UNAIR NEWS – TikTok is now not just an entertainment platform, but it has become a lifestyle along with its many users. People began to capture every moment of everyday life through TikTok with a duration of 15 seconds and diverse musical effects. Currently, the application is starting to be used by various celebrities, doctors, psychologists, and several well-known startup companies who compete to present creative content.
Universitas Airlangga media observer Irfan Wahyudi, S. Sos, M.Comms, PhD., spoke about the phenomenon of TikTok in various circles. He explained that TikTok is one of the social media that has indeed become a trend this year.
“The use of social media is very dynamic, they are looking for an online platform that suits their characteristics, TikTok allows users to make short clips (short videos), and people demanded to be as creative as possible,” he explained.
Irfan said that TikTok phenomenon is not new, because several other social media like Instagram, Snapchat, and Facebook also present the same features.
Not only in Indonesia, but TikTok has also become a popular application in various parts of the world, as reported by The Guardian, almost half of millennial generation and generation Z – with age 13-38 years in the United States wants to become influencers, one of them on TikTok.
“At the beginning of the launch, TikTok application was accused of being an act of Chinese espionage among the people of the United States, meaning that by using the application, we shared personal data with Chinese Government. However, it’s different from Instagram or Facebook. It was a conspiracy theory and now TikTok remains a popular application, “added the lecturer.
Besides, people began to see TikTok as a new business field, mainly influencers who are known as TikTok celebrities collaborate to promote various brands in their TikTok videos.
Irfan believes that TikTok can also be used to form personal branding. Influencers build a persona to get as many TikTok followers as possible, which is intended to open up greater paid advertisement opportunities.
“Seeing this TikTok phenomenon going forward, it might not last long if they only offer that feature. However, seeing the rapid development of the application with the growth of users, this application may grow to be a very large platform such as Instagram and Facebook, “concluded Ifan. (*)
Author: Rissa Ayu F
Editor: Khefti Al Mawalia
