It’s no doubt that the feud of “which app is better – Instagram or TikTok?” will be an age-old question. Perhaps it will even studied in history books for decades to come! Friendships will continue to be torn apart as an Instagram reel fan is sent a link to a TikTok video from their mate. However, is this dispute for good reason? Is one of these platforms, in fact, superior to the other? Like every social network, these apps utilise various marketing strategies and techniques to acquire users. We’re here to explore them!
A Bit of Social Media History First
Since its launch in 2010, Instagram introduced the art of sharing polished and “aesthetic” images online. This added an extra layer of value to user’s content. Previously, users were accustomed to simply sharing their life and events – a practice already made popular from other well-known sights, such as Myspace and Facebook. While social networking sites encouraging an aesthetic flair in your feed was not entirely new (yes, we’re talking to those reminiscing the simpler time of their Tumblr phase), Instagram promoted its own distinct styles and trends, eventually becoming one of the most popular platforms, particularly for users aged 18-34.
Once 2016 hit, we saw social media truly become an integral part of people’s lives. This year was also when TikTok (previously known as Musical.ly) was launched, which soon took over people’s screens and attention spans. It has now become one of the most globally used apps. TikTok is known for comedy and highly curated personal content, with a world of memes and niche humour all found within the app.
Obviously, the answer to the question of which one is a better platform differs for each user, and we’ll always believe both of them are amazing in various ways! We’re going to break down some of their marketing strategies that we’ve noticed in both. This may even lead us to discover which one we’d use as a digital marketing specialist (in theory, of course!).
App Features and Marketing Techniques
TikTok and CapCut
CapCut, which is owned by the same company as TikTok (ByteDance Ltd.), is a downloadable video editing app that also has tons of templates to choose from. It is quickly becoming widely popular, hitting over 490 million iOS and Android active users worldwide. This equates to roughly 25% of TikTok’s user base.
A reason why we believe the editing software has become so popular is because of TikTok’s clever cross promotion marketing techniques. TikTok has a range of templates, filters, effects and more that allows creators to add their own footage and complete all other editing within the app. However, some videos have the option of ‘CapCut | Try this template’ on them, taking them to download the app after clicking on it. We like to call this strategy, “hiding advertising in plain sight”. ByteDance Ltd. is using their audience to unintentionally advertise their app without working with an influencer or making it obvious that they’re trying to encourage downloads.
Instagram Reel Templates and Canva
Instagram users have been attempting to do the same, with more and more sponsored content promoting various reel and story editing apps. Their promotion of them, however, is less effective than CapCut. This is likely because social media users are becoming less responsive to obvious ad posts. Nonetheless, recently Instagram launched their own “template” feature within the app, allowing people to use templates created by other users.
Instagram being an older platform means it was already collaborating with other apps to help users create content before TikTok and CapCut. Canva is a long-time favourite among social media marketers and creators when it comes to creating graphics and videos.
As far as in-app templates go, it’s up to personal taste and brand goals for which ones you prefer. TikTok’s effects and filters tend to be more popular than their video templates, which compliments the app’s light hearted tone. Whereas many Instagram templates and filters prioritise aesthetics and structure – echoing the feel of carousel and static posts. For example, the most popular reel templates fall in the variety of photo dump options. Photo dumps began as a trend in carousel posts before evolving to reels.
Aesthetics
You didn’t think we’d write a blog post about Instagram without digging deeper into aesthetics, did you? It’s undeniable that Instagram has an edge on TikTok when it comes to aesthetics. After all, Instagram is known for its polished content and professional tone, while TikTok leans more towards humorous, personal content. This doesn’t mean that the two don’t have overlaps though!
Many trend forecasters predict that social media is moving further away from content that solely has aesthetic value as we enter 2024. Users are engaging with more authentic, less polished content and Instagram is shifting as creators share more posts like this. Although, we believe that aesthetics will always play a big role within Instagram.
TikTok may be a contributor in the rise of less polished content, it being known as the go-to platform for personal short form social media posts. Creators share personal stories, hot-takes, confessions, day in the life videos and more – often with a preference for raw, face-to-camera execution styles.
Following Trends/Memes
Many social media managers are told that trends tend to start on TikTok before making their way over to Instagram. While many content trends and ideas are shared among apps, they also have some that only live on one. For example, while both have the feature for users to share images, photo dumps in carousels are definitely seen more on Instagram than TikTok. This is the same with most photo trends, as Instagram is one of the top photo sharing apps.
However, since TikTok is one of the top video sharing apps, video trends are constantly changing. What was “in” last week will be considered an antique next week. This certainly maintains that the platform has constant engaging and fresh ideas for users.
This can also cause stress to stay up with ever changing content patterns. Trends moving slower on Instagram could mean there can be less pressure in creating your own posts. This is because there’s less chances for more seasoned trends to be deemed irrelevant in such short time periods.
However, both apps encourage people to use popular audios and topics in different ways, allowing ample opportunities to recycle content and twist trends to suit your niche or brand!
Creator Information
This prompts the discussion of whether social platforms always predict users to navigate them in the ways they do. It’s common for social media platforms to have resources on how to maintain your account and steer the app, beyond simple how-to-use instructions. Instagram’s @creators account regularly posts updates about new trends, editing tutorials, content inspiration and more – all by Instagram. Instagram also provides in-depth analytical information on your reach, engagement, followers and more. So you’ll always have guidance on how to create successful future content that resonates with your audience.
TikTok is less informal and focuses on creating a connection with users when providing content advice. The @TikTok account mostly promotes TikTok-run events, trend reports and updates, with content featuring popular influencers. This adds to the app’s preference for personal content and makes the platform itself come across as down to earth and authentic. People are more likely to engage with content if they see their favourite influencer promoting it, since they already have a level of trust for them. The @TikTok account definitely enforces the app’s reputation for humorous, highly relatable content.
So, Which App Would We Use as a Digital Marketing Specialist?
Both social networking sites have different strengths and weaknesses, making them hard to compare! We love the user experience in both, and how curated our feeds are. Instagram is our best friend when it comes to giving us inspiration for graphics and creative photo ideas. Whereas TikTok is always ahead of the game when it comes to providing trending audios, and it never fails to make us laugh.
So, the short answer is, both! We know we could trust Instagram to give us thorough advice on how to create well-performing, polished content. TikTok, on the other hand, would be the office clown! They’d steer us in the right direction in connecting with our target audience as well as always giving us fresh ideas.
If you’re a social media manager or business owner, we recommend utilising both Instagram and TikTok to help when making content strategies and getting inspiration for your profile. Both apps are so different, and together hold vital information to help you own the social world.
Feeling overwhelming in the ever changing digital marketing space?
We understand! We even sometimes dread the announcement of a new social media platform, and the new set of rules that come with it! However we also thrive in learning new ways of incorporating trends and hot ideas into content, across various social media platforms, for our clients. If you think LBD Digital would be a good fit for your business’s digital marketing needs, please check out our social media services. We also welcome you to book a free 30-minute consultation call to discuss our packages and what we can do for your brand.
