TikTok has become a go-to app for some young users on the web, especially if they want to search for interesting videos and updated trends.
However, the video sharing platform is more than that: it’s slowly competing with Google in search results, and it’s alarming news for social media companies.
TikTok becomes a threat to Google
(Photo: Solen Feyissa from Unsplash)
Should Google be concerned about TikTok? This is why the tech giant is concerned.
If we are curious about something, the tendency is to surf in the browser and use Google Search. However, times have changed and that is no longer the case, especially for young users.
TechCrunch says Google’s internal data shows that about 40% of Gen Z users have a new preference when searching for things online. It is not an official search engine but a popular app in the form of TikTok.
As of now, it’s no wonder why TikTok outranks other apps when it comes to popularity and usage. It is easy to use and accessible to everyone.
While it’s good to know it’s reached more audiences, it’s bad news for Google. For discovery purposes, teens are gradually shifting their preferences to a more convenient app like TikTok, even if it wasn’t made to generate search results.
Indeed, this massive shift in user preferences is an alarming trend for Google and other companies. For Prabhakar Raghavan, the Senior VP of Google’s Knowledge and Information, the questions the new internet users ask have become “completely different” from the usual stuff.
Instead of typing a keyword in the search bar, the young users just scroll until they come across an interesting video on the platform.
Related article: Tiktok dominates in tech revenue, digital ad giants battle to compete
TikTok harms Google’s search engine
This trend is not only affecting the minds of young users; it also harms Google’s search engine. This could indicate that many people now rely on TikTok as a means of online discovery.
This also means that all the things Google has done over the years, from creating search options to organizing results, will only be in vain.
At the time of writing, the company is now evaluating how to fix this issue. To boost its search engine, Google plans to combine both texts and images into one through AR glasses. This could be the start of a huge change they are hoping for.
Perhaps all Google can do at this point is to continue to compete with other social media companies. Earlier, it said it was looking for search deals for TikTok and Instagram clips.
For example, if you type a keyword with ‘TikTok on it, you’ll notice that your search results don’t lead you to the webpage. Instead, you’ll see the results arranged in rows first.
Google will treat TikTok as a threat as long as many new users adhere to the platform regarding search purposes. As part of another strategy to facilitate this, the tech titan wants to use AI to better understand the videos posted. This means supporting documents can follow for viewers to see.
If the trend continues in TikTok’s favor over the next two years, there’s a possibility it will surpass YouTube in terms of ad revenue as well, Business Insider reports.
Also read: Viral TikTok Trend: How ‘Random Acts of Kindness’ Clips Are Evolving into ‘Humanitarian Dramas’
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Written by Joseph Henry
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