Why A TikTok Ban Will Impact Facebook Ads Forever

CHANGES TO META ADVERTISING

One of the biggest changes in history when it comes to Meta Advertising is on the horizon.

The shift is not to Facebook or Instagram themselves but one of their largest competitors: TikTok.

TikTok is facing a ban.

IS TIKTOK GETTING BANNED

Based on what we’re seeing across the US and UK, it’s looking likely to happen very soon. We’ve seen western countries take this direction and smaller countries like Australia will likely follow suit after they make their big move.

Some countries like India and Nepal have already banned the hugely popular social media platform.

US President Joe Biden has signed into law a bill that requires TikTok’s Chinese owner to sell the social media apps US operations or face a ban, after the Senate passed the legislation.

The bill gives TikTok’s Beijing-based parent, ByteDance, 270 days to sell the apps US operations. If the sale fails to be carried out, TikTok will then face a nation-wide ban in the US app stores and web hosts will block the app from distributing TikTok.

Surprisingly, a lot of the US people are in support of the ban with 2:1 voting in favour of It happening.

THE IMPACT OF A TIKTOK BAN

How would this look if a major social media platform was removed from the mix?

TikTok has a very young audience who are used to consuming short form content. Other platforms have introduced similar things to compete e.g., YouTube Shorts, Instagram and Facebook Reels to replicate TikTok’s style.

If TikTok gets banned, the consumption habits of their audience likely won’t change, they’ll just switch platforms of course – most likely to Instagram and/or YouTube.

If TikTok’s audience does make the jump, what does that mean for online businesses who advertise on Facebook or Instagram?

It means there is massive opportunity particularly for those already using Reels to advertise on Meta.

THE OPPORTUNITY ON META IF A TIKTOK BAN TAKES PLACE

The switch will see a substantial increase in supply, meaning more people to advertise to. This will decrease ad costs momentarily (whilst there is a lag).

These reduced costs won’t last long.

Eventually advertisers from TikTok will find their way over to Instagram and YouTube to access their audience, forcing the price back up.

The good thing is that there will be a lag whilst advertisers are learning the new platform so there is massive opportunity there. Position yourself to take advantage of this huge shift if it does happen.

If you start learning how to run Meta Ads now, you’ll be already ready to go if TikTok does get banned particularly if you ready with the ad placement types that most replicate TikTok: Instagram and Facebook Reels. Short form, engaging content that promotes what you sell will perform best here.

TIKTOK AUDIENCE TO INCREASE LIFESPAN OF INSTAGRAM

Best of all, if a younger audience does move across and start spending more time on Instagram, they’ll likely hang around for years to come, ensuring the longevity of the platform and your ability to sell to them, providing even more reason to learn how to do Facebook Ads.

We are unlikely to see other social media platforms pop up to take TikTok’s place based on past behaviour and trends.

A decade ago, we saw a lot of new platforms show up but in recent years, not many have been able to break into the market dominated by a few big players. This means Meta will be a powerful place to access your dream audience and advertise to them for years to come.

GET YOUR BRAND READY FOR FACEBOOK ADS?

If you aren’t sure if you’re ready for Facebook Ads, we have created a Starter Checklist so you can determine your brand’s readiness before investing a cent. Download your free copy here.

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