Abstract
- Goodbye, TikTok? The U.S. House of Representatives has passed a bill that effectively enforces the ban on TikTok in the United States, the Protecting Americans from Regulatory Applications by Foreign Enemies Act.
- Is it really all about privacy? The reason for this bill is to eliminate the possibility of data privacy and US national security being compromised.
- The US Senate holds the cards. A ban on TikTok seems unlikely to pass the U.S. Senate, but marketers should consider contingency plans for influencers and brand audiences if the platform is considering major changes. .
The U.S. House of Representatives this week passed legislation to protect Americans from regulatory applications by foreign adversaries. The bill effectively enforces a ban on TikTok in the US, leaving marketers pondering their next move.
The prospect of losing access to 1.5 billion monthly active users is no joke, and even if a ban on TikTok seems unlikely to materialize, marketers will continue to rely on the social media platform, its billions. Be prepared to live without thousands of potential customers and thousands of successful brand influencers. Through the U.S. Senate.
Possible TikTok ban: 3 points for marketers
Without further ado, here are three key takeaways and possible action steps for marketers.
Prepare for changes in consumer engagement
Marketers need to anticipate and plan for changes in how younger audiences engage with content. A ban on TikTok could significantly change digital consumption habits, necessitating a shift to alternative platforms where these demographics are likely to migrate.
Rethinking influencer partnerships
TikTok's potential exit could reduce the value and reach of influencers who primarily use the platform. Marketers need to reevaluate their influencer strategies and explore partnerships across a wider range of platforms to maintain influence and engagement.
Diversification of marketing channels
To mitigate the impact of the TikTok ban, marketers need to diversify their social media presence and content distribution strategies. By investing in emerging platforms and growing your presence on established platforms like YouTube, Instagram, and Snapchat, you can protect yourself from future platform-specific disruption.
Related article: Has TikTok just changed the e-commerce game?
What does this TikTok bill say?
The law requires TikTok's parent company, ByteDance, to exit the platform within six months. ByteDance must find a buyer for its app. If ByteDance cannot sell TikTok, the law would force web hosting companies and app stores to remove the app from their app stores and ban it from being accessed through internet portals. This restriction will remain as long as TikTok is effectively owned by a “foreign adversary,” i.e. China.
Although ByteDance is not owned by the Chinese government, U.S. lawmakers have accused the Chinese government of using ByteDance to do a variety of things, including collecting personal data shared by U.S. citizens, publishing pro-Beijing propaganda, and using algorithmic programming. We believe that TikTok data could be accessed for invasive activities. Interfering with the communication of messages for U.S. election purposes. TikTok denied receiving a request for U.S. data.
The bill still needs approval from the U.S. Senate. US President Joe Biden has said in previous reports that he intends to sign the bill once it reaches his desk.
Attempts to ban TikTok are nothing new for the US government
This is not the first time ByteDance has faced a forced sale. In 2020, former President Donald Trump ordered ByteDance to exit TikTok within 90 days. However, the executive order soon faced legal challenges.
President Biden rescinded the TikTok ban and replaced it and two others with an executive order calling for collaborative interagency reviews of the risks foreign-owned applications pose to personal data and national security. .
Last year, the Montana Legislature passed a bill banning TikTok statewide. Many states and the U.S. government had banned TikTok on government-owned devices, but Montana was the first and so far the only state to seek a comprehensive ban that included consumer use. But last November, a federal judge blocked the TikTok ban as “unconstitutional” before it went into effect this year. The legal battle is still ongoing.
Meanwhile, TikTok has taken steps to alleviate political concerns. As reported by NPR, TikTok has launched Project Texas, a large-scale data operations initiative that will manage all user data in the United States on Oracle servers in Austin, Texas. Data is monitored by a third-party auditor in the United States.
Further complicating matters, China's stance poses a headwind to the sale of TikTok. The Chinese government must approve acquisitions of Chinese companies. China has stated that it strongly opposes forced sales.
Related article: What’s next for TikTok?
Adapt your marketing strategy in the wake of the TikTok ban
The sale of TikTok raises questions among marketers about how their marketing strategies should be deployed on the platform. Currently, TikTok has the largest share among the younger generation of consumers, and many brands are developing customer experiences around it.
Executives across industries are imagining the potential disruption a TikTok ban would cause.
Piyush Saggi, Parmonic's co-founder and CEO, said in an email interview that TikTok's ban will affect consumers who use the app casually and its reliance on influencers to connect with those users. He said this will have far-reaching implications for marketers. “Among consumers, the ban on TikTok will do more than just make them wonder what they should do in their free time,” he said. Doctors, lawyers, venture capitalists, and of course teenagers will be affected, and influencers who rely on video for income will be greatly affected. These influencers will suddenly take a hit in their revenue. ”
Saggy felt that the B2B marketing world may not notice TikTok's absence right away. Parmonic's recent study on online video engagement found that “less than 2% of B2B brands are active on TikTok.” Sagi predicts that his current B2B ad spend will change and that YouTube “could see a gradual increase.” Some people have different views on the B2B marketing opportunities on TikTok.
Scott Opiela, Acoustic's chief marketing officer, said the potential ban on TikTok in the U.S. “is an opportunity for brands to reevaluate how they approach customer relationships.” By relying on third-party platforms like TikTok, brands relinquish control over their customer relationships and how customer data is processed. Data breaches can occur, content can be buried by algorithms, and users can shop directly on the platform instead of prioritizing a brand's marketplace. Each of these factors has a significant impact on the brand-consumer relationship. ”
Opiela said social media platforms like TikTok can complement a digital marketing strategy, but owned channels like email, SMS, and mobile push notifications are reliable, controllable, and future-proof.
“As the Big Tech rush continues, brands need to invest in their assets to create consistent customer engagement with a privacy-first mindset,” Opiela said. “The potential ban on TikTok in the US is an opportunity for brands to reevaluate how they approach customer relationships. Authentic, secure connections and respect for consumer privacy are paramount.”
Related article: Marketers brace for fallout as potential US ban on TikTok looms
Future-proof marketing in a post-TikTok world
If ByteDance had to sell TikTok, who would buy it? Few companies could match the billions of dollars it could potentially offer. ByteDance will not underestimate TikTok as it is one of the most popular social media apps in the world.
When President Trump issued his executive order, ByteDance explored several partnerships to create a shared entity to own TikTok in the United States, but no firm agreement was reached.
Big tech companies like Google, Meta, Microsoft and Amazon can afford to make acquisitions, but such acquisitions often raise antitrust concerns. A big part of TikTok's value is its algorithms, and all of the big tech companies mentioned above are likely considering using them in their AI and machine learning services. In doing so, their mere presence can govern the way services are programmatically delivered in a particular market.
Congress and the Biden administration are increasingly aware of the technology industry's potential influence. Mergers that increase the size and influence of large technology companies are not welcome.
An investment group is likely to buy TikTok, similar to Elon Musk's acquisition of Twitter. Mr. Musk spearheaded the acquisition and led other investors in closing financial deals to help fund the acquisition.
One such proposal comes from former Treasury Secretary Steven Mnunchin. Mnuchin encouraged President Trump to issue a 2020 executive order against TikTok. He also said on CNBC that he is considering an investment group to buy TikTok if a law is passed to protect Americans from regulatory applications by foreign adversaries.
Talks about whether a divestment from TikTok will take place in the US are still ongoing, and given recent performance, it may be highly unlikely that a sale will take place.
But this subject is a stark reminder that the value of social media, both commercially and in the social fabric of this country, is not something that will simply go away. Marketers should bet on that complexity and start thinking about how to adjust their campaigns in a world without TikTok.
Featured image: Creative Commons TikTok exhibition stand at Gamescom 2022 in Cologne, Germany (by dronepicr) is licensed under CC Attribution 2.0/Cropped from the original.
