TikTok on the clock, but the party don't stop
What is going on with social media
Hello!
Thank you for joining me, I’m so glad you’re here.
Our canteen at work sells Co-op branded snacks, which create a very tempting offer when I’m trying to remind myself I have a very balanced lunchbox ready to eat.
I spotted a new offer this week - custard creams. So far, very normal. But their branding described them as dunkable… I’m not sure I would dunk a custard cream, would you? A hobnob of course. A digestive, yes. A rich tea biscuit only if nothing else was available. But a custard cream being a dunking choice? I’m not sure about that.
So I put it to you, readers. Do you dunk your custard creams?
Sunday 19th January is a big day for a couple of reasons. Firstly, it’s the day when the picalilli I made with my friend Nicola in December has rested in the cupboard enough and is ready to crack open. I called it Nic-alilli.
But possibly more important than that (though pickles are pretty important) it’s the day TikTok completes its final scroll in the US and is banned in the country.
TikTok started as a video app where people would contribute to dancing challenges, but then it evolved into people contributing to makeup challenges, discussing books, teaching each other things, sharing knowledge and opinions.
Perhaps quite rare for me as a social media fan, I have a lurker account on there (ie I watch content but don’t post anything of my own…I simply don’t have the energy to make edited videos on there), but regardless of the one-way nature of my usage, it’s so easy to “find my tribe” on there, especially as the algorithm is just so good.
I can only imagine the impact losing this platform will have on young people who have greater needs to learn, to curate their own opinions on things, and to find people who are like themselves. As you know, I am a HUGE fan of TikTok’s ability to share information about jobs and careers, and this is a huge blow for young people who are yet to find their path.
It was amusing to see so many people rush to another Chinese TikTok-style app Red Note [BBC]. While I have not made the jump myself (yet?) there has been some nice content coming from the situation, including shares in Duolingo soaring as gen z rush to learn Mandarin to better navigate the part-translated Chinese app (CNBC), and videos that brought a tear to my eye about how Chinese children are tested on their English skills by writing letters to overseas friends, signing them from “Li Hua”. Users of Red Note are saying that all the “TikTok refugees” are their letters finally being answered, and those overseas friends are coming to reply to them [TikTok]. It made me cry in the same way that Paddington the Movie makes me cry.
But wait a minute, can’t people just use Instagram for the same thing?
While Meta’s Instagram is very good at stealing ideas from other platforms and integrating them into their own, the Reels feature never really took off in the way that TikTok did, and there is a common joke about Reels getting content six months after it went viral on TikTok.
The algorithm on Instagram isn’t as good, and I personally find that it is more likely to latch onto what I am (38 year old woman) and suggest me content based on that (weight loss, motherhood stuff, cooking) as opposed to looking at who I am, as TikTok does.
A ban on TikTok of course helps Meta out, as usage will soar. Interestingly, there is a list of US government officials who had bought shares in Meta (Nasdaq.com) in the last year or so. Founder Mark Zuckerberg was a guest on Joe Rogan’s podcast [Variety.com] this week, saying that companies need to be more “masculine”, as well as a bunch of other nonsense such as why they’re removing fact checking, with what many are calling “pre-divorce vibes” [Newsbreak.com].
On a personal level, I would really love to quit Meta. All of this is very much not my vibes - and I do love a boycott. But again, as a 38 year old woman, my happily single existence is completely dependant on Instagram to connect with my friends (I actually met my two best friends via Instagram), and groups on Facebook help me run my Japanese conversation group in Cambridge, connect with people on my estate, and swap tips with people on the same intermittent fasting regime as me.
Quitting Meta just isn’t on the cards right now.
So how about social media usage for branding?
I feel sorry for all those orgs who have (as I have in the past) fought long and hard to get approval to post on TikTok, only to have a large chunk of the target audience now unable to see the content.
TikTok is a much for employer brand content than Instagram; not only does the algorithm help discoverability, but also people go to Instagram to connect with the familiar, not necessarily to learn and grow as with TikTok.
If you are an international organisation with planned and created video content, then it’ll be fine to post to TikTok still (for your non-US audience) and then the same to Instagram Reels. Remember that LinkedIn also has video content now, too, though I don’t know how many people actually look at those (I certainly don’t).
Any kind of social media work is a risk - we’re building strategy on rented land. As with Twitter when it changed to X, we have to consider if we want to continue to use, for example, Facebook or Instagram following the removal of fact checkers, or if the risk of out content being seen alongside undesirable content is OK.
There is a growing movement, which includes early careers expert Rebecca Fielding [her LinkedIn post on the topic], towards “in real life” - IRL events being prioritised over social campaigns. The fact of the matter is that some kind of social media presence is always going to be important, but in a world where social media and the styles, aesthetics, and looks they promote are becoming more accessible, being at an exclusive event is the true status symbol [TikTok]. Resisting the urge to be online is the new resisting the urge to eat junk food. Offline is the new skinny.
IRL events, especially in early career talent attraction, has a whole host of challenges including ensuring inclusivity (that daytime campus event isn’t accessible to those working every non-class hour to make ends meet). Events are limited in how many people can attend, so making conscious decisions on who has access to this is important to ensure diversity on your programmes.
On the flipside, it can be hard to actually get young people to turn up to things. In a previous role I ran a series of IRL events partnering with Microsoft, and even having their name on the flyer wasn’t enough to get the students to commit to the event.
As the social media landscape changes, we will be re-learning the art of events together, I feel.
Links
Substack
I wanted to shout out about Oh Eight, a young woman who creates gorgeous magazine style editorials. This is absolutely the kind of side project that would grab the attention of a hiring manager related to that field.
Taylor Lorenz is basically winning at the internet right now. From creating the most perfect troll account on Threads, where she asks dumb questions just to rile people up, because that is what the app thrives on, to creating extremely well researched newsletters. She has two great posts on the TikTok ban, this one is explaining the history of the app and why it’s important that it’s going, and this one explains the migration to Red Note better.
In today’s challenging job market, it’s hard to see what kind of situation we might encounter if people continue to struggle to find work. In Japan, there has been a rise in “yami baito” - dark part time work, linked to crime bosses. Here’s a really good explainer, which is an important warning about what may lie ahead for us too if things don’t improve.
Threads
Some solid advice on how to secure an apprenticeship role (but can be applied to most job hunting situations).
TikTok
You know I can’t go without some careers TikTok content. Sorry to my US based readers. Here’s a young MP doing a roundup of 2024, describing what she did in her job each month.
I can’t remember if I posted this last year, but I also found this brilliant young woman who drives lorries and makes TikToks about it.
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To end on something lighter, here’s insight into what many young people will have to endure in interviews to get internships:
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Have a great week ahead!
Until next week,
Charlotte