Can you use TikTok as a search engine?
Nearly 40 percent of young people turn to TikTok or Instagram as a search tool, shunning Google.
Already in 2021, web security and performance company Cloudflare reported that the video app had overtaken Google by the number of searches on its platform.
, . "Almost 40% of Gen Z is using TikTok and Instagram for search instead of Google, according to Google's own data." Nieman Journalism Lab.
And it's really important. Any time you're searching for something to look at the credibility of the source, where the information is coming from.” Even though TikTok still hasn't taken over Google's throne as the main search engine of the world, it has managed to grab the hearts and minds of young users everywhere.
TikTok is taking on Google as a search engine
A Google commissioned study of U.S. users ages 18 to 24 found that nearly 40% use TikTok or Instagram to search online.
Gen Z TikTokers aren't just downloading and absorbing content. They're creating it. 83% of TikTokers have created a video themselves. Since the platform makes it so easy to create, with intuitive in-app features and a simple interface, it's no wonder Gen Z are ready to put their content out there.
TikTok: distribution of global audiences 2023, by age and gender. As of April 2023, it was found that 21 percent of TikTok's global audience were women between the ages of 18 and 24 years, while male users of the same age made up approximately 17.5 percent of the platform's audience.
Gen Z and Millennial Behavior
Dretsch observed that 90% use Instagram daily and, of those, 68% use TikTok in addition to Instagram (only 2% use TikTok and not Instagram).
Gen Z – 60% of TikTok users are Gen Zers. Gen Zers are trendsetters. Next year, 74 million people in the U.S. will be part of “Gen Z”, which will make it the largest generation of all.
Despite being at the mercy of the platform's younger (and, yes, larger) audience, Millennials are finding their feet on the astronomically popular video-sharing app.
Which country uses TikTok the most?
Breakdown of the number of TikTok users by country
According to the latest data on TikTok's advertising reach, the United States is home to the majority of TikTok users worldwide, with 116.5 million TikTokers residing there.
Analysts found that TikTok grew 11 per cent higher than Facebook, according to data from the first quarter of the 2023. For the first time since its introduction in the social media market, Chinese short-form video hosting service TikTok has overtaken Meta-owned Facebook as the Most Valuable Social Media.
And according to TikTok statistics, “entertainment” is the most popular content category on the platform worldwide. This particular hashtag has amassed 535 billion hashtag views. The next most popular categories include dance, pranks, fitness/sports, and home renovations/DIY.
TikTok allows users to make short videos, roughly 15–30 seconds in length, and distribute them within the app's following. Most of the videos are based on entertainment, hijinks, and comedy. The site is particularly popular with the under-24 crowd, with about 40% of its users falling in the 18–24 age range.
TikTok, which has over 150 million American users, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Chinese technology firm ByteDance Ltd., which appoints its executives. ByteDance is based in Beijing but registered in the Cayman Islands, as is common for privately owned Chinese companies.
TikTok remains teens' most favored social media platform so far in 2023, though its favorability fell one percentage point from the fall of 2022 with a 37% share, according to Piper Sandler's Spring 2023 Taking Stock with Teens survey. Behind TikTok is Snap (27%) and Instagram (23%).
TikTok's community guidelines prohibit nudity, sexual activity, and sexually explicit content.
TikTok has announced that it's expanding its audience controls feature, giving creators the ability to restrict their videos to adult viewers. Prior to this expansion, the adult-only audience controls feature was only available for TikTok Live. Now the company is bringing the feature to its short-form videos as well.
Older generations use social media differently than Gen Z… but they still use it. TikTok, in particular, is used by 10% of Gen Xers, and 5% of baby boomers, according to a study conducted by Fortune and SurveyMonkey, but is rising fast. 40% of Baby Boomers view social media as an essential part of their lives.
According to Deloitte's Digital Media Trends Survey, 15th Edition (page 5) of March 2021, Gen-Z cites playing video games (26%), listening to music (14%) and browsing the internet (13%) as more enjoyable than engaging on social media platforms (11%).
Why is everyone addicted to TikTok?
The social media platform allows its users to both create and watch short video content, that is primarily 15 seconds in length. People crave micro-entertainment and short bursts of video distraction, this is one of the main reasons for the app's popularity. Content is short, fun and on-trend.
TikTok is fighting to stay alive in the United States as pressure builds in Washington to ban the app if its Chinese owners don't sell the company. But the wildly popular platform, developed with homegrown Chinese technology, isn't accessible in China.
What age is TikTok recommended for? Common Sense recommends the app for age 15+ mainly due to the privacy issues and mature content. TikTok requires that users be at least 13 years old to use the basic TikTok features, although there is a way for younger kids to access the app.
The number of influencers on TikTok
More precisely, the breakdown is as follows: between 2,000 and 15,000 influencers for those with more than 1 million followers ; between 3,000 and 30,000 influencers for those with over 100k followers; between 5,000 and 50,000 influencers for those with over 1,000 followers.
Instagram's largest demographic are millennials, so 31.2% fall in the 25-34 year old age group. Out of that 31.2%, 16.4% are male and 14.8% are female. Even though Instagram is highly populated by millennials, 25% of teenagers say it's their favorite social media site.
| Generation | Daily | Once per week |
|---|---|---|
| Generation Z | 50% | 9% |
| Millennials | 44% | 7% |
| Generation X | 37% | 5% |
| Boomers | 26% | 5% |
Gen Z is the social video generation, and TikTok is its platform.
The average daily time spent on TikTok rose by 17.4% in 2021, to 45.3 minutes. This is less than half of the previous year's growth rate. In 2022, daily time spent on the platform rose by another 14.8%, to 52 minutes.
As digital natives, Gen Zers love TikTok. Among other social media platforms, like Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter, TikTok stands out. Not only is the app Gen Z-dominated, with 43% of global users aged 18-24, but young consumers also prefer TikTok to such an extent that it's begun to rival Google as a search engine.
And an American Psychological Association report found that Gen-Z is more likely to report mental health concerns than any other demographic group. This is no surprise, as Gen-Z has been at the forefront of some of the world's most traumatic events and experiences, from the global pandemic to mass school shootings.
What is Gen Y in 2023?
Millennials, sometimes known as Generation Y, is a demographic cohort that follows Generation X and proceeds Generation Z. Millennials were born between 1981 and 1996, according to the Pew Research Center. So as of 2023, the millennial age range is between 27 and 42.
Gen Y: Gen Y, or Millennials, were born between 1981 and 1994/6. They are currently between 25 and 40 years old (72.1 million in the U.S.) Gen Y.1 = 25-29 years old (around 31 million people in the U.S.)
Denmark. Denmark's Defense Ministry banned employees(opens in a new tab) from having TikTok downloaded on their work devices in March. Again related to security considerations assessed by the country's Center for Cyber Security, staffers were told to remove the app as soon as possible.
On March 23, TikTok's chief executive, Shou Chew, was grilled about the app's relationship to its parent company and China's potential influence over the platform in roughly five hours of testimony before a House committee. Here's why the pressure has been ratcheted up on TikTok.
TikTok does not directly pay creators to produce and upload videos. TikTok does offer funding for creators in the form of the TikTok Creativity Program. Still, payment varies based on factors like the number of video views, engagement rates, and the authenticity of users engaging with the post.
TikTok Earned $205 Million More Than Facebook, Twitter, Snap And Instagram Combined On In-App Purchases In 2023.
FAQs on Most Downloaded Apps of All Time
Answer: TikTok has been the most downloaded app, and it is indeed the most used app so far, closely followed by Instagram, Facebook, and WhatsApp. Q #3) How many users are on TikTok? Answer: TikTok has over 1 billion active users worldwide.
On the other hand, if we compare the data gathered by different platforms, Facebook surpasses TikTok: it knows the user's exact location at all times and stores and processes all the information on the user's profile. However, prohibiting downloading TikTok may not prevent user data from ending up on Chinese servers.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) considers TikTok a goldmine for scammers. ¹ To be fair, any social media app that has the ability to direct message (DM) other users has the potential for scams.
You're the only one who can see your history. However, the setting does come with a couple of caveats. Only users who have also turned on the feature will show up in your history.
Why not use TikTok?
WHAT ARE THE CONCERNS ABOUT TIKTOK? Both the FBI and officials at the Federal Communications Commission have warned that ByteDance could share TikTok user data — such as browsing history, location and biometric identifiers — with China's authoritarian government.
- Enhance brand identity. In 2021 TikTok had close to 78.7 million users in the United States. ...
- Increase brand awareness. Similarly, TikTok offers opportunities for increased brand awareness. ...
- Partner with influencers. ...
- Take advantage of user-generated content. ...
- Reach your target market faster.
The problem with TikTok is that a large number of Americans use it, and China may have the ability to direct misinformation through it, as well as collect data from it, said Plumb. The scale and scope of the platform is problematic.
23.12. 2022 update: be very careful because TikTok employees actually have the ability to track your location if you use the app. On December 22, ByteDance admitted that four of their employees used the app as a surveillance method for journalists who reported on TikTok's ties with the Chinese government.
TikTok Tracks Your Online Search History, Location, Personal Data and More – Study Explains There's No Way To Know Where It's Going.
TikTok search
Type the location or “influencers” followed by your location and select the “users” option. Scroll through the list of accounts and even filter the number of followers you'd want the influencer to have to narrow the search.
