Expert Insights: How small businesses can adapt to a Tik Tok ban (2024)

TAMPA (BLOOM) – The rise of TikTok has revolutionized the way small businesses connect with their audiences, offering a dynamic platform where creativity meets commerce. With its unique algorithm and vast user base, TikTok has become a powerful tool for small businesses to engage with customers, drive sales, and build brand loyalty. From local boutiques to independent authors, many have found unprecedented success on the platform. However, the potential TikTok ban in the United States has left these businesses grappling with uncertainty and searching for alternative strategies to maintain their growth.

To delve into the implications of this potential ban and explore viable solutions, we spoke with Dave Charest, Director of Small Business Success at Constant Contact. Dave brings a wealth of knowledge and experience in helping businesses navigate the ever-changing social media landscape. In this article, he shares his insights on the impact of the ban, strategies for transitioning audiences to other platforms, and how small businesses can build more resilient social media strategies.

Impact on Small Businesses

How has the TikTok ban impacted small businesses that heavily rely on the platform for customer engagement and sales?

Dave Charest: “It hasn’t had any impact yet, other than those relying on the platform wondering what next steps to take.”

Can you share some examples of businesses that have been significantly affected?

Dave Charest: “Any business that’s been relying on the platform solely without taking measures to move their audience to a channel that they own, such as email or SMS, are going to be most impacted if the ban goes into effect.”

Transition Strategies

What strategies should small businesses employ to transition their audience from TikTok to other social media platforms?

Dave Charest: “Any social media platform presents the same risk. The business does not own the relationship with the customer. The platform does. The strategy should always be to look for ways to move followers to channels that they own, such as email and SMS, so that they have a way to communicate with their audience directly.”

How can businesses retain their customer base during this transition?

Dave Charest: “Businesses should be enticing their audiences to join their email and SMS lists. Consumers will often provide contact information in exchange for a discount, exclusive content, or even just to show their continued support. It’s best to do this now before a ban possibly goes into effect.”

Alternative Platforms

Which social media platforms are best suited for businesses looking to replace TikTok, and why?

Dave Charest: “There are alternatives that have similar functions, such as Instagram, YouTube, or Triller, but ultimately where businesses should turn relies on where the audience they’re trying to reach is going to go.”

Engagement Techniques

What are some effective engagement techniques for businesses to use on other social media platforms?

Dave Charest: “Social media these days seems to lean toward some form of entertainment or edutainment. But each platform has its own strengths and quirks. It’s best to focus on one channel where your audience is already and learn the ins and outs of making the channel work for you (with an eye toward moving people toward your owned channels: email and SMS).”

How can businesses leverage email marketing to maintain customer relationships?

Dave Charest: “Focus on providing information that’s of interest to the audience you serve and do so on a consistent basis. Ultimately, the goal is to keep your business top of mind so that when your subscribers are in the market for what you offer, they’ll think of you first, or if someone asks for a recommendation, they also think of you.”

Long-term Planning

How can small businesses create a more resilient social media strategy that is less dependent on a single platform?

Dave Charest: “It starts with realizing that any social media platform is playing on rented land. You’re at the beck and whim of any algorithm change, outage, or shift in focus. The goal should always be to move people closer to your business by getting people to opt in to those owned channels like email and SMS. If a business does this, they always have a way to contact their customers directly.”

What role does content diversification play in long-term social media success?

Dave Charest: “It allows you not to rely on any one platform too much. But it’s a diversification that needs to happen over time. Many small businesses don’t have the time or resources to feed the social channels the regular content needed to be successful. That’s why I recommend choosing one that the people you’re trying to reach use, understanding how to make it work for your business before moving on to the next. Otherwise, you end up just spinning your wheels with little to show for it.”

Expert Advice

What is your top advice for small businesses facing uncertainty due to changes in the social media landscape?

Dave Charest: “The social landscape is changing all the time, and it’s doing so to the platforms’ benefit, not yours. Use the social sites, but make sure you’ve got a plan to build your owned audience via email and SMS so you aren’t impacted as heavily by the changes.”

How can businesses measure the effectiveness of their new strategies post-TikTok?

Dave Charest: “Set business goals and allow those goals to drive the strategy for how you’ll use the tools. Ultimately, you need to go beyond followers, likes, comments, opens, and clicks and get to the business results you’re hoping to drive. It’s a constant state for reviewing what you’re doing, making a plan, executing it, and making adjustments.”

The potential TikTok ban serves as a wake-up call for small businesses to diversify their social media strategies and focus on building direct relationships with their customers through owned channels like email and SMS. By doing so, they can navigate the uncertainties of the social media landscape and ensure long-term success.

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