Will TikTok Replace Google as Gen Z’s Go-To Search Engine?

Will TikTok Replace Google as Gen Z’s Go-To Search Engine? By Paige Carlotti

ChatGPT isn’t the only thing threatening Google’s dominance in the search market. Not only did TikTok become the most visited web domain in the world as of 2021, but according to one Google exec, 40% of Gen Z consumers report turning to TikTok and Instagram for search before Google. The trend is so pervasive that TikTok even made a video about it (but posted it on YouTube, which I found interesting and slightly ironic). In other words, social is the new search engine.

I think this trend (or perhaps it is a permanent shift) further underscores the generation’s suspicion of corporations and the value of personalized recommendations. While some people may be tempted to say it’s because the generation is “lazy” or “doesn’t want to read,” I simply think they would rather hear from a person talking about their experience using a new product as opposed to the company telling them how great it is, and take pleasure in putting a face to the person who is explaining how to baste the perfect Thanksgiving turkey. Whether the platform is actually conducive to this change in behavior or not, I believe that if social search has the potential to be profitable, TikTok will shift its strategy in order to capture that value. I am eager to see how this could potentially prove the power of following the consumer!

Sources: 

https://www.wired.com/story/tiktok-search-google/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SaE1z4dZ4As

https://mashable.com/article/tiktok-search-engine-ad-google