TikTok is the go-to platform for audio trends, the Gen Z zeitgeist, and cat memes (just me?). But now, it's also a source of controversy in the United States. The U.S. government plans to ban the platform within its borders unless TikTok's parent company, ByteDance, succeeds at challenging the decision.
If you have a TikTok with U.S. followers, chances are you're trying to account for this news in your strategy. What's the current situation, and what should you do to future-proof your marketing? I'll answer both questions with input from social media managers wrestling with the same issues.
What's going on with the TikTok ban in the United States?
On April 24, 2024, U.S. President Joe Biden signed a bill that included measures to ban TikTok. Under this bill, if parent company ByteDance doesn't sell it within nine months of the bill going into effect, the platform can't operate in the United States anymore.
Then, on May 7, ByteDance filed to challenge the law. The court granted its request for a quick schedule and set the date to hear ByteDance's arguments for September 2024.
How likely is it for the U.S. Tiktok ban bill to go through?
I'm no business or law expert, so I can't tell you for sure, but we can get an idea from people who do understand law. NPR consulted six legal scholars specializing in constitutional law to see what they thought, and all of them thought the bill was unconstitutional. But lawmakers have classified evidence that could come up in the case and completely change its nature.
You'll have until January 2025 at the soonest to prepare and watch how the case unfolds. With the court date set for September, CNBC reported that ByteDance won't ask for any delays for the time being, so we could know as early as the end of this year.
How will the TikTok ban impact social media marketers?
Many social media marketers seem to be following business as usual. When I reached out to get their takes on the situation, most of them still consider TikTok worth using as this situation evolves. Plus, TikTok is already partially banned in many countries and fully banned in a few, but most marketers still use it.
Chris Ferris, Senior Vice President of Digital Strategy at Pierpont Communications, also points out data from a Meltwater and DataReportal report that shows that only 0.1% of TikTok users are unique to the platform. "That means that over 99% of the TikTok audience can be reached on other social channels," Chris says.
Rather than panic, Chris thinks marketers should get ready to pivot.
Some businesses have left TikTok due to there already being a ban in India and partial bans in other countries—and they do just fine. Banish Angural, founder and CEO of Banish Media, says, "To be honest, me and my team have already stopped advertising on TikTok and many other brands are doing the same."
If you count on TikTok as a major marketing channel in your strategy, it definitely doesn't hurt to prepare, so you can hit the ground running if the ban does go through. Even if you're one of the businesses that doesn't feel much of an effect, you'll still need to know what to do with the extra time on your hands.
5 ways to prepare for a potential TikTok ban in the U.S.
I asked social media marketers how they plan to change their strategies if TikTok gets banned in the U.S. Depending on your existing marketing strategy, you might need to follow all of these suggestions or just a few.
1. Consider the risk for your business
The effects of a U.S. TikTok ban will vary from business to business. Bernard Meyer, Senior Director of Communications & Creative at Omnisend, explains that your risk depends on two factors:
How much of your strategy relies on a U.S. audience: Pointing at TikTok's own data, Bernard highlights how countries outside of the U.S. still get a good ROI from the platform—as much as a 64% boost on return on ad spend. You can still get something out of TikTok but only if you have a sizable audience outside of the U.S.
Whether other countries will follow the U.S.'s lead after a ban: "This is difficult to predict, but many countries follow the U.S. lead, and this could be another example. If the European Union or Asian or African countries also begin discussing a ban on TikTok, then it will make sense to deprioritize TikTok if you have an international audience," Bernard says.
Marketing consultant Andreas Mitschke also brings up that influencer accounts could face bigger consequences than brands. He explains that TikTok excels at two types of distribution: community building and short-term viral growth. Account owners who rely on the former method, such as influencers, will have to hedge their bets on where their audience will migrate next. While businesses tend to have audiences focused in a single country, influencers tend to have followers from all over the world, so it could be much harder to manage this migration.
2. Build a contingency plan
If you already rely heavily on TikTok, it's time to build a contingency plan while the situation develops. Gather information on:
How much of your total audience is in the U.S. and follows you on TikTok: Go to your TikTok Ads Manager, hover over the Reporting option, and click Audience Insights to check demographics like location. You'll be able to see how much of your audience comes from the U.S. and how that number compares to your total TikTok audience.
How much time and money you invest in TikTok marketing: Go over your time logs and previous marketing spend to see how much of your money and workflow involves TikTok. Keep in mind that hours spent on TikTok are equivalent to the wages you would pay for those hours. So you could be dedicating money to TikTok even if you don't pay for ads.
The channels you currently use inside and outside social media: Consider how much space TikTok takes in your social media channels and overall marketing channels. If you count on TikTok as your main marketing channel, you'll have a lot of work to do if a ban happens. Meanwhile, if you have a wide range of channels in play, you might not have to sweat it so much.
If a U.S. TikTok ban would take out a large chunk of your channels or audience, identify new marketing avenues to follow. I'll cover those next.
3. Diversify your social media platforms
As you think about additional channels to invest in besides TikTok, start with your social channels. Go over your markets, segments, and personas and see what platforms they could be interested in.
Some social media managers are investing in similar platforms to TikTok for an easy switch. For example, Envy Creative's Head Video Producer, Mike Vannelli, and CEO of Viral Marketing Stars, Katya Varbanova, plan to invest in platforms like YouTube Shorts and Instagram Reels. Katya specifically vouches for YouTube with this reasoning: "Although Instagram may seem like the obvious move, TikTok is heavily used as a search engine, and all those users would start using YouTube instead."
Others are going for completely different platforms. After leaving TikTok, Banish Angural is finding a lot of success with Reddit and Snapchat. And if you're interested in engaging with a smaller but more attentive audience, emerging platforms like newer Twitter competitors can be a solid option.
Diversifying doesn't have to take a lot of your time, either. You can use a social media scheduling tool or Zapier to crosspost between your platforms. Here are a few workflows that could speed up the process.
Upload YouTube videos for new media posts in my Instagram account
Zapier is the leader in workflow automation—integrating with thousands of apps from partners like Google, Salesforce, and Microsoft. Use interfaces, data tables, and logic to build secure, automated systems for your business-critical workflows across your organization's technology stack. Learn more.
4. Look into marketing channels outside of social media
Now is also a good time to think about non-social media channels you can direct your audience to. As Victor Karpenko, Founder & CEO at SeoProfy, puts it:
"Your social media profile is a borrowed space. You can use it to reach your audience, but your follower list is not yours.
When you interact with your followers on TikTok, those connections belong to TikTok, not you. If TikTok vanishes, so does your connection."
Victor vouches for channels like website SEO and email marketing because they give you a follower list you can completely call your own. While social media sites could change their algorithms or disappear overnight, owned channels are more predictable.
If this idea appeals to you, explore the different types of email marketing out there or start a blog to build your audience.
5. Make it easy to migrate
Whether you need to add channels to the mix or feel secure in your current setup, you can also make a potential migration easier in the future.
Xavier English, co-founder of Supermix, already has two strategies in motion:
Directing TikTok followers to other platforms: The Supermix team now adds calls to action to TikTok videos that encourage viewers to follow them on Reels and Shorts. They also use the Reels watermarked version of a video on Twitter and LinkedIn to establish Reels as their go-to short-form video platform. In some videos, they try higher-risk strategies like adding a cliffhanger for a "part 2" on another channel.
Optimizing videos for similar formats: "We used to always edit things in the way that would be best for TikTok because it generally had the highest returns, but now we edit things in the way that is best for Shorts, just in case TikTok has a downfall. (Shorts makes more sense than Reels for our startup audiences, but Reels might make more sense for other accounts/niches)," Xavier says.
An example of the first strategy in action for one of Supermix's clients, Lenny's Podcast.
If you use influencer marketing in your strategy, Cecelia Bender, Director of Communications at Brunner, suggests partnering with influencers already on multiple platforms. "For those using influencer marketing now or considering adding it, we recommend looking for content creators who have built strong followings across multiple social accounts, not just TikTok. That way, if TikTok is banned, they will already have an established presence and community on channels where influencers thrive, including Instagram and YouTube," Cecelia explains.
Be proactive
While we still have a while to see if TikTok will be banned, it's best to start acting now. If you need more information to work with as you build your contingency plan, try running a TikTok ad with a lead gen form to ask interested customers about their favorite platforms, then use Zapier to send that data to your preferred database.
Create Google Sheets row(s) for new TikTok Lead Generation leads
Add new TikTok Lead Generation leads to LeadConnector campaigns
Trigger webhooks POST requests for new TikTok Lead Generation leads
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