• by Colin Kirkland , September 16, 2024

As a potential TikTok ban looms closer in the United States, with the social media company headed to court this week, competing social media platforms are working to attract user overflow with TikTok-ified features. However, another ByteDance-owned app, Lemon8, is gaining traction among U.S. users due to an increased investment in advertising.

Despite being available in select Asian countries since 2020, Lemon8 first launched in the U.S. last February with a global marketing push, gaining immediate popularity as the United States government began discussing a bill that would force ByteDance to sell off TikTok to a stateside buyer.

The app has been described by users as a mix between Instagram and Pinterest, showcasing a variety of social posts and products highlighted by a diverse range of influencers. Upon launch, Lemon8 claimed TikTok as its “sister company” and uses the same recommendation algorithm that has made TikTok so popular among users, brands and advertisers.

It is likely that ByteDance introduced Lemon8 to U.S. consumers as a replacement plan for a TikTok ban, and now it is doubling down. As TikTok headed to court this Monday to argue against the sell-off bill, ByteDance is running a huge Apple Search Ads campaign, which saw the use of 5,300 keyworks in the past week, according to Appfigures.

The app intelligence company said that the campaign targeted branded keywords that have the largest share of advertiser impressions, including TikTok, CapCut, Instagram, Canva and more.

Lemon8 ads are also popping up directly on TikTok’s “For You” feed, increasing public chatter around the app among TikTok creators who may or may not have partnered with ByteDance to spread the word.

Creators in the US have been interested in Lemon8 since its initial nationwide launch, when hundreds signed on to advertise on the app, agreeing to post what ByteDance instructs them to. For example, last May the company announced a “content accumulation” phase, telling creators to focus on adding users while providing insights into how to best gain a following. Last September, the China-based company changed its focus to “commercialization opportunities” via brand and agency deals.

On Apple’s App Store, Lemon8 is currently ranked in the Top 10 most downloaded apps in the US, receiving over 78,000 downloads this past Saturday alone, marking a 44% higher daily download rate than its average over the past several weeks.

According to Appfigures’ estimates, Lemon8 has received about 16 million global downloads this year, with about half coming from U.S. consumers.

If TikTok is unable to prove that the sell-off bill violates Americans’ free speech rights, and divestiture requirements aren’t viable due to timing and complexity surrounding the app’s algorithm, the federal government will likely ban the app due to concerns surrounding national security.

But before it officially leaves app stores in the country, TikTok users may decide to onboard their followers to Lemon8. If the movement to this newer app is large enough, it could pose the same issue for the federal government.