Tik Tok: everything you need to know about the social network and its videos

You may have heard of it: Tik Tok is a new social network that has rapidly gained popularity since its launch. The app was first launched in China in September 2016 under the name Douyin (抖音), which literally means “vibration”, and was launched internationally a year later under the name Tik Tok. Two versions exist simultaneously, with Douyin internationally divided into China and Tik Tok. Both apps are owned by Chinese publisher ByteDance.

The app has been in the news frequently since 2018, when Tik Tok experienced particularly significant growth. More than 500 million people use the app worldwide, and at the time of writing, it has had over a billion downloads.

How to use Tik Tok?

Using Tik Tok is a breeze. First you need to know two things: It’s entirely possible to consult Tik Tok without creating an account – but you won’t be able to use the “Like” button or the “Dislike” button, follow or unfollow accounts. The principle is very simple: once you enter the application, swipe from bottom to top to see the content below. Swipe from right to left to access its creator’s profile.

To publish new content, just press the button. + down. It is then possible to record a video of up to 60 seconds. Then edit, loop, apply filters, etc. At the top right, the vinyl record-shaped icon lets you add an audio track from a wide selection. Once that’s done, you can give the video a title, add hashtags, and tag your friends.

It’s also possible to make certain videos private, disable comments, and enable/disable Duet/React. The app also lets you prepare draft posts to publish at an ideal time. And automatically share your posts to other social networks, especially Twitter and Instagram.

Tik Tok has entered into a partnership with IMDB that allows it to offer an interesting feature to content creators. They now have the ability to tag movies and series in their videos, which has the advantage of being more informative.

What can we find on Tik Tok?

TikTok’s content is similar in many ways to that found on the recent Vine. Users can post short videos ranging from 3 to 60 seconds in length, and music videos up to 15 seconds long. The Duet/React feature lets you film your reaction to a video, appearing as a small, repositionable window on the screen (React) or next to the original video (Duet).

The contents are very diverse and we can say that teenagers are over-represented (the author of these lines is in his thirties…). Tik Tok has become known for its challenges, which are mostly good-natured, fun and safe. The challenge of men :

But sometimes it can also be used for shocking content or dangerous challenges; this content is very rare though and sometimes a banner is displayed when the video shows dangerous behavior.

The power of Tik Tok is undoubtedly its granular controls when it comes to sharing content and audience. It’s possible to put your account in “private” mode: your content remains accessible on Tik Tok, but you can block certain users from seeing it. You can also choose how other users or your friends can interact with you through Duet and React comments, messages or videos.

The “news feed” that appears when you open the app is managed by artificial intelligence that analyzes your interests and preferences through your interactions with the app. We also recently found job and internship offers for young people on TikTok.

Tik Tok: what are the dangers?

Of course, like every social network, Tik Tok has a dark side. The app is suspected of being used by sexual predators who take advantage of the overrepresentation and sometimes difficulty of sexualizing very young girls. Sometimes with inappropriate contact. If you have children who use Tik Tok, it is recommended that you inform them of the privacy options in the applications.

Truly inappropriate content makes up the minority of posts. But in short, there may be challenges or videos that potentially endanger its authors and those who watch and reproduce it.

Which are the most followed accounts on Tik Tok?

The world’s 5 most followed accounts on Tik Tok are mostly trusted by American influencers. But it’s not just him. So, first place goes to Lisa and Lena, two twin sisters from Stuttgart (Germany). Here are the 5 most followed Tik Tok users:

1. Lisa and Lena (31.5 million followers)
2. Loren Gray (29.4 million followers)
3. Baby Ariel (29.1 million followers)
4. Kristen Hancher (21.4 million followers)
5. Jacob Sartorius (19.9 million followers)

We can mention the accounts of @falcopunch, which are particularly impressive when it comes to video effects, or @mr.transition, which is worth a detour for the same reason.

Tik Tok: reasons for success

In the beginning there was Douyin. The application rapidly reached 100 million users between 2016 and 2017, ranking second among the most downloaded applications in the Chinese App Store and Google Play Store. Initially, Douyin was more or less a copy of Musical.ly: a social network based on video creation, messaging, and live streaming.

Through Musical.ly, users can create 15-second videos and choose different speed options (fast, slow, time out), filters and effects. The app also allowed users to browse the site. deep in thought (the name given to users of the application) is the most popular. It was especially popular among young people, with offices in Shanghai and Santa Monica (California).

As a result, ByteDance acquired Musical.ly for $1 billion in 2017 to accelerate its international expansion. Then, in August 2018, Tik Tok and Musical.ly merged to create a larger community where accounts and data are combined into one platform: Tik Tok. Today, the app is available in 150 countries and 75 languages. The growth in downloads has surpassed Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram on iOS; the app was #1 in downloads at the end of 2018.

Do you use TikTok? Think we can add something to this? Share your feedback in the comments.