TikTok is a short-form video platform that is mainly music based. On the other hand, Instagram is a not a music based platform. It is a photo-sharing social networking platform which offers different forms of content creation such as photo posts, video posts, IGTV (over one minute videos), Instagram Live, carousel posts, stories and the newest form >> Reels. Reels first seemed to be used as a discovery tool to be more appealing to their users and to lure creators and viewers over to Instagram instead, but it has come a long way and definitely on the rise!

While we’ve created both Instagram Reels and TikTok for some of our clients, we can say that it’s not a one-size-fits-all answer, as it largely depends what you’re offering and who your target audience is.

The demographics of the two platforms vary slightly, with TikTok users tending to be of a younger age group. According to Statista, as of January 2021, over a third of Instagram users were between the ages of 25 and 34, with the second largest (22.8%) being between 18 and 24 years of age. Additionally, over half of the audience on Instagram is female. With TikTok, the gender statistics is quite balanced. Digital Report stated that TikTok’s users are 51% male and 49% female. TikTok has 60% of users aged between 16 and 24 years old and 26% are between 25 and 44 years old. 

Another thing to consider: Instagram is networked based while TikTok is content-oriented. This means that Instagram users will mostly see content posted by their family, friends and anyone relatively connected to people they know; while with TikTok, users will see a lot of varied content from people they don’t necessarily know. 

On TikTok, a user’s “For You” page is based on their interests, current location and region. It contains similar videos. Hence, if you find that your industry is all over TikTok, then it may be worth jumping on the bandwagon as your content may appear on a likely interested user’s “For You” page…but keep in mind, you need to make your videos either one or a mix of the following: catchy, funny, entertaining, surprising, informative (but short, simple and un-boring!). Don’t just post videos for the sake of it. 

If you’re going to simple post introductory or explanation videos on TikTok and Reels, they need to be edited so that they’re very short, sharp, easy to understand and straight to the point without waffling on. If you don’t capture people’s attention on TikTok/Reels in less than 5 seconds, they’ll be swiping up for the next post.

If you find that short videos work wonders for your business’s marketing, and you have a suitable demographic for TikTok and Instagram, AND you’re keen on creating ENTERTAINING content, then why not try both?! But don’t lose focus in your marketing by dabbling too much! Whichever platform yields the best results is the one you should probably shift more of your focus towards.

QUICK TIP:

We like to repurpose content for our clients. For example, we prefer to create and edit videos within a third party app, such as CapCut (great app by the way). We choose the 9:16 format (suitable for both TikTok and Reels) and download the video then upload it separately to each platform. While some users simply make TikToks and then save the video, then upload to Reels, we don’t encourage this as Instagram has clearly stated as part of best practice, it does not promote Reels uploaded with watermarks 😬 . So if you’re going to use both platforms, keep it clean!

So with keeping the above statistics in mind as well as understanding your target audience, you should look where you want to focus your content. BUT, remember: don’t look at it like a blanket rule, as both platforms can be fantastic for marketing your business and you have to test it out to see which fits best.

If you need someone to have a glance at your social media for some free quick tips and advice, don’t hesitate to reach out to us! Happy TikTokking and Reeling!