TikTok: The New Name in Publishing
TikTok is the new kid on the block when it comes to social media and online publishing. Barely over its past as music.ly, the lip syncing dance app, TikTok has worked to push itself into the spotlight as an engaging and fast growing social site; and it worked. Reuters Institute estimates that 15% of Gen-Z (18–24 year olds in the US) use TikTok to get news, and 49% of them use TikTok in general. With its over 1 billion users worldwide, and 94 million US users a month, TikTok is a super power in social media. In an age where reading a news article or, gasp, getting the paper, is all but unheard of, how can publishers use the dance app to connect with young people?
The answer lies in TikTok’s highly specificized algorithm. With a few tags and some determination, writers can quickly find themselves falling into the exact niche that they were looking for. Whether it be genre, interest, or demographic, publications can find themselves in front of exactly who they’re looking for.
The app has also recently shifted to still photo carousels synced with music, which have allowed creators to have more liberty in what kind of content they can publish. Now, the only way to share writing on TikTok isn’t just by a voiceover reading, but creators can publish their work in captions or in slideshow format to connect with a new audience.
The creator fund also gives creators the potential of finding some realm of financial success within the app, not to mention that the app is ripe with brand deals and promotional possibilities. Creator fund members are able to monetize content directly from the app itself, instead of through advertisers.
New TikTok publishers can use the following guide to familiarize themselves with TikTok’s audience, and the benefits of joining the app.
