Growth Strategies and Community Building: Lessons from TikTok and Musical.ly

Growth Strategies and Community Building: Lessons from TikTok and Musical.ly

Introduction:
In the realm of social media platforms, TikTok has emerged as a global sensation, captivating millions of users worldwide. However, its success did not happen overnight. By examining the growth strategies employed by its predecessor, Musical.ly, and understanding the importance of community building, we can gain valuable insights into what makes a social media platform thrive. Additionally, incorporating growth hacking principles can help product managers create a successful and impactful product. Let's delve into these topics further.

1. Understanding the Power of Entertainment and Community:
   When it comes to creating a successful platform, prioritizing entertainment over education often yields favorable results. Unlike education, which may clash with human nature, entertainment aligns well with our innate tendencies. YouTube's journey from an educational platform to a massive success would not have been possible without recognizing this fundamental truth. Similarly, to propel a new social media platform to stardom, it is crucial to engage teenagers and young adults, who possess ample creativity and time. American teenagers, for example, spend a significant portion of their day on social media, using it as a platform to share their lives and experiences. By recognizing these behavioral patterns and catering to them, platforms like TikTok can establish a strong connection with their users.

2. Building a Participatory Design Process:
   To develop a thriving community, it is imperative to involve end-users right from the beginning. This approach, known as Participatory Design, ensures that the platform's design resonates with the users' needs and desires. Platforms like Musical.ly fostered a close relationship with their users by connecting with them through channels like WeChat. Additionally, seeking user feedback before writing code for critical design features helps create a user-centric platform. Prioritizing utility during the initial stages and gradually transitioning to community-building once a critical mass of users is achieved is a key aspect of successful growth strategies.

3. Moving Beyond Functionality:
   To transform an underperforming product into a success story, simply adding more features is not a viable solution. Instead, focusing on one core feature that serves as a killer value proposition is essential. Changing the growth trajectory requires a change in the value proposition itself. Musical.ly's ability to add music as a utility feature in the background of videos played a significant role in attracting users. Once a substantial user base is established, building a vibrant community becomes the next step.

4. Lessons from Economic Policies and Community Building:
   Managing a community, whether on a social media platform or in the context of a nation or economy, shares many similarities. Valuable lessons can be learned from economic policies when it comes to community management. In the early stages, building a community from scratch is akin to discovering new territory. Just as many individuals migrated to America with the belief that they could achieve wealth, the growth of a community depends on attracting newcomers. However, it is equally important to ensure decentralization, preventing a concentration of privileges and benefits among early adopters.

5. Creating Opportunities for New Entrants:
   TikTok's unique algorithm, which mixes popular and lesser-known videos, creates an opportunity for new entrants to gain exposure. This aspect of the platform sets it apart from other social media platforms and has contributed to its success. By providing visibility to new and undiscovered content, TikTok has nurtured a diverse and dynamic user base.

6. From Fame to Monetization:
   When users join a new social media platform, their initial desire is often to gain fame. However, once they achieve fame, monetization becomes the next goal. Platforms that effectively enable influencers to generate income become the stickiest and most successful. It is important to note that while top artists may contribute to a platform's growth, dedicating excessive time and effort to attract them is unnecessary. Platforms that meet the daily needs of the majority of users will eventually attract artists naturally. Thriving platforms are not built on the success of individual artists alone; they require a multitude of creators.

7. Leveraging Unique Features:
   One of the key aspects that played a role in the success of TikTok and Musical.ly is the feature of lip-syncing. This feature not only lowered the barrier to creating content but also allowed for diverse forms of expression, including comedy and dance. Recognizing the impact of this unique feature on content creation is crucial when designing successful platforms.

Conclusion:
By analyzing the growth strategies employed by Musical.ly and the principles of growth hacking, we can gain valuable insights into what makes a social media platform successful. Prioritizing entertainment over education, involving users in the design process, focusing on core functionality, and fostering a vibrant community are all crucial elements. Additionally, drawing parallels between community building and economic policies emphasizes the importance of decentralization and creating opportunities for newcomers. By implementing these actionable insights, product managers can increase the chances of creating a thriving and impactful platform.