The TikTok platform is especially popular among the younger generation, particularly among teenagers.
According to data presented by Stock Apps, over 30% of US-based Tiktok users are in their teens, which is the biggest among all age groups. More data indicates that seven in 10 American teens use Tiktok at least once a month.
Tiktok is a social media platform that originated in China where it is known as Douyin. Douyin was started by ByteDance in 2016 and aimed to spread globally once it gained popularity in mainland China. In 2017 ByteDance launched Tiktok which was the international version of Douyin.
In 2018, Bytedance reportedly spent up to $1-billion to acquire Musical.ly, another Chinese social media startup based out of Shanghai that was founded in 2014. Musical.ly already had a large following, especially among the younger generation. This became the foundation for Tiktok’s global rise. Since that merger, Tiktok has been made available to download in over 150 countries and more than 75 languages.
Tiktok allows users to record a short 15-second clip that usually features music in the background and can be edited through filters. A popular kind of clip which originated with the Musical.ly app are short lip-sync videos to trendy songs. The video can also be sped up or slowed down to the users liking allowing for creative little clips that easily go viral.
The platform clearly appeals to the younger generation and has surpassed many other social media platforms in terms of usage among teens.
In the third quarter of 2020, a survey of almost 10 000 teens indicated that TikTok was the third most popular social media platform behind only Snapchat and Instagram with more than seen in 10 teens indicating that they used the platform at least once a month.
Tiktok’s popularity among the younger generation is the backbone of the app’s success. As of the midway point of 2020, 32,5% of Tiktok’s Android users are in the 10-19 age group, the largest share of any group, followed by the next youngest generation, the 20-29-year-olds who comprise 29,5% of Tiktok’s Android users. That means over 60% of Tiktok’s Android users are under the age of 30.
In the fall of 2019, Tiktok also announced a multi-year partnership with the National Football League which included the launch of the official NFL Tiktok account giving teams, players and the league as a whole new marketing avenue.