When discussing the most popular social media apps, Instagram is likely the first that comes to mind for many.
Of course, Facebook and Twitter are also social media platforms with a vast number of users.
However, none of them is the most popular social network today.
Despite being a relatively new app, TikTok is the leader in popularity.
As the most popular social network, we have begun to wonder about TikTok’s secret and how it operates. What contributes to TikTok’s popularity and how many users are on TikTok?
For this reason, we have conducted thorough research and attempted to address the questions mentioned above.
Why is TikTok So Popular?
Throughout the research process, we discovered various reasons why TikTok has emerged as the most popular social media platform, as well as numerous aspects in which TikTok surpasses other social media apps.
Regarding TikTok statistics and demographics, it is noteworthy that TikTok boasts a vast user base exceeding 1 billion users, with China leading in app downloads.
Additionally, Internet users in China spent 600 million hours each day watching TikTok videos, with the average user dedicating 52 minutes daily to watching short videos on the platform.
These minutes are likely attributed to a large market of individuals seeking brief distractions throughout the day.
ByteDance, the Chinese company that owns TikTok, is valued at $400 billion.
Now, let’s get straight to the point and, without further delay, present some features that have contributed to the immense success of the TikTok app.
a) Authenticity
First of all, TikTok is regarded as being quite authentic and unique in comparison to other platforms.
A vast amount of content is available on this platform, allowing TikTok users to swiftly scroll through videos and discover those that interest them.
Additionally, the content available on TikTok is seldom found on other apps, which is why the TikTok app is regarded as unique.
Conversely, content from Instagram or Twitter is likely to be found on Facebook.
Therefore, even if you use only one of these apps, it will feel as though you are using all of them.
TikTok users can be confident that their content is unlikely to be shared on any other app, which helps foster a strong community on TikTok.
b) Positivity
TikTok primarily provides positive, engaging, funny, and entertaining content, which is precisely why the younger audience loves this app and why it attracts millions of views daily.
Regarding other platforms, aside from Instagram, Facebook and Twitter have evolved into apps where users express their negative energy, comment on serious topics, and engage in often intense arguments with those who hold differing opinions.
This way, these apps create a rather negative and dark impression on the younger population. According to various studies, social networks can significantly impact people’s mental health.
Therefore, it is natural for them to seek a social media app that offers plenty of positivity and laughter.
The TikTok application seems to be an ideal choice, which is why it has gained immense popularity, particularly among teenagers and adolescents who frequently express that TikTok brings them joy.
c) Special Algorithm
TikTok employs a unique algorithm known as the Artificial Intelligence Algorithm, which may be one of the key factors behind its success.
Specifically, the app features a FYP (For You Page) where TikTok’s global audience continuously receives new recommended videos.
However, unlike Instagram or Facebook, where you are likely connected to people you know or friends of friends, and their content is primarily recommended to you.
On the other hand, TikTok suggests content that is related to what you typically watch.
Therefore, if you frequently watch cooking videos, the TikTok algorithm will recommend them to you, resulting in an increasing number of cooking videos appearing on your FYP.
Therefore, it’s not surprising when you spend hours on TikTok without encountering any videos created by someone you follow or know in real life.
This allows TikTok users to repeatedly discover new content and connect with individuals from all over the world, while on Instagram or Facebook, you are limited to the people you know and those from your city or country.
Ultimately, the content is delivered to you automatically, eliminating the need to waste time searching for videos or constantly refreshing to find content you haven’t seen before.
d) Viral content
First of all, we must acknowledge that certain content will go viral most quickly when posted on TikTok.
The desire to become famous plays a significant role among young people, thereby increasing TikTok’s popularity, as any user can become a TikTok influencer almost overnight.
However, the app features some very interesting content that can quickly go viral among TikTok users and, most importantly, can spread like wildfire throughout the app.
Indeed, we have all encountered a TikTok dance challenge or a branded hashtag challenge at least once.
The purpose of a challenge video is to encourage users to replicate what you have done and to imitate you as closely as possible.
That’s why many companies develop branded hashtag challenges and utilize TikTok as a branding tool.
That is just one type of content that can rapidly gain popularity, and once it starts to do so, it becomes a top priority for the TikTok algorithm.
Many other users will encounter that content on their FYP, prompting more users to create similar content with added editing features.
As a result, the number of videos featuring individuals participating in the same challenge will surge, causing that challenge to go viral not only on TikTok but across the entire Internet, ultimately becoming a trend.
Another interesting feature that has contributed to the TikTok app’s immense popularity is the so-called “lip sync videos.”
Specifically, the audio from a particular video can be lip-synced and, therefore, used by any other TikTok user in their own new content.
The audio component will stay the same, but the visual component will change.
In this manner, we achieve the same effect as with challenges.
And if you ever start to wonder whether TikTok is truly powerful, just remember that some songs recorded 30-40 years ago, or even longer, which were completely forgotten or never popular at all, became viral thanks to TikTok’s platform.
e) Communities that are easy to create
As we have mentioned, since the content can be very similar or even identical due to challenges, lip-syncing, or simply copying someone else’s video, building a community on TikTok is quite easy.
All content creators who share topics related to videos, audio, hashtags, and more are typically regarded as a community.
As certain topics or types of videos go viral within a community, that community becomes stronger.
The stronger the communities a social platform has, the more robust and popular it becomes.
Therefore, regarding communities, TikTok is the most popular social media app by far.
f) Direct Messages
Firstly, it is important to note that TikTok is only available on mobile phones and cannot be accessed on computers.
This decision is reasonable.
Young people often use mobile phones because they are always in their pockets and at their fingertips, whereas computers feel too slow for them.
Furthermore, TikTok has introduced a direct messaging option similar to that of Facebook and Instagram. This allows TikTok users to enjoy both engaging content and the ability to communicate with their friends, which is exactly what they seek from a social media app.
g) Target audience
TikTok has highly concentrated age demographics, and when we examine all of TikTok’s features, we will observe that each has been tailored to meet the preferences and tastes of the younger population.
When developing new social media platforms, it is crucial to identify your target audience.
TikTok creators have astutely recognized that teenagers and adolescents are their target audience, and they have taken every possible step to make the app appealing to this demographic.
The effort and dedication are the primary reasons why users on the platform highly value the app and its content.
Let’s highlight some features that have been introduced and designed specifically for TikTok’s target audience.
· Short Videos
It is a well-known fact that young people often have a very short attention span.
First of all, if they have to read something, they will likely find it boring.
TikTok addressed this issue by making videos the core of the app.
However, even videos can become tedious if they are excessively long.
That’s why TikTok users are unable to create videos longer than 3 minutes.
Additionally, people typically appreciate when someone gets straight to the point.
If you have only 3 minutes to present what you want, you will likely need to be very concise.
This approach allows TikTok to capture the attention of its target audience without quickly losing it.
· Familiar Sounds
TikTok creators were certainly aware that people can quickly become bored when listening to someone drone on about a topic.
Therefore, they understood that they needed to concentrate on some common and familiar sounds.
These sounds are, logically, popular songs.
For this reason, most TikTok videos feature popular and recognizable songs.
At times, users sing, while at other times, songs play in the background.
· A significant amount of movement
Even though not all TikTok content consists of videos featuring people dancing or engaging in movement, these types of videos are more popular than any others.
To capture the viewer’s attention, you must create content that is engaging, dynamic, and mobile-friendly.
You can dance, run, jump, cook, or play with your pet, but it must be something engaging enough to keep a viewer from scrolling up.
Ultimately, when you combine short videos, familiar sounds and songs, along with plenty of motion and activities, you create a guide for an excellent first TikTok video.
TikTok has effectively merged a YouTube video with Instagram stories, resulting in an excellent final product.
Conclusion
We have uncovered many secrets behind TikTok’s significant success in this text, but there are undoubtedly more reasons why this social media platform is so popular.
Nevertheless, we must commend the creators of TikTok, as it is clear they understood their objectives, were highly insightful, thoroughly analyzed the social media landscape, and ultimately reaped the rewards of their efforts.
And if you have ever viewed TikTok as a trivial app for children, keep in mind that Instagram was initially regarded as merely a photo filter app, yet it achieved significant success.
In fact, we assure you that once you start using it, you’ll become addicted, and from our perspective, that is the true evidence of quality.
If you would like to learn more about this app, visit how to use TikTok, and discover more about TikTok trends and video ideas.
