Three reasons your charity should be on TikTok

But other NFPs are hesitant to take the plunge. Maybe it’s the fear your brand will get the vibe wrong and look out of touch. Or you’re questioning whether your content fits on a platform like this. Or just whether you have the bandwidth to keep up with the rapid-fire pace of short-form video.

All valid concerns. But don’t let them deter you from taking a closer look at TikTok. Here are 3 reasons why.

1. TikTok’s growth is wild

TikTok is the fastest growing social media platform today. While it still trails Facebook and Instagram in monthly active users, the other two have plateaued in recent years, while TikTok keeps climbing and is forecasted to be the world’s third largest social network this year.

It’s the pace of growth too. It took Facebook more than eight years to reach one billion users. TikTok managed the same feat in about half the time.

Of course, every social media platform reaches a point of saturation eventually, but for now at least, TikTok isn’t going anywhere but up.

2. When it comes to engagement, TikTok is running circles around the other platforms.

Organic engagement is in free fall on most platforms. If you manage social media for your NFP, you’ve probably noticed – and lost a few nights’ sleep over it.

On Instagram, engagement for NFPs is just over 1 per cent, meaning about 1 out of every 100 followers see and interact with your content. It’s even worse on Facebook (0.2 per cent) and almost nonexistent on Twitter (0.05 per cent).

However, NFPs saw nearly twice as much engagement on TikTok last year as the next closest competitor, Instagram. At one point last year, engagement on Tiktok reached as high as 4.4 per cent.

Source: Socialinsider

NFP engagement by platform, 2021

• Twitter: 0.05 per cent

• Facebook: 0.18 per cent

• Instagram: 1.10 per cent

• TikTok: 1.95 – 4.41 per cent

In other words, you can engage a greater share of your audience with organic content on TikTok than any other social media platform.

3. And most importantly, it’s where your donors are

According to the Charities Aid Foundation, 25-34 year-olds were the most likely Australians by age to have given to an NFP in the last 12 months. Which overlaps nicely with TikTok’s core demographic: nearly two third of TikTok users are under the age of 30.

But it’s not just that this is where your donors spend their time. TikTok is the perfect platform for the kind of content Gen Y donors expect from nonprofits. Research from McCrindle found that 93 per cent of people in this age group are more likely to engage with NFPs who clearly communicate social impact. And one of the best ways to do that? Short-form video, i.e. TikTok’s secret sauce.

When it comes to building trust with Gen Y donors, TikTok is about as indispensable as it gets.