With TikTok facing a possible ban in the United States many advertisers are left wondering what that could mean for the future of social media advertising.
Why is TikTok Facing a Potential U.S. Ban?
Since TikTok is Chinese owned and operated despite having a headquarters in NYC it is now facing a possible ban in the United States. The law requires TikTok to find a US buyer to take over its operation or face a potential ban in the US. TikTok has since sued the government over it and this is expected to sit with lawyers for quite some time. Nevertheless, it begs the question of what advertisers should do and where to allocate their budgets if they are already advertising on the platform.
TikTok’s Growing Influence
TikTok is a social platform unlike any other and since the launch of TikTok Shop it has grown even more. The platform has over 1 billion monthly active users and offers so many creative ways for brands and users to interact with each other. 40% of Americans use TikTok as a search engine much like Google and that means millions of people are searching for products right there in the app. As an advertiser on the platform this essentially means that users can be searching for a product or service you have and then immediately see a video for it while they are scrolling on their timeline. TikTok is projected to account for 4% of marketers budgets by 2026.
Preparing for Potential Strategy Shifts
Before TikTok Shop, the platform was much more of an awareness push for brands to get their names out there. For smaller businesses, the ROI was harder to measure for paid advertising compared to larger corporations. With the incredible growth of the platform and introduction of TikTok Shop, the buying potential of users on the platform has now skyrocketed. The TikTok ads platform offers many great reporting metrics and tracking for brands to easily see how their marketing efforts are performing on the platform.
What Agencies and Brands Are Doing
For now many brands and agencies are operating as if TikTok is here to stay and that is the smart approach as the platform offers many great ways to grow a brand. However, should TikTok be banned in the US, it will be critical for advertisers to reassess their marketing budgets to figure out what channels best fit that existing TikTok budget. The audience you reach on TikTok is like no other, so planning ahead on where to move that budget will be crucial in your social marketing strategy for 2025 and beyond. Platforms like Reddit and Pinterest offer unique audiences and creative formats that can boost your online visibility across the social landscape.
Interested in learning more about how TikTok can help grow your business? Reach out to a NetElixir rep to learn more.
Additional Resources:
The Power of Short-Form Content On TikTok – NetElixir
Social Media Marketing Service in Princeton New Jersey – NetElixir
