the TikTok ban will take effect, according to The Wall Street Journal.
In terms of potential purchasers for the app, a New York Times article speculated that many buyers could not afford TikTok (valuation at $50 billion or more) or would not want to deal with the antitrust scrutiny of an acquisition.
Many brands, according to Advertising Age, continue to put marketing dollars behind TikTok, given the likely delays or challenges that would come with enacting an outright ban. Becca Millstein, CEO of tinned fish brand Fishwife, told Adage, “We believe that TikTok can be a powerful source of organic discovery and hope that we have the opportunity to utilize it as such.”
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Google, Meta, and Snap would be the biggest winners if TikTok is banned. CFRA says — Business Insider
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New Survey Underlines TikTok’s Popularity with Teen Users — Pew Research
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Platform Insights: TikTok defies digital ad market slowdown — Warc
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With TikTok’s ‘heating’ tool allegations, are Instagram Reels more reliable? — Insider Intelligence
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TikTok Creators Contemplate Life After Possible Ban: ‘It All Can Be Taken Away’ — The Wall Street Journal
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Government TikTok ban may have ‘ripple effect’ on brands and creators, warns agency boss — Campaign
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The State of Influencer Marketing 2023: Benchmark Report — Influencer Marketing Hub
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Short video: which social network will come out on top in 2023? — Kolsquare
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Finding a Buyer for TikTok May Not Be So Easy — The New York Times
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DTC Brands On TikTok Are Preparing For The App's Possible Ban — Advertising Age
Discussion Questions
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS: Would a ban on TikTok be a blow to influencer marketing or are there adequate alternatives to fill the void? What advice do you have for brands or retailers that rely heavily on TikTok and influencers’ reach?
Poll
Loading …BrainTrust
Katie Thomas
Lead, Kearney Consumer Institute
Neil Saunders
Managing Director, GlobalData
A ban of TikTok would be disruptive and something of a setback. However it would not spell the end of influencer marketing: influencers and retailers would simply migrate to other platforms and find other ways of doing business. That said the whole industry would become more fragmented and less effective as many of the existing alternatives lack the power and appeal of TikTok.
There are lots of schools of thought on social media and the health and safety of the platforms. That said, simply, people love social — including and perhaps in particular TikTok. It’s an engaging way for consumers to learn not just about new products or recipes, but how to use/cook them.
Regarding influencers, the scrappy ones that understand the bigger picture around sales and engagement would be just fine.
It would be a blow, but I have faith that there is more than one “next great” platform in the wings that will step in and capture the attention of creators and marketers. Market disruption comes in many forms.
Absolutely. How long will it take ByteDance to launch the next generation of TikTok? And come to think of it, how long will it take ByteDance to launch a competitor if they are forced to sell the U.S. version of TikTok?
A U.S. TikTok ban would shift influencer marketing to Instagram, Snapchat, Roblox and YouTube. This shift could accelerate the evolution of social shopping, including shoppable content.
Brands need a proactive plan to reallocate resources to a different platform in the event of a TikTok ban. (Especially if they target Gen Z.)
If the social media era has taught us anything, it has taught us that while platforms come and go, influencers never leave. If TikTok fails to find a U.S. buyer and ends up being banned, without question young people and those who influence them will find a way to fill the void. It may be Instagram, YouTube, Triller, Cheez, Lomotif, Vigo Video, or some as-yet-to-be-created platform but, rest assured, influencers will try to influence. Where they do so is – and always will be – a moving target.
You are so right. If TikTok is banned, the replacement will not be Instagram or YouTube any more than they could hold off the newcomer. It will be an “as-yet-to-be-created” platform with even more sophisticated algorithms than TikTok.
Right now TikTok is the place to be. If it was banned there would be a whole lot of people going through withdrawal and they wouldn’t care that the app was banned for their safety. They’d have to start from scratch on another platform and that’s not easy.
The only alternative in play right now is Instagram Reels, but I am not sure it’s a great fit for every influencer because Instagram is more sophisticated than TikTok. There would definitely be a void.
A TikTok ban would be a blip on the influencer marketing world. While it might be a short-term disappointment for some who have mastered their TikTok strategies, there are plenty of other places to showcase content and influence.
For brands relying heavily on TikTok and influencers’ reach, don’t put all your eggs in one basket. Have a presence on other social channels. It’s that simple.
A TikTok ban could certainly be a blow to many influencers, but as a social phenomenon the “influencer industry” is a very resilient bunch, and I’m sure they’ll find a way to adapt.
The tech companies, particularly Meta, have been lobbying Congress for a TikTok ban since the app came on the scene. Be assured that the reason is not national security but that the TikTok algorithm is reportedly generations ahead of what Facebook has developed.
While TikTok may be the nemesis that politicians claim, it is a political red herring. China and, hopefully, the U.S., have more sophisticated ways of spying on each other.
As for those influencers, if TikTok gets banned wait a few days for ByteDance to launch TokTik.
It isn’t about nation-to-nation spying, it’s about the CCP’s tendrils getting into millions of devices for personal influence and them trying to control the diaspora regardless of whether they’re inside the country or overseas. Can’t have the college kids getting ideas about multiparty democracy, Taiwan independence, Uiguhur suppression, etc. and bringing that back home. And then likewise for the non-Han kids in the West, just push the algorithm to not promote topics the CCP doesn’t want discussed. Bad enough that Elon is ruining Twitter to promote his friends; let’s not actually have an anti-democratic political party running a platform if we have any say-so, shall we?
TikTok has taught us some powerful lessons about the potential impact of short form video. Why can’t those lessons migrate to other platforms not accessible (controllable?) by a foreign government? This isn’t a simple conversation about marketing and influencing. It pretty quickly becomes about propaganda and misinformation. Having said that, what is to stop the next platform from spreading the same kind of misinformation and propaganda? Is it then about who is collecting what kind of data and what they are then able to do with it? Free speech and an open competitive market make this all a very complicated conversation. I don’t like the idea of a foreign government having the kind of visibility into our market that TikTok provides, but I’m not sure banning TikTok solves the problem.
You mean there’s a way to end the madness of influencer marketing? No more Kardashians? Governments love to spar and spy which is why both words begin with the same letters. I’d advise retailers to stay the course but start exploring the alternatives. Don’t be caught by surprise. Ultimately, the beast that we awakened with social media is like water and it will find a way. It’s a door that isn’t easily closed in open societies.
Both marketing and social media abhor a vacuum, so if TikTok is banned somebody will step in and fill the void, saving influencers from the ravages of regulation — if not viewers from the ravages of influencers. As for advice, keep looking around for the Next Big Thing. Left to its own devices TikTok will eventually peak and fade and be replaced by something new. It’s the way of the digital world.
Remember how popular Facebook was 10 years ago? Snapchat five years ago? Today the latest and greatest is TikTok. I’m confident a new media platform will soon emerge with fresher features that still have that “new media smell” that users love so much. This is why it’s so important for brands and retailers to build a “headless” style cross departmental business model that allows them to shift quickly to new venues as they emerge and easily bring their customers along with them from platform to platform.
It’s time to diversify and plan out some alternative scenarios to TikTok. Just like brands can’t rely on one retail partner, they should not over-rely on one social media platform for influencer traffic. The competitors have known about this potential ban for some time and are building capabilities to provide similar experiences for influencers and target audiences. Competitors that will gladly take up the audience would be Meta, Snap, YouTube — as well as other media platforms and unknown up-and-comers.
Strong influencers who produce content and engagement will go to the next available channel. Other channels are already copying the short form video format and time will tell how the TikTok ban plays out. I am sure other companies are waiting to step into the fold to fill the void
No, a ban on Tik Tok would not be a blow to influencers, since there are so many other companies that can pick up the influencer marketing. Also, we need to be conscious that influencer marketing to 18-24 year olds is one thing…more aggressive influencer marketing to a larger and older market (like Facebook) translates into stronger sales, product positioning, revenue, etc. 18-24 year olds don’t impact the market in the same way that even a slightly more mature market does, since this mature market has more spending power in the market place…
There will be an impact, but I have to believe there is an alternative waiting and innovations to be introduced. One thing we noticed for sure is that these portals are generational. Who is next?
One key observation is how TikTok is described as “spontaneous, raw, unfiltered content” coming from a Chinese company.