TikTok: The emergence of a new search engine

TikTok is one of the fastest growing social media platforms in the world, allowing its users to make short videos on a topic, connect with others and find their audience.

The key to TikTok’s success is how well it matches content to your likes and dislikes. The more you use TikTok, the better it gets at showing you the content you like.

This is because of TikTok’s special computer learning (algorithm). It learns your preferences and uses this to deliver a string of content built specifically for you, more accurately than other platforms such as Instagram or Facebook.

If you’re curious about something, chances are someone’s already made a video about it. This is super helpful, especially for specific topics like law. Instead of reading formal articles, you might find videos from people in the same field.

TikTok’s success in finding the right content for its user has led to the platform being used more and more to search for new content.

PT 1 Why is TikTok becoming popular as a search engine?

TikTok’s increased use as a as a search engine reflects how people are finding information online, with TikTok and ChatGPT both overtaking Yahoo and Facebook as a helpful source of information in a recent Adobe survey.

The right information quickly

The way people use the internet is changing. According to Golden Steps, our attention span has dropped from 12 seconds to just 8.25 seconds in the last 20 years, lining up with the rise of smart phones.

Apps are fighting hard to keep us hooked. They want to grab our attention fast and keep us glued to their content. That’s why many of us prefer quick, visual content like short videos over longer articles. TikTok’s search feature is perfect for this. It uses a smart system to give you exactly what you’re looking for, fast.

Big search engines like Google are catching up. They’re starting to include TikTok results in their searches. But whether this will make us stick with Google or head straight to TikTok remains to be seen.

Opportunities for Companies

In the legal world, TikTok is a fresh and exciting way for lawyers to connect with people in a whole new way. They can use short videos to explain tricky legal information in a simple and interesting way. This makes the law easier to understand, especially for younger users who’ve grown up with the internet.

Lawyers on TikTok can share helpful tips for dealing with common legal problems or talk about new trends in law. It’s a cool way for them to show off what they know and build trust with lots of different people.

Plus, because TikTok is so popular, legal videos can go viral and reach millions of people all over the world. This helps lawyers spread their message way further than just using traditional methods.

As TikTok becomes more legitimate as a search tool, these legal experts and law firms can become top sources for people looking for the latest legal info online.

Conclusion

While TikTok offers new opportunities for lawyers, there are also some dangers because of how it works and who uses it.

TikTok likes short and fun content, which might encourage people to make legal things sound simpler or more exciting than they really are. This could spread false information. Plus, TikTok’s system tailors what you see based on what you like, which can make it harder to check if something’s true or not.

Also, TikTok’s laid-back presentation makes it tough for users to tell if a legal tip is legitimate or just someone’s opinion. That’s why legal firms need to be careful about what they share on TikTok, making sure it’s accurate, helpful, and encouraging people to think for themselves.

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Blume is committed to helping law firms plan attract the right clients through a combination of digital marketing, tech and data. We monitor trends closely, making sure our knowledge articles contain all the information needed to keep you up to date with these developments, as they happen.