Launched in September 2016 by the Chinese Internet company Bytedance, TikTok has swiftly risen as a social platform for creating and sharing short videos. This app empowers users to craft their own 3-15 second music videos anytime, anywhere. In just three years, TikTok has amassed an impressive 500 million monthly active users, solidifying its status as one of the world’s leading short video platforms. TikTok’s meteoric ascent is not only attributed to its role as a creative outlet but also its ability to exude charm and positivity, providing an escape from the demands of our modern world. Let’s explore how this dynamic and emerging brand ascended to fame through the lens of the 4 Facets of Brand Positioning.

Brand Truth: A Friendly Community of Content Creators

TikTok is a community where content creators, professional and amateur alike, gather to create interesting content. Whether it is lip-syncing to pop songs, or seeing a pair of old couple dancing with background music, TikTok is indiscriminate in what type of content can be shared as long as it is creative and fun. In this community, everyone who posts videos become his or her own brand spokesperson, with or without celebrity status.

Brand Vision: An Inclusive Outlet for Creative Expression

For all the conclusions about the negative impact of technology that people have so quickly jumped on, TikTok is a reminder of the positive impact a digital and interconnected world can bring. Designed for the new generation of digital content creators, TikTok aims to provide a platform where everyone can find his or her unique voice and showcase their creative clout. With its democratic content sharing community and accessible platform, anyone can gain a spotlight and hit the headlines in any given moment. With the expansive library of user-generated content concentrated on people dancing and singing, and most importantly, having fun, TikTok also spreads the message of general positivity out to the world with irresistible charm. 

Brand Universe: The Neon-Lit Dance Floor

Before TikTok, creating original content and sharing them on a platform with like-minded creators is rare, if not non-existent. With ByteDance’s introduction of TikTok, the new social media platform became the new cultural benchmark for content sharing and creation.

Powered by industry-leading AI and AR technology as well as the universal rule of creating content revolving music as the central element of the video, any place becomes one’s dance floor, stage and recording studio. From choosing a background track, to applying various visual effects including body-shaking, shivering, hair dying as well as a wide range of 3D stickers and props, everyone is able to produce creative music videos and fulfill their dream of becoming a cool dancer, singer, comedian and internet celebrity.

Brand Personality: The Endlessly Upbeat and Creative Friend

Everyone has that one friend who is deemed as the creative of the group. No matter the circumstances, they always seem to carry a carefree attitude in the way their treat their creative work, and by extension, their lives. This combination of positivity and creativity is what makes their personality unique and so much fun to be around. With TikTok, the platform is that friend who is endlessly upbeat and offers temporarily relief from the normal stress of daily life. 

Conclusion: The Vibrancy of the Digital Age

In the digital age, the role of social media platform was always meant to connect people and to create communities and networks of individuals around a common cause or interest. As a video-sharing platform, it doesn’t only provide an outlet for people to creatively express themselves, but is also a pleasant reminder of the original intent of social media platforms. With TikTok’s digital technology, it just makes the process a whole lot more fun, vibrant and colorful. 

TEAM

Labbrand Naming Team,
Labbrand, Shanghai