Everyone wants to be TikTok, but what can we expect from TikTok in the future?
Posted: Wed Jan 22, 2025 7:22 am
If you’re a marketer, I’m sure you’ve heard a lot about how every social media platform is copying TikTok’s features lately, and how it seems like every tech company needs to have some sort of TikTok-style content.
Instagram, for example, is increasingly prioritizing the video format with Reels, why choose our service very similar to TikTok's feed. YouTube didn't want to be left behind and also launched YouTube Shorts , with the aim of helping creators grow their audience with short videos.
With these (and many other) examples, we can see that many apps are becoming “TikTokified,” but what about the other side? What is TikTok doing to attract more users, grow its platform, and position itself in the market? When we look from TikTok’s perspective, it seems that it wants to be much more than just an app for dancing, making short videos, and having fun.
Increasingly, the platform is investing in similar features as other companies and competitors, in order to conquer even more markets, and it seems we can expect a slightly different future for the platform.
What does the future of TikTok look like?
One of the advantages of being known “only” as the dance video platform is that it opens up a range of opportunities for TikTok to explore. On top of that, TikTok has already generated enough data on user behavior to help them identify these opportunities.
But based on his recent moves, what can we expect in the future?
1. Search
The first movement we can see is related to search engines. According to Google , almost 40% of Gen Z prefer to search on TikTok and Instagram over Google Search and Maps. This means that young people use TikTok to find places to eat, for example, instead of Google.
Since the search function is already a reality for TikTok users, it makes perfect sense for the platform to take special care with features that allow users to search for whatever they want. Therefore, the platform is already testing a new feature to identify keywords in comments and link them to search results.
2. E-commerce
This may sound a bit far from the dance tutorials and short videos we’re used to, but TikTok is reportedly planning to build its own product fulfillment centers in the US , much like Amazon’s supply chain system. If that actually happens, we could see TikTok become a key player in the e-commerce space.
The next steps towards this achievement are still unclear, but the company is already looking for someone to take this project off the ground. Recently, in a job listing on TikTok's LinkedIn, they wrote about their mission to help sellers improve their operational capacity and efficiency, provide buyers with a satisfying shopping experience, and ensure rapid and sustainable growth of TikTok Shop.
3. Music
TikTok is known for its viral trends , mostly related to music. Not coincidentally, today 63% of users discover new music on TikTok before any other platform. As a result, we can already see the company taking some steps towards becoming a platform for hosting music as well.
In Brazil, India and Indonesia, TikTok users can rely on Resso , the growing streaming site launched by TikTok’s parent company. Additionally, TikTok is in talks with record labels to expand its presence in the music streaming industry on a global scale.
4. A little inspiration from other social networks
If everyone wants some TikTok-style content, TikTok is also taking inspiration from other social media platforms – the golden oldie “two-way street.”
For example, TikTok is copying Instagram with “Photo Mode ,” a feature that allows users to share multiple still photos, with or without music, in one post, along with captions of up to 2,200 characters, once limited to 300 characters.
Speaking of inspiration, TikTok recently launched a new feature called TikTok Now , which aims to promote content in real-time. With this new launch, users are given daily prompts to share content using both the front and rear cameras. Does this sound familiar? If you thought of BeReal , you guessed right! The new app has also been a recent source of inspiration for TikTok.
With all these moves, one thing is becoming clear to us: all social media apps are starting to look the same. Not just in design, but also in functionality. But is it worth it for TikTok to start looking exactly like Instagram, once the TikTok format conquered so many hearts? Won’t it lose its essence that way? Or is it really a smart and strategic decision to have more and more of everything on one platform, to entertain its users in every possible way?
Honestly, we don't have the answer right now. It feels like a fight of giants, and we're still on the audience side, watching every move. But I can't deny that I'm excited about the possibilities for the future!
Do you want to stay up to date with the best Marketing practices? I suggest you subscribe to The Beat , Rock Content's interactive newsletter. There you will find all the trends that matter in the digital Marketing landscape. See you there!
Instagram, for example, is increasingly prioritizing the video format with Reels, why choose our service very similar to TikTok's feed. YouTube didn't want to be left behind and also launched YouTube Shorts , with the aim of helping creators grow their audience with short videos.
With these (and many other) examples, we can see that many apps are becoming “TikTokified,” but what about the other side? What is TikTok doing to attract more users, grow its platform, and position itself in the market? When we look from TikTok’s perspective, it seems that it wants to be much more than just an app for dancing, making short videos, and having fun.
Increasingly, the platform is investing in similar features as other companies and competitors, in order to conquer even more markets, and it seems we can expect a slightly different future for the platform.
What does the future of TikTok look like?
One of the advantages of being known “only” as the dance video platform is that it opens up a range of opportunities for TikTok to explore. On top of that, TikTok has already generated enough data on user behavior to help them identify these opportunities.
But based on his recent moves, what can we expect in the future?
1. Search
The first movement we can see is related to search engines. According to Google , almost 40% of Gen Z prefer to search on TikTok and Instagram over Google Search and Maps. This means that young people use TikTok to find places to eat, for example, instead of Google.
Since the search function is already a reality for TikTok users, it makes perfect sense for the platform to take special care with features that allow users to search for whatever they want. Therefore, the platform is already testing a new feature to identify keywords in comments and link them to search results.
2. E-commerce
This may sound a bit far from the dance tutorials and short videos we’re used to, but TikTok is reportedly planning to build its own product fulfillment centers in the US , much like Amazon’s supply chain system. If that actually happens, we could see TikTok become a key player in the e-commerce space.
The next steps towards this achievement are still unclear, but the company is already looking for someone to take this project off the ground. Recently, in a job listing on TikTok's LinkedIn, they wrote about their mission to help sellers improve their operational capacity and efficiency, provide buyers with a satisfying shopping experience, and ensure rapid and sustainable growth of TikTok Shop.
3. Music
TikTok is known for its viral trends , mostly related to music. Not coincidentally, today 63% of users discover new music on TikTok before any other platform. As a result, we can already see the company taking some steps towards becoming a platform for hosting music as well.
In Brazil, India and Indonesia, TikTok users can rely on Resso , the growing streaming site launched by TikTok’s parent company. Additionally, TikTok is in talks with record labels to expand its presence in the music streaming industry on a global scale.
4. A little inspiration from other social networks
If everyone wants some TikTok-style content, TikTok is also taking inspiration from other social media platforms – the golden oldie “two-way street.”
For example, TikTok is copying Instagram with “Photo Mode ,” a feature that allows users to share multiple still photos, with or without music, in one post, along with captions of up to 2,200 characters, once limited to 300 characters.
Speaking of inspiration, TikTok recently launched a new feature called TikTok Now , which aims to promote content in real-time. With this new launch, users are given daily prompts to share content using both the front and rear cameras. Does this sound familiar? If you thought of BeReal , you guessed right! The new app has also been a recent source of inspiration for TikTok.
With all these moves, one thing is becoming clear to us: all social media apps are starting to look the same. Not just in design, but also in functionality. But is it worth it for TikTok to start looking exactly like Instagram, once the TikTok format conquered so many hearts? Won’t it lose its essence that way? Or is it really a smart and strategic decision to have more and more of everything on one platform, to entertain its users in every possible way?
Honestly, we don't have the answer right now. It feels like a fight of giants, and we're still on the audience side, watching every move. But I can't deny that I'm excited about the possibilities for the future!
Do you want to stay up to date with the best Marketing practices? I suggest you subscribe to The Beat , Rock Content's interactive newsletter. There you will find all the trends that matter in the digital Marketing landscape. See you there!