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What Is TikTok? A Guide To The App Making History

Posted by Gary Henderson on Nov 26, 2019 3:28:21 PM

It seems like TikTok blew up overnight, and it's not going anywhere anytime soon. 

And most of us watched Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube all blow up right in front of us. Should we have jumped on the bandwagon back when we watched all of the other social media platforms blow up?

Most definitely.

In this blog post, I will explain how TikTok, an app that's been downloaded more than a billion times, works and why you should create an account. 

But, What Is TikTok?

TikTok is a Chinese-owned social video-sharing app. TikTok (formerly known as musical ly) is a social media platform for creating, sharing, and discovering short-form videos.

TikTok's mission is to become the leading destination for short-form mobile videos that sparks joy and inspires creativity in people around the world.

The creators of TikTok want you to be able to create and have fun while feeling safe and comfortable.

If you aren't familiar with TikTok, think of it like Karaoke for the digital age or like a cross between Vine and Snapchat. 

TikTok is considered to be the fastest-ever growing social media app, with about 500 million users.  It's said to have been downloaded over a billion times. 

TikTok gives users the ability to create and upload 15-second videos where they can choose to lip-synch, sing, dance, talk, or partake in challenges. Users can also choose from a variety of filters, music, and special effects to add to videos.

It's even been considered the new "it" platform for aspiring artists because of its popularity.  The numbers of video engagement are through the roof, according to Teen Vogue.

The app helps you discover and interact with other peoples content just like YouTube.

Check out this video showing the most popular TikTok videos:

 

 

Who Should Use TikTok?

TikTok is for anyone.

Literally, even Jimmy Fallon uses TikTok.

 

 

Originally, TikTok was popular to teenagers and younger children, typically around the age of 13.  However, TikTok does require that users be at least 13 years old to use the app and that anyone under the age of 18 must have approval of a parent or guardian. 

With the quick increase in young people downloading and using the app, there's also been a huge increase of older adults using using TikTok. 

Influencers, marketers and business owners have realized how powerful and influential the social media app is, especially for people who want to speak to the younger generation.

Celebrities like Gary Vaynerchuck and Rachel Hollis are getting in on the trend.

GaryVee's TikTok videos look like this: 

 

 

How Does TikTok Work? How To Create A TikTok Account?

When you first open video-creation application it won’t ask you to create an account.

Instead, it will simply show you a feed of videos that you can watch. After you create an account it will begin to show you videos similar to the ones you like. 

If you want to create a TikTok account you will need one of these:

  • A phone number

  • A email address

  • Facebook or

  • Instagram

Then you will need to: 

1. Download TikTok from Google Play or App Store.

2. Tap the Profile or Notifications tab, and sign up following the steps in the app.

 

Download TikTok - How To Create A TikTok Account?

 

Once you create an account, you can create your first video or immediately start watching popular short videos.
 
If you would like to search for your favorite content creators you can use popular hashtags or categories to find their videos.
 
You can also use your phone contacts or current social media followers to find friends who have downloaded the app and created an account.
 
If you would like to read more about TikTok and their safety, check out their articles in the newsroom here. 

So, What's The Conclusion About TikTok?

It doesn't matter what age you are or if you own a business or not, TikTok is a fun place to watch or create fun videos and stay up to date on the latest trends.

Have fun creating amazing content for your audience!