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Since its founding in 2016, TikTok has taken the world by storm like no other app. Even in 2024, the short video platform remains an integral part of the social media world. Find out how TikTok achieved this rapid rise and why so many creators, influencers, and companies use its unique features.
What are you looking for?
How did TikTok come about?
The relatively short success story of TikTok began in 2016 with the launch of Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok. Developed by Zhang Yiming and his company ByteDance, the app quickly gained popularity throughout China.
To expand TikTok on the international market, he decided to combine Douyin with another Chinese app. After merging with Musical.ly, TikTok experienced a global breakthrough in 2018. The combination of short videos and music proved to be very popular and took the whole world by storm, especially during the COVID-19 lockdown. In four years, TikTok has almost made it to the top and is competing with global players such as Facebook and Instagram.
We have summarized the 11 most important facts about TikTok,
that you should know about the social media giant in 2024.
TikTok ranks fifth among the most popular social media platforms.
Although most social media platforms, such as Facebook (2004), YouTube (2005), and Instagram (2016), have been around for years, TikTok has quickly become a major competitor and ranks fifth among the world's most popular social media platforms.
With 1.7 billion monthly active users, TikTok now has more users than Snapchat and Twitter combined. If you include the Chinese version, Douyin, it becomes clear that the platform has an even more comprehensive global reach.
Good to know: 9 out of 10 internet users utilize social media.
2. The algorithm makes use of artificial
intelligence.
To better understand the algorithm, it is important to first take a closer look at the structure of the FYP (For You Page). Similar to Instagram's Discover page, the FYP is an endless feed of content that TikTok's algorithm believes will be interesting to users.
There are various factors that influence what content the algorithm displays to users. These factors are also weighted and evaluated differently.
Ordered by relevance:
user activity
Text
Location, Language
Audio and video effects
"Not interested" feedback
(Source: https://later.com/blog/tiktok-algorithm/)
When it comes to user activity, the algorithm primarily focuses on how long users watch the video and how often they replay it. However, the number of likes, comments, and shares also play a role.
SEO is playing an increasingly important role on TikTok. TikTok analyzes the text from the description, bio, hashtags, and the text written on videos. That's why it's even more important to use the right keywords to address the right target group and steer the algorithm in the right direction.
TikTok increasingly displays posts in the country where the account is located. However, the language used in the text or when speaking also plays a role in the display of posts.
If a video uses a trending sound or effect, the algorithm will show the video to more people who have already interacted positively with the corresponding trend. That's why it's a good idea to always keep an eye on the latest trends. After all, those who recognize a trend quickly are usually the ones who benefit most from it.
To ensure that the quality of posts remains high enough for users, there are several indicators that show the algorithm that a particular post is no longer wanted. The most important factor here is the number of users who immediately dismiss the video. But the "not interested" function also ensures that fewer videos of this type will appear on the FYP in the future.
3. TikTok is popular worldwide.
Figures in millions
More than half of all TikTok users come from Eastern Europe and Asia. This does not include the nearly 500 million Douyin users. Germany ranks first among European countries with nearly 20 million users, although this represents fewer people on average than in France, Italy, or Spain, for example. Even Switzerland, with its 2.6 million users, exceeds Germany's percentage with a figure of 29.6%.
Almost 40% of Americans use TikTok, which is more than 130 million people in the US alone. However, this does not make them the country with the most TikTok users on average.
Saudi Arabia takes this spot with an astonishing figure of 64.9%.
4. TikTok is increasingly appealing to older generations.
TikTok is mainly used by minors and young adults. However, the combination of short videos, music, and text is not only popular with the younger generations. More and more Gen Xers and Millennials are joining the trend and scrolling along.
The data refers to users over the age of 18, as the official TikTok statistics only provide data on users over the age of 18.
Distribution in Switzerland
The short video platform has long since arrived in Switzerland and is mainly used by Gen Z and Alpha here too. However, the figures show that users over the age of 35 already account for 1/5 of the total number of users in Switzerland.
5. TikTok speaks more languages than you
and me.
Although not as many languages as Duo, TikTok is still available in over 70 languages and 155 countries.
Duo, the mascot of Duolingo, became a true internet celebrity more or less overnight thanks to TikTok.
Since the green owl took over the account, it has generated 5.4 million followers and over 100 million likes to date. A true prime example of effective marketing on TikTok.
But the little musical note isn't universally popular. In India, the short video platform has been blocked since 2020. As a result, TikTok lost over 200 million users.
In other countries, TikTok also faced heavy criticism in 2020 for issues such as inadequate protection of young people and children. Nevertheless, TikTok's image recovered from this and did not let it get it down.
6. Any video can go viral.
Every video has the potential to go viral, even without a large number of followers or previous success on TikTok.
Unlike other social media platforms, the TikTok algorithm does not take into account the number of subscribers or the total number of likes. In theory, even a video from an account with no subscribers or likes can go viral. So what are you waiting for?
7. On average, users spend
over 1,200 minutes per month on TikTok.
Most people who have been on TikTok for a while know that the app is highly addictive. It has never been easier to lose yourself in the endless feed of funny, authentic, and creative posts and forget the time.
With 1,250 minutes per month and 90% of users opening the app at least once a day, it's no wonder that TikTok has one of the highest user intensities of any app. It's no coincidence that 50% of all users have posted at least one video; the app motivates and encourages the community to be active.
8. TikTok was the most downloaded app on the App Store from 2021 to 2022*.
With over 3.5 billion downloads, TikTok is the most downloaded app in 2021 and the first quarter of 2022.
Most of the top 10 apps are the same every year, with Meta occupying four of the top 10 spots: Facebook (3), Instagram (2), WhatsApp (4), and Messenger (8). In 2021, ByteDance secured two spots, one for TikTok (1) and one for its video editing app, CapCut (9).
9. TikTok hat die höchste Interaktionsrate
aller Social-Media-Plattformen.
The engagement rate serves as one of the most important metrics for determining the success of posts.
Average interaction rates vary depending on the platform and must therefore always be evaluated in relation to each other. Studies show that TikTok has a 15% higher engagement rate than other social media platforms (source: https://www.tiktok.com/business/en/blog/tiktok-drives-greater-audience-engagement). This also makes TikTok very attractive for companies that can benefit particularly from increased user interaction.
How do I calculate the interaction rate?
Likes + Comments + Shares / Number of views
or
Likes + comments + shares / number of subscribers
To get a better impression, it is advisable to calculate this for the last 20 posts and add them up.
Of course, the rate can vary greatly depending on the industry, product, and market situation. It should also be noted that, statistically speaking, accounts with fewer subscribers have a higher engagement rate than accounts with medium to large numbers of followers. This is also because it becomes more difficult to maintain the same growth in interactions as the number of subscribers and views increases.
(Source: https://blog.hootsuite.com/de/tiktok-engagement-kalkulator/)
How high should the interaction rate be?
A good interaction rate for other platforms is around 1–3%. For this reason, when calculating and evaluating the interaction rate on TikTok, care should be taken to ensure that it is higher in order to achieve success (source: https://www.adobe.com/express/learn/blog/what-is-a-good-social-media-engagement-rate).
Twitter = 1%
Facebook = 2%
Instagram = 3%
LinkedIn = 6%
TikTok = 4.5% - 18%
10. TikTok has the largest selection of effects and filters of any social media platform.
With hundreds of different effects, there are truly no limits to creativity. With each update, countless new filters are added, which are used and shared by the community in a variety of ways. If that's not enough, you can edit your videos, crop them, adjust speeds, and much more within the TikTok app itself.
You don't even need a cumbersome green screen anymore. With the built-in green screen filter, you can appear in front of an image or video and use it to create videos.
With more than 600,000 music tracks, everyone can find the perfect soundtrack for their videos. If that's not enough, you can use the text-to-speech function to have your texts read aloud by a selection of voices and thus create your own sounds.
11. Charli D'Amelio earns up to $100,000 per TikTok video*.
The 18-year-old had her first breakthrough in July 2019 when she uploaded a dance video as a "duet" with TikTok user "Move With Joy." In November 2020, Charli became the first person to reach 100 million followers on TikTok.
After numerous collaborations with well-known brands such as Morphe cosmetics and Dunkin' Donuts, her net worth is estimated at over $20 million. This makes her one of the youngest self-made millionaires in the world at the age of 18.
Top 10 TikTok accounts with the most subscribers:
*sponsored content
(Source: https://stylecaster.com/charli-damelio-net-worth/#slide-2)
Like any social media platform, TikTok will change and evolve over the years.
We are excited to see which direction TikTok will take in 2024 and, as an online marketing agency, we are happy to answer any questions you may have about TikTok and social media.
Do you need assistance?
We would be happy to help you with your social media marketing strategy and implementation for the coming year.