As marketers, we use social media to spread awareness, humanize our brands, boost sales, and so much more. Instagram and TikTok are two social networks Avocet includes in the toolbox we use to help our clients grow their brands. But they are very different platforms and it’s important to know which is the right one to use to help you achieve your brand’s goals.
Instagram is a photo and video sharing social platform primarily used as an app on mobile devices to engage with brands and connect with friends. Its “tone” is fun and light hearted but also relatable to a broad spectrum of users. Instagram is owned by Facebook, making it easy to integrate the two. After ten years, Instagram has a robust following and has been downloaded on almost one billion devices. It also has a ton of advertising tools that can help you target your audiences.
Pros:
- Instagram Stories are a fantastic way to bring your brand to the top of the page. These video posts disappear in 24 hours but bring a currency and vibrancy to your brand.
- Instagram has a larger audience than TikTok.
- If you are looking to add influencer marketing to your strategy, Instagram is the way to go.
- Instagram has an in-app shopping feature, “Checkout,” and it’s widely used “Instagram Shopping” add-on allows companies to tag products and drive users to a product link on their website.
- Posting photos and videos is quick and easy and doesn’t take a lot of time.
- Instagram advertising offers more options.
- You can schedule content in advance.
Cons:
- Has a somewhat limited audience; most users are between the ages of 18-34.
- Because there are 25 million business on Instagram, it can be hard for your brand to break through the clutter.
- Not a good tool when you want the writing to do the talking; images and video perform much better on Instagram.
- There is no easy way to link your website to your posts on Instagram.
TikTok
TikTok is a video-only sharing app and is one of the newest and trendiest social platforms right now. With just four years under its belt, it is currently the sixth largest social platform. It is a fantastic tool for a brand that want to show off its fun and creative side. Its “tone” is hip and trendy and youthful. Some example of videos (which have to be under 60 seconds in length) that perform well on TikTok are dance routines, behind-the-scenes videos, and clips centered around the platform’s now-popular hashtag challenges.
Pros:
- TikTok was the number one downloaded app of 2020.
- TikTok may have fewer users than Instagram, but TikTok continues to grow users at a higher rate. In 2019 TikTok grew by 49%, whereas Instagram downloads only increased by 28%.
- TikTok has a feature similar to Instagram’s “Checkout,” where users can complete a purchase in-app through a retail partner. TikTok’s Sponsored Hashtag Challenge Plus allows companies to link products from their website through a sponsored hashtag campaign.
- TikTok advertising costs are generally lower than Instagram.
- TikTok has a younger demographic, with the 13-24-year-old segments representing 69% of the app’s user base.
- Videos audio play, so it is easier for brands to get seen when users are scrolling through content.
Cons:
- TikTok’s younger demographic might not fit your brand.
- Hard to driver traffic to your web page because you cannot add links to posts.
- With TikTok being one of the newer social platforms, long-term analytics aren’t yet available.
- TikTok only stores analytics for 28 days, so to keep track, you will have to manually keep a spreadsheet.
- Unlike many other social platforms, you cannot schedule content out, meaning when you want to post a new video, you will have to manually upload it when you want it to go out.
- With TikTok being so new, no one knows if it will stick around for the long haul; only time will tell.
Making a Decision
Both Instagram and TikTok are powerful marketing tools. To help you decide, here are some questions to ask yourself when picking the right platform for your brand.
- What is your demographic?
- If you want to reach a younger demographic TikTok might be the right choice for you.
- How do you plan to track and optimize your content/ads?
- If you are looking for more data to track and optimize, Instagram might be the best option for your business goals.
- Are you looking for a social network that is trendy or something that is proven?
- TikTok is new and super hip, fun, and trendy. If that matches your goals…and your brand’s essence…TikTok might be the perfect fit. On the other hand, Instagram is proven, is a bit broader in reach, and has been around longer.
- How will you upload content?
- Instagram can be scheduled through Facebook, making it easy to bulk upload; whereas TikTok users have to go in and post their videos at the time they would like them to go out.
- What kind of time do you have set aside to upload and make content?
- Video content takes more time to make. If you are short on time, Instagram might be the better path to take because you can use both video and
- What type of content do you want to push out: videos, photos, or both?
- If you only want to post videos, TikTok might be the better option. However, if you want to post both videos and photos, Instagram is the way to go.
After answering these questions, we hope you find the best fit for your business, and if you need help managing, writing content for, or advertising on Instagram or TikTok, call Avocet’s social and influencer team today!
