TikTok faces an uncertain future in the U.S., with a potential ban coming on January 19th, 2025, unless its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, sells its stake. The U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments about the ban’s constitutionality on January 10th, but has not provided any updates since. Adding to the urgency, on January 9th, TikTok announced that it would begin shutting down if the ban is not overturned or delayed, essentially eliminating the possibility of finding a U.S. buyer. Meanwhile, President-elect Donald Trump requested a postponement to explore “political resolutions” to the ban after his inauguration on January 20th. 

Despite rumors about potential buyers and deadline extensions, neither the Supreme Court nor TikTok has made any official statements regarding the platform’s future.

If the ban is enacted, two immediate scenarios are possible:

• Complete Shutdown: TikTok is completely unavailable to both existing and new users starting January 19th.
• Limited Access: TikTok is removed from app stores and web browsers, but current users can still access the app on their devices.

Immediate Next Steps: Account Management

Do Not Delete Accounts: Keep all TikTok accounts active. Deactivating your account could prevent you from accessing it if the ban is later overturned.

Secure Handles on Other Platforms: Secure your brand’s name and handle on platforms such as YouTube/YouTube Shorts, Pinterest, Snapchat, and Lemon8, and ensure your profiles are fully completed. This will help users easily find and recognize your account on these platforms. Maintaining a presence on multiple channels allows you to continue posting, engaging with your audience, and staying top of mind for users who may migrate from TikTok.

Direct Your Followers to Other Platforms: Create posts to guide your TikTok audience to follow your brand on other platforms leading up to January 19th (and afterward, as existing users may still have access). Use clear and direct calls-to-action (CTAs) such as, “Follow us on (platform) @yourhandle,” to make it easy for your audience to stay connected. 

Resize All Assets: To ensure your videos perform well on other platforms, adjust their size and format to meet each platform’s specific requirements. Pay attention to safe zones to prevent important elements like text or logos from being cut off. Utilize creative spec guides provided by platforms like Meta and Google. Tools like Capcut, OpusClip, and Canva offer AI-powered features that can help you easily resize and format your videos.

Activate Other Social Shops: If you’re on TikTok Shop, set up stores on Instagram, Pinterest, YouTube, and Snapchat (Snap Store is still in beta and may not be available to all brands). These platforms could serve as alternatives to TikTok Shop.

Review Influencer Contracts: Review any active and upcoming influencer contracts to ensure they include posting on other platforms so that partnerships can continue even if TikTok becomes unavailable. Contracts should also specify that creative assets and copy must be designed to work across multiple platforms so that the content seems native to the platform it’s on. 

Immediate Next Steps: Platform Evaluation & Budget Allocation

When determining what platforms to pivot your short-form video strategy to, YouTube Shorts and Instagram Reels are the primary platforms to consider. However, it’s important to remember that there’s no one-size-fits-all solution. The right approach for your brand will depend on several factors, including whether your brand was truly breaking through on TikTok, how much of your audience actively engaged there, and whether your products resonated with TikTok’s users.

While TikTok has been a major player, platforms like YouTube and Instagram, have larger audiences. TikTok’s success lies in its unique content and algorithm, so the key is to apply what worked — like content relatability, video format, and engagement styles — when transitioning to other platforms. 

When deciding where to allocate budget, brands should keep in mind that TikTok’s actual user base is smaller than some might perceive, which can influence how budgets should be allocated. When determining what platform to move to and what budget to allocate to it:

• Review historical performance to determine the platform that delivers the best results for your brand.
• For smaller budgets, focus entirely on the top-performing platform.
• For larger budgets, allocate proportionately across platforms, adjusting as new performance data becomes available.

WITHIN can create a tailored strategy for your brand to optimize budgets and maintain audience engagement across alternative platforms amidst TikTok’s potential ban. Send us an email to learn more.