The new innovation I decided to write about is the social media app TikTok. I picked this social media app because it is a new app that is incredibly popular and successful.
Innovators:
The first part of the Diffusion Theory is the Innovators. Zhang Yiming is the CEO of a giant tech company called ByteDance, which is the company that created TikTok.
Early Adapters:
The early adapters of TikTok were teenagers, and those who are in the Gen. Z category. This is the apps largest user base, but according to the previously linked source, TikTok's user base is slowly starting to increase in age.
Why did it catch in and spread? What the reason so many people became early adopters?
TikTok was first launched in 2016 as an app that allowed users to make and share short videos. It was originally a Chinese app, but in 2017, it expanded to users outside of China.
An important reason why TikTok caught on was because the app was able to acquire Musical.ly in 2017. Musical.ly was another app that had similar features as TikTok – it allowed users to create and share lip-syncing videos to popular songs. Musical.ly had already been established in the United states, both with a corporate office based in California, and also with a large teenager U.S. user base.
When TikTok bought Musical.ly and overtook the established app, it allowed TikTok to immediately absorb Musical.ly's large U.S. user base, gaining them around 80 million users. This immediate growth caused TikTok to quickly catch on and spread within the Gen. Z population.
In 2019 and 2020, TikTok reached the tipping point in terms of market saturation. Through 2019-2020, TikTok became the most popular app, being downloaded 693 million times in 2019 and 850 million times in 2020.
Why are some people late adopters or not adopters at all? (The negative aspects of TikTok)
One main reason people may be late adapters or not adapters at is because of security concerns. TikTok was created by a Chinese organization, and there have been concerns regarding the information that the app is collecting on users and giving to the Chinese government.
This was concerning enough that the director of the FBI, Christopher Wary said that it was a security risk, as the Chinese government could be collecting inappropriate amounts personal information on users. As a result of these concerns, TikTok made a deal to by partly-owned by a U.S. subsidiary called TikTok Global. The problem is that it is still unclear who actually has control of the data collection of TikTok users.
Another concern is the addicting nature of TikTok's algorithms. TikTok is able to look at what videos a user has watched in the past, as well as what videos similar users have watched, and be able to predict with good accuracy what type of content an individual will enjoy watching. The apps videos are also short, with most videos being about a minute or shorter, which decreases the attention spans of users. Both these factors can cause the social media app to become addicting.
Benefit of TikTok
One of the greatest benefits of the app is the ability for individuals to use it as a tool to create financial success. Users can build their brand through posting videos about their product. TikTok is a unique platform where consumers can communicate directly with business owners and vice versa, creating a place where brand can quickly gain followers and get feedback about their product. TikTok users can also build financial sucess through signing brand deals and making sponsored videos – if they have a large following. This can be a great way for individuals to earn money outside of the typical 9-5 job.
Conclusion
Overall, the decision to use social media is a personal one. There are benefits, such as social media providing and effective and unique way for a business owner to promote their product. However, there are also negative aspects such as privacy violations or addiction to the app. Whether the positives of TikTok outweigh the negatives is a matter of personal opinion that each user must decide for themself.
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