TikTok Ban and Your Next Best Social Media Marketing Strategy Move
The Gist
- TikTok’s looming shutdown. With no intervention, TikTok could “go dark” in the US, impacting 170 million users and countless marketers.
- Impact on marketing strategies. Marketers and influencers must pivot to platforms like Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts to maintain audience engagement.
- Potential buyers and challenges. Speculations of new buyers arise, but rebuilding TikTok without its original algorithm could take years.
The TikTok ban in the United States is imminent. And now the question becomes: what does this mean for marketers, influencers and businesses that have relied on the platform for their social media strategy? What can they do?
First, the facts (or so we think; more on that in a bit): The social media app will be unaccessible in the US to new users after Sunday, Jan. 19, the deadline for TikTok’s Chinese parent company, ByteDance, to sell its US assets under the Biden Administration’s law. Current users will still have access but would no longer get app updates.
But is it worse than that? Yes, according to TikTok.
In arguments to the US Supreme Court on the TikTok ban earlier this month, TikTok attorney Noel Francisco told the Supreme Court that the social media titan would “go dark” if there is no last-minute intervention on the law prohibiting ByteDance ownership of TikTok’s US operations.
“At least as I understand it, we go dark,” Francisco said. “Essentially, the platform shuts down.”
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TikTok Ban: Biden’s Law and Trump’s Possible Remedy
This is all under US law signed last year by President Joe Biden, whose last day in office is ironically Sunday, Jan. 19. The incoming Trump administration may reportedly send through an order to suspend the ban temporarily for up to three months as it finds a way to keep the app going per usual in the States. The Supreme court could also make a ruling on the TikTok ban as it heard oral arguments this month.
TikTok wants a delay. They want more time to figure out a way to continue US operations.
“On January 19th, we still have President Biden, and on January 19th, as I understand it, we shut down,” TikTok attorney Francisco said. “It is possible that come January 20th, 21st, 22nd, we might be in a different world. Again, that’s one of the reasons why I think it makes perfect sense to issue a preliminary injunction here and simply buy everybody a little breathing space.”
Reports have indicated other shutdown actions that would be in place when the law is implemented. TikTok users could see a pop-up message when opening the app, directing them to a website with information about the ban. Reuters reports that TikTok plans to give users the option to download all their data so they can take a record of their personal information with them.
Related Article: Who Wins if TikTok Loses?
The Brief Timeline of TikTok’s Battle to Remain in the US
The bill that effectively made ByteDance’s ownership prohibited was passed in April. I last wrote about TikTok before the Dec. 6 filing TikTok made in the Court of Appeals. The appeal court determined that the law was constitutional.
TikTok filed an appeal to the Supreme Court on Dec. 16. The Supreme Court had not finalized a decision on the appeal as of this post, but reports indicate that it will not overturn the Court of Appeals decision.
These events occur after a shifting sentiment toward the TikTok ban has emerged. A Pew Research Center poll taken between March 2023 and August 2024 indicates that support for the TikTok ban decreased from 50% to 32%, while opposition to the ban increased from 22% to 28%. Interestingly the shifted support was regardless of political affiliation.
Efforts to Prevent TikTok Ban in Full Force
Some remedies for TikTok’s situation have been raised, though none have gone further than a public suggestion. Believing a compromise is possible, U.S. Senator Ed Markey issued a proposal to extend the deadline for ByteDance to divest TikTok by 270 days, but Republican Senator Tom Cotton blocked it.
The interesting “What’s Next” aspect is the possibility of who would buy TikTok. ByteDance has repeatedly denied that TikTok’s US operations would be sold. Yet some Chinese officials have suggested Elon Musk as a potential buyer. The officials believe that Musk is trusted by the Chinese government, so his investment would be a viable option. In response to a Bloomberg report on the speculation, TikTok has denied the scenario as a reasonable possibility.
Meanwhile, other investors are offering to buy TikTok. Frank McCourt and Kevin O’Leary have formed a private equity group interested in acquiring the US operations without the current app algorithm and taking the company private.
The one downside is that without the algorithm that has made the TikTok experience, any investor would have to start over. The algorithm would have to be rebuilt, and the users would have to be attracted to the “new” TikTok. 170 million app users will not be easily replaced.
Moreover, McCourt claims in an interview that building a replacement algorithm and regaining an audience would take a year, giving new platforms like Chattr and Fanbase a head start to establish their users and influencers. A migration in social media is already occurring, so investors who buy TikTok will be playing catch up in gaining social media users, as well as influences and marketers.
Related Article: What a TikTok Ban Means for Marketers
The TikTok Marketing Impact: What’s Your Next Move?
So what will marketers face next?
All this comes down to one thing for marketers relying on the app: their social media campaigns targeting TikTok and its 170 million US users would have to switch things up.
If TikTok goes dark, users will not lose any past postings. This benefits marketers and influencers who have made campaigns. Yet marketers and influencers must decide how to best adjust their social media platform strategy.
Here are a few ideas that marketers can consider for their social media strategy moving forward:
Prioritize the Other Social Media Apps Where Your TikTok Audience Will Migrate
While many influencers maintain a presence on multiple platforms, TikTok has been a major driver of engagement and revenue for influences. A ban would force users to prioritize alternatives like Instagram Reels or YouTube Shorts. This could lead to increased competition and challenges in rebuilding their audience and engagement.
Rethink Where Messaging Strategy Works
Many marketing experts have heralded the idea of not having all the marketing “eggs” – i.e. budget – in one basket. Marketers will have to assess their “baskets” against the platforms vying for limited customer attention. The scrambling occurring now implies that a marketing omnipresence is needed to keep up.
Yet there are limits to spreading resources. Many marketing teams are not large enough to engage on a wide variety of platforms, even with marketing tools that automate media posting. Marketers have to be intentional with the platforms that actually work for brand messaging and engagement from an intended customer audience.
Move Quickly: Back up Content, Analytics and Ad Data
Chris Savage, CEO and co-founder of Wistia, suggests that marketers should move quickly with their response.
“Don’t wait” said Savage. “Start backing up your content, analytics and ad data today. Repurpose those assets on Instagram Reels, YouTube Shorts or even LinkedIn, which just made vertical video its default format. Use TikTok’s data to refine your strategy and pivot to platforms that can keep your momentum going.”
Remember: Not Every TikTok Alternative Is Perfect
Calvin Scharffs, VP of marketing at Orange 142, said marketers and publishers shouldn’t scrap their content investments. Your TikTok-style content can find new homes on Instagram Reels, YouTube Shorts and Snapchat Spotlight, he added.
“The main alternatives each have drawbacks,” Scharffs said. “Instagram has more than twice TikTok’s user base but trails in engagement. TikTok’s posts get 5.53% engagement and 44% more comments than Instagram Reels, which sees 4.36% engagement. While Reels’ performance is solid, marketers must adjust their expectations. The same is more or less true for YouTube.”
Meta’s recent decision to end fact-checking might push marketers to explore other options, Scharffs added. While emerging platforms such as Triller (65 million users) and Clapper (300,000 users) have smaller audiences, they offer unique engagement opportunities. Triller is making a play for influencers with AI-powered editing tools and has built strong communities around music, especially hip-hop and EDM, according to Scharffs. Clapper emphasizes community interaction through live streaming and group discussions of up to 20 speakers and 2,000 listeners.
“These features could help brands build closer connections with niche audiences,” Scharffs said. “This is actually a strategy that many publishers are already implementing in response to the ‘end of scale’: i.e. fewer referrals from search due to the rise of generative AI.”
What Changes Will Come Next for TikTok?
The TikTok situation highlights the complexity of enforcing regulation compliance on digital platforms supported by companies with global reach and operations. The outcome of TikTok’s legal battles will influence future cases involving data privacy, national security and foreign ownership of digital platforms.
A TikTok ban would create a significant disruption in the social media and ecommerce landscape. While other platforms are likely to benefit from a potential surge in users and engagement, it remains to be seen what platforms will be the largest influencers in the social media ecosystem. Marketers will have to see how the potential ramifications for social media will trickle down to ecommerce, influencers and customer experience.
Core Questions to Ask About the TikTok Ban
Editor’s note: Here’s a summary of two core questions about the TikTok ban:
What should marketers do with their TikTok campaigns if TikTok goes dark in the US?
Marketers must act quickly to back up their content, analytics and ad data. Repurposing these assets on alternative platforms like Instagram Reels or YouTube Shorts can help maintain momentum and engagement. Staying nimble and adapting to new platforms will be key to keeping campaigns effective. Marketers, influencers and business owners have invested time and money in TikTok, ranging from videos to ecommerce. Wistia’s Chris Savage believes that “The social media game is all about staying nimble, learning fast and persisting through change.” Staying nimble will reveal how to keep the value of the media investment relevant to customer moments.
How should brands replace TikTok’s presence in their strategy?
The search for replacing a social media channel raises the question of how much social media exposure supports a branding message. The key to success is experimenting. As Chris Savage says, “Whether TikTok stays or goes, keep experimenting, keep adapting, and your business will keep thriving.” With TikTok potentially out of the picture, brands need to explore omnichannel strategies while carefully selecting platforms that align with their audience’s behavior. Experimentation and adaptability will be critical in determining the best mix of platforms to sustain and grow brand awareness and customer engagement.
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