How Much I Make on TikTok vs Shorts vs Reels (AND WHAT DOES TIKTOK WANT?!)

Summary

The speaker discusses the complexities of using TikTok amidst geopolitical concerns and state bans, highlighting the platform's influence and personal benefits. They compare TikTok to other short-form video platforms like YouTube Shorts and Instagram Reels, detailing monetization strategies and creator incentives. TikTok's push towards social commerce through TikTok Shop is emphasized, as it seeks to capitalize on its 'stickiness' and transition from an advertising to a sales platform, offering commissions to creators and a seamless shopping experience for users.

Takeaways

• 🤔 The speaker is concerned about the potential influence of TikTok, which is owned by a company from a country not always aligned with their own government.
• 📈 TikTok is incentivizing creators to produce longer content (over a minute) through the 'creativity program beta', which offers a high CPM compared to other platforms.
• 🚫 YouTube's Shorts platform aims to reduce time spent on TikTok by limiting video length to under a minute and does not monetize based on Shorts' views.
• 💰 Instagram Reels (Meta's platform) has a monetization system called 'ads on reels' which shares revenue on a less profitable ad unit and lacks transparency in view counts.
• 📊 The speaker makes significantly more from YouTube Shorts than from TikTok or Reels, with a 10 cent CPM on 40 million views and around $45,000 in earnings.
• 🛍️ TikTok is pushing towards social commerce with 'TikTok shop', allowing in-app purchases without leaving the platform, which is a new way to monetize beyond traditional ads.
• 💼 TikTok's shift towards social commerce is a strategic move to capture a portion of the e-commerce market, similar to Amazon, and counter the platform's limitations in traditional advertising.
• 📉 The speaker speculates that TikTok's user experience may be deteriorating as it becomes more focused on monetization, potentially opening opportunities for competitors like YouTube and Instagram.
• 👕 The 'creativity program beta' on TikTok offers a high CPM for longer videos, incentivizing creators to produce content that cannot be repurposed as YouTube Shorts.
• 📱 The speaker discusses the challenges of tracking views and earnings on different platforms, particularly the lack of transparency with Instagram Reels' view counts.
• 🧘 The inclusion of a sponsored message for 'headspace' highlights the speaker's belief in the importance of self-care and mental health amidst the complexities of social media platforms.

Q & A

What is the speaker's concern about TikTok being banned in their state?

The speaker is concerned about the power of social media platforms and the potential geopolitical issues that arise when a platform might be controlled by a government that isn't always on good terms with their own government.

What does the speaker consider the most significant innovation in swipeable video platforms?

The speaker believes the most significant innovation is that viewers do not choose what they watch; instead, they are presented with content, making these platforms swipeable.

What is YouTube Shorts' strategy to compete with TikTok?

YouTube Shorts aims to keep viewers from spending as much time on TikTok by offering videos that are shorter than 1 minute and not allowing videos longer than that to be classified as Shorts.

How does YouTube monetize Shorts?

YouTube monetizes Shorts by sharing revenue from advertisements on Shorts. The revenue is shared between YouTube, record labels, and creators, with the understanding that if more revenue is made, creators will also make more.

What is the speaker's opinion on Meta's approach to monetizing content on Instagram Reels?

The speaker is biased against Meta's approach, believing that Meta does not provide a reliable system for creators to monetize their content and that their monetization policies change constantly.

What is the monetization system currently used by Instagram Reels?

Instagram Reels uses a system called 'Ads on Reels' and 'Ads on Facebook' where revenue is shared on a specific ad unit that covers the bottom 25% of the screen on someone's reel.

What is TikTok's approach to incentivizing creators?

TikTok is incentivizing creators through the 'Creativity Program Beta', which offers a high CPM for content, especially for videos longer than a minute, and encourages the creation of longer content that cannot be repurposed as YouTube Shorts.

What is the CPM range the speaker is making with the TikTok Creativity Program Beta?

The speaker is making between 80 to 990 cents per thousand views with the TikTok Creativity Program Beta, which is significantly higher than what they are used to.

How does TikTok define a 'qualified view'?

A 'qualified view' on TikTok is not entirely clear but it likely requires the viewer to watch a certain percentage of the video (between 25% to 75%) and to be in a market that has good advertising, such as the US.

What is TikTok's strategy shift towards social commerce?

TikTok is pushing towards social commerce by creating a marketplace within the app called 'TikTok Shop', allowing users to make purchases without leaving the app, thus increasing the platform's revenue through sales commissions.

What are the potential concerns with TikTok Shop's approach to sales?

The concerns include the potential for scams or low-quality products being sold, as creators might be incentivized to sell items with high commission rates rather than focusing on product quality.

What is the speaker's view on the future of TikTok compared to YouTube and Instagram?

The speaker believes that TikTok is becoming less cool as it tries to monetize its user base, potentially opening up space for Instagram and YouTube to take some market share away.