I’ve been waiting for TikTok’s fall, but didn’t see them being their own worst enemy

TikTok’s aggressive growth tactics are upsetting partners, creators, and everyday users

If TikTok no longer offers a stream of fun, serendipitous videos and instead becomes a social-media version of the Home Shopping Network, users may jump ship
…
“The For You used to seem uncanny in how it would serve up content perfectly tailored to me. Now it feels like the algorithm is less a diagnostic tool of my soul and instead is assessing me as a potential consumer.”

TikTok said the quiet part out loud

Think of some recent digital ads that caught your eye or spurred you to take action:

• What similarities or themes are there?
• What about them felt relevant to you?
• What made your thumb stop mid scroll/swipe/tap?

If you’re a marketer, you now have a checklist for your next campaign.

This doesn’t surprise me

Retail sales, which captures spending on all goods and food services, fell 0.8% in January
That was even lower than the downwardly revised 0.4% increase in December, and well below economists’ expectations of a 0.1% decline

Black Friday was huge and early January showed signs of slowing spend, a holiday hangover of sorts.

Tax season and spring might thaw things a bit, but we’re back in the land of general economic uncertainty (which I have thoughts on)

via CNN