BOSTON – Since TikTok Shop launched last year, users have been buying products directly through the app, and for small businesses across the country, including a Milford mom who now employs dozens of other moms, that’s hundreds. means million dollars. The question is, what will happen to them if TikTok is actually banned?
president biden signed the bill That could mean the end of TikTok in the US. Congress has given the company 12 months to find a U.S. buyer or face a sales ban in the country, especially since the launch of TikTok Shop, which has seen an explosion in sales on the platform. This means significant implications for business owners who have been experiencing growth.
Information and consumerism ecosystem
Whatever you thought TikTok was just a silly dance or a funny video, it’s now much more than that. This algorithm sends users a continuous feed of entertainment, news, and yes, big business. It has become a whole ecosystem of information and consumerism.
Michelle Silva of Milford owns Kali Rose Boutique, named after her daughter. “I don’t think people really understand. It may be owned by China, but the number of people in the United States that will be affected by this… it’s… right now, almost every small business is I’m in the TikTok shop,” Silva said.
Silva has built a hugely successful business selling clothing in a wide range of sizes to women from sizes 0 to 24x, and her TikTok shop has seen her sales skyrocket.
“Honestly, it was a blessing,” Silva said.
Sales skyrocketed overnight
From a new, large warehouse in Woonsocket, Rhode Island, just over the Massachusetts border, she ships jeans, tops, dresses, and bralettes to customers looking for her style within two days of ordering.
“Bralettes have been trending on TikTok many times,” she said. “I mean really amazing.”
In fact, in five years, Silva’s business has grown from a garage in Milford to a storefront to a small warehouse to a new 30,000-square-foot facility in Woonsocket.
“We have grown significantly from 10 to over 40 employees,” she said. “We have daytime staff here, we have night staff here, we have mom hours here…we also have tens of thousands of affiliates who share our products.”
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Thanks to TikTok Shop, her business jumped from 400 to 5,000 orders per day overnight. That’s real money.
What went through her mind when she first heard the phrase “TikTok banned”?
“This is very nerve-wracking, not just for me, but it’s going to have a negative impact not only on me, but on my family and all of my employees who are treated like family,” Silva said. Ta.
She fears she will be forced to lay off her employees. “Oh, I would…absolutely.”
“For governments to move in this direction requires a very cautious approach,” warns Peter Tolan of cybersecurity firm Infersight.
Tran added that small business TikTokers always need to diversify. “You don’t want to get so immersed in one platform that you can’t get out of it or pivot your business if something happens,” Tran said.
But now, having a presence on TikTok is essential for your business.
“What I’m concerned about is how big a goal it becomes,” Tran said. “Because, naturally, these kinds of platforms will get bigger and their capabilities will expand, so small businesses, and even large businesses, will need these platforms to survive and compete effectively. You have to make your presence felt at the top.”
Why is TikTok so addictive and successful?
Tran says this fits perfectly into what psychologist Abraham Maslow called our “hierarchy of needs,” and TikTok ticks all the boxes.
People with smartphones clearly have their basic needs met, and the dopamine released with each new video on an app allows content creators to convey a sense of belonging, even love, to their community, and to This leads to self-esteem and ultimately self-actualization.
Tran says the algorithm is highly effective. “TikTok has done an incredible job leveraging artificial intelligence,” Tran said.
Influencers who are “famous on TikTok”
Next is “influencer”.
Consider what happened nearly 100 years ago in an iconic scene from the 1934 film “It Happened One Night.”
When crush Clark Gable takes off his shirt and reveals his chest, boom! Sales of men’s underwear have plummeted across the United States. One movie star, one moment, one product – that’s influence. Imagine a million influencer on TikTok talking about millions of products to his 150+ million users in the US. The potential for growth increases exponentially. With TikTok Shop, you can browse, click, and buy in seconds.
Mikayla Nogueira, a makeup influencer from Massachusetts, is known by kids as “TikTok famous” for her passion for makeup and her distinct Boston accent.
She currently has 15.6 million followers, more followers than Kim Kardashian (9 million). What’s her attitude? She just adapts to whatever happens next.
“My passion is not TikTok,” she said in a recent post. “My passion is creating, and creating beauty videos can be done from any platform.”
Michelle Silva isn’t that rude. “It would be an overall disadvantage not only to me, but to many other small businesses in the United States,” Silva said.
Tran believes the threat of a ban is a diplomatic tool for the United States to influence China. “I think the more important aspect is that politicians don’t understand what it is, and that’s what’s really driving the fear on Capitol Hill about the potential threat of a ban. ” he said.
Economic impact of TikTok
TikTok generates $5 billion in tax revenue, 224,000 jobs, and over $24 billion in GDP. With TikTok banned, Tran worries that growth could evaporate.
“TikTok isn’t going away anytime soon,” Tran said.
Michelle Silva and her employees are praying for a resolution. “TikTok has really been a blessing, so we’re careful and hoping it doesn’t go anywhere,” Silva said.
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