Social Platforms Prepare For US TikTok Ban

If the Supreme Court passes a law to ban TikTok in the United States, 170 million American users and creators may lose access to the app as soon as Sunday.

While advertisers that depend on TikTok's algorithm and its Gen-Z-driven audience will lose a key targeting platform, other social-media platforms are preparing for TikTok's absence in the market.

Several social-media platforms have been gaining popularity in the recent weeks leading up to a potential TikTok ban, including several newer alternatives.

Chinese app RedNote or “Xiaohongshu,” for example, is currently one of the top apps on the Apple App Store -- a short-form video app that presents users with similar content that can be found on TikTok but with a layout more closely resembling Instagram or Pinterest.

Despite TikTok users flocking to the app, it is likely that being a China-owned company, the platform would fall victim to the same national security fears that prompted the TikTok ban.

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According to Mashable, RedNote collects extensive personal data that it can share with third-party service providers and government authorities.

Downloads of Triller -- another creator-focused short-form video app -- have also skyrocketed in recent weeks, jumping more than 100 spots on the Apple App download chart. This platform has gained notoriety for its “Save My TikToks” campaign, which uses AI to help creators migrate their TikTok content directly to their Triller profile, making for a more seamless transition away from TikTok for both the creator, their audience, and advertisers.

In addition, ByteDance has its own TikTok alternative called Lemon8, which hit No. 1 in the Apple App Store's “lifestyle” category earlier this week. The platform, which has been described as a mix between Pinterest and Instagram, showcasing a variety of posts and products highlighted by a range of influencers.

One reason people have been flocking to the app involves ByteDance's recent decision to launch account integration between Lemon8 and TikTok, promising the TikTok community “more access to create, edit, upload, and share photo content” with a larger swath of users. But like RedNote, it may be dangerous for advertisers to invest in a new platform that could result in a ban due to national security risks.

Despite the rise of these newer short-form video apps, it is possible that American TikTok users will migrate instead to the apps they are already familiar with, like YouTube, Meta apps, Snapchat and Substack, which are all working to persuade users and advertisers to reinvest their time and budgets in their apps.

“The impact of a permanent ban will surely be significant, but it's unlikely that relatively unknown entities like RedNote or Lemon8, or even Bluesky or Mastodon, will be the biggest beneficiaries,” Damian Rollison, the director of market insights at AI marketing company SOCi, told MediaPost. “Instead, U.S. users will probably choose apps that will provide the readiest audiences and the most similar user experiences, which would be Instagram and YouTube Shorts.”

According to Rollison, these platforms -- and others like Snapchat that already have a strong foothold in the U.S. market -- will pivot to capture the TikTok user base by introducing more features that continue to mimic the TikTok user experience.

YouTube, for example, has increased its Shorts feature -- originally copied from TikTok’s content model -- from 60 seconds to three minutes for all users, automatically labeling square to vertical videos three minutes or shorter as Shorts.

Substack, the social newsletter app, is also throwing its hat in the ring by expanding its live video capabilities to all creators and offering a $25,000 “TikTok Liberation Prize” to one TikTok creator who convinces their audience to join them on Substack.

However, Meta -- the largest and most powerful social media company in the world -- could also reap the benefits of a TikTok fallout.

According to eMarketer, the tech giant is expected to capture nearly 40% of reallocated U.S. TikTok ad spend following a potential ban. And Meta’s AI-powered Reels feature – also a TikTok clone -- has become the company’s most popular content format, making up 50% of users’ time spent on Instagram, according to CEO Mark Zuckerberg.

As the social media landscape continues to evolve, Scott Sutton, CEO of influencer marketing company Later, told MediaPost that “the proposed TikTok ban would be devastating for many content creators who have built their livelihoods on the platform” -- and that if enacted, to “expect a massive shift as influencers and creators are forced to rebuild their audiences on alternative platforms.”

“It’s crucial for brands to be able to think holistically across all social platforms about how to drive meaningful engagement where their audiences may be migrating,” Sutton added.

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