TikTok has confirmed that some of its employees in the United States can use the “TikTok Heating” button, which is intended to boost videos into the feeds of other users, potentially making them go viral.
This report comes from Forbes, which confirmed that TikTok’s purpose is to “enhance user experience.” What are the details, and what do marketers need to know? If you’re using TikTok as one of your online marketing channels in 2023, don’t miss this. Let’s dive in.
The TikTok Heating Button: A Secret Tool for Promoting Viral Videos
According to a Forbes report, citing internal documents like the Tiktok HEating Policy and information from six current and former TikTok employees, the platform uses the Heating button to help specifically expand the reach of certain videos. This allows videos to enter the “For You” feed of users directly. Importantly, these boosted videos are not in the form of Sponsored Ads but rather regular videos that would normally be managed by the algorithm.
TikTok Wants to Encourage More Influencers in Various Fields to Use the Platform
As we all know, this revelation contradicts what TikTok has claimed about its backend system, which it says uses algorithms to manage the posting process in the For You feed to suit different users’ preferences and interests.
However, it’s important to note that this isn’t a new issue. Previously, there were reports that TikTok was trying to use post-boosting mechanisms to encourage influencers in various industries, particularly the music industry, to use the TikTok platform more. Jamie Favazza, a TikTok spokesperson, told Forbes that the use of the Heating button isn’t just about creating trends but also about providing users with a more diverse content experience, not just repetitive content. They claim that only 0.002% of videos in the U.S. are boosted through the Heating method compared to the total number of videos in the For You feed.
Concluding Thoughts
Recently, TikTok itself revealed that it will update the “Why this Video” feature, which explains why a video appears in each user’s feed. It’s interesting that the video boosting case using the Heating Button isn’t included in the explanation of this feature. It remains to be seen how TikTok’s lack of transparency in this matter will affect creators or brands in the future.
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