Last Updated on April 21, 2024 by Callum Morris
If you’re under 70 years of age, the chances are that you have heard of a mobile app called TikTok.
And, if you’re a digital marketer, or in particular a search engine marketer, you are not only going to know what TikTok is, but you’re going to NEED to keep up to date with it.
With now way over 1 billion users, the app is growing like nothing we’ve seen before (okay, there are flashbacks to Facebook) and the content that churns the platform has transformed from teenagers dancing to daily vlogs and more.
Now, there are two questions to unpack here:
Is TikTok a search engine?
Will TikTok replace Google as the number one search engine?
So, let’s answer number one…
Yes, TikTok has become a search engine rival to Google
There are no doubts about this.
TikTok has become a powerhouse of a search engine, with its users using it — intentionally and unintentionally – as a decision maker in their consumer habits.
Therefore, brands and marketers — and importantly SEOs — should absolutely recognise and plan for this, immediately.
The key thing to note, though, is that of course TikTok is a search engine exclusively for its internal creator content.
So, ultimately…
No, TikTok will not replace Google
This is my opinion, of course. But, personally, I just don’t see it happening.
Largely down to the last fact I stated reminding you that yes, it’s a search engine and a hugely significant one at that, but it’s ONLY a search engine for internal creator content.
Therefore, unless something tectonic changes in regards to how TikTok functions, Google will still monopolise the search engine land.
Why you still need TikTok for SEO
There are over 31 million pages built programmatically around topics, hashtags, and sounds that are indexed from the tiktok.com domain.
These pages are being pushed to users in SERPs instead of websites to answer user’s queries due to TikTok’s authority and fact that, the TikTok content in question is answering the query the best.
Ultimately, TikTok has to be a part of your SEO strategy if your goal is to take up as much Google search engine result page real estate as possible (hint: it should be).
Do you feel as if your brand isn’t as relevant as the competitors in your market? Get in touch with the Eighteen team to learn more by filling out this form.
