STRAW POLL: How the TikTok algorithm is different for each user

I thought I’d take a look at how the TikTok algorithm is tailored and unique to every user.

So, I asked a number of volunteers to take part in a survey to show just how unique they are.

Everybody who took part scrolled through 100 TikTok clips and wrote down what they were.

It’s not a representative sample instead more of a quick straw poll amongst 12 volunteers aged between 12 and 51.

Adverts were surprisingly common often being in the top two of the most seen clips. What’s unique about TikTok ads is that they are usually shot and posted as native TikTok clips so they jar far less. They’re also scrollable. So if you don’t like the look you can navigate past really quickly. As a daily TikTok user I find the mandatory five second ads on YouTube really grate after having the ease to navigate past. 

There’s no doubt that the algorithm is the secret sauce that TikTok has that competitors like Facebook are struggling to manoeuvre with. TikTok looks at what you’ve watched, commented on, liked, downloaded and complained about. It also looks at wider trends as it decides which video it serves you.

Here’s what the straw poll showed: 

12-year-old girl  

1. Comedy 11
2. Meme 9
3. Ad 5
4. Beauty 5
5. Summer plans 4
6. Vloggers 3
7. Fashion 3
8. Hippy 3
9. Lip synch 2
10. Film 2 

33-year-old male

1. Beauty 7
2. Dancing 6
3. Karaoke 5
4. Bottles of Prime 5
5. Comedy 5
6. Ads 4
7. Fashion 3
8. Relationships 3
9. Gaming 2
10. Interior design 2 

40-year-old woman

1. Ads 19
2. Relationships 16
3. TV 10
4. Celebs 9
5. Pets 5
6. Cooking 5
7. LGTBQi 4
8. Neurodivergent 3
9. Musical theatre 3
10. Womens Issues 3

51-year-old male

1. Ads 16
2. Football 9
3. Conspiracy theories 6
4. American history 5
5. Ukraine 5
6. Lifestyle hacks 5
7. History 5
8. Comedy 5
9. Americans abroad 4
10. Celebs 4 

51-year-old female

1. Fashion 7
2. Digital comms tips 7
3. Live videos 6
4. Interior design 5
5. Garden design 4
6. Parenting 4
7. Comedy 4
8. Dancing 3
9. Cleaning 2
10.  Books 2  

15-year-old female

1. Football 20
2. Advert 15
3. LGBTQ+ 9
4. Music 6
5. TV show 4
6. POV 4
7. Podcast 3
8. Louis Capaldi 3
9. Gym 3
10. Fashion 3

Thanks to everyone who took part. I’m keeping their identities secret to protect their algorithmic preferences.
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