Impact of the TikTok Ban on Social Media Advertising

A marketer’s guide to navigating the volatile environment surrounding the TikTok ban

On the evening of January 18, two-and-a-half hours before the US government's shut-down deadline, TikTok went dark, sending devotees scrambling to other platforms and forcing advertisers to pivot. However, the popular social media app got a 75-day reprieve from President Donald Trump, who issued an executive order to stall the ban on his first day in office.

Where will people go if TikTok remains unavailable? Do people want the app to stick around? And what steps should marketers be taking now to keep pace? DISQO’s ad effectiveness measurement platform provides insight into consumer sentiment about the app, the ban, and what alternatives they’ll favor.* 

Who is the TikTok user?

Unsurprisingly, TikTok usage is a tale of generations. As usage decreases with age, marketers must prioritize Gen Z consumers as they look to shift their advertising strategies. Seventy-nine percent of people ages 18-24 are TikTok users, and 36% use it daily. That contrasts with people 35+, 50% of whom, or more, are likely not to have used the platform. 

The TikTok advertising factor

TikTok gained popularity among consumers and advertisers for its entertainment factor, and that enthusiasm was not limited to content. Forty percent of consumers said ads on TikTok were “fun and engaging” – the most popular response for advertising sentiment on the platform – and only 13% said they were “annoying.” 

TikTok has also gained traction as a search engine over the past two years, according to DISQO’s TikTok reports, with 39% of people saying they use the platform to research products or projects in our 2025 study. That’s up from 31% in 2023 and 34% in 2024. 

Consumer appetite for saving TikTok

With President Trump's stall of the ban, we look at how that might resonate with the American public. In aggregate, reaction to TikTok’s US demise was fairly split, with 29% of consumers being neutral, 40% feeling it should not be banned, and 31% saying it should be. 

Among people aged 18-24, 25% reported being highly annoyed by the lack of access, 23% were slightly annoyed, and another 14% indicated they were significantly impacted by the ban, including financially.

But what about the reasoning behind the ban? Are consumers aligned? In fact, they are split there as well: 42% of people are concerned about TikTok being owned by a Chinese company, while 40% are not (18% are unsure). This demonstrates that there is room for sentiment to evolve either way. 

The reality is that some of the concerns that led to the ban are not just TikTok’s problems. Twenty-seven percent of people are as concerned about foreign governments or agents attempting to influence American politics and elections on TikTok as they are about other social media platforms and another 19% are more concerned about other platforms (22% are unsure). These results closely mirror the sentiment about the security of user data. 

Saving the platform could be a popular move for the President.

TikTok alternatives

In the meantime, where will users go? Saturday evening saw some TikTok influencers reminiscing together through lives on the platform that were suddenly shut off. Almost immediately, Instagram Reels popped up with sentiments like “Hey, so, We all here right now?” posted by influencer Alix Earle. Even TikTok got in on the action in recent days, posting a Reel from their CEO. 

We asked users where they planned to spend more time after the ban and which platform they thought had the biggest chance of replacing TikTok. Surprisingly, the answers don’t quite align, indicating that while they may be more comfortable with one platform today, they see potential with other rivals.

How should marketers adapt?

While the obvious answer is to follow the consumer, the implementation of that premise isn’t quite so easy. Social media platforms offer insights, like brand lift studies,  that marketers can leverage to improve their understanding of advertising effectiveness, but studies provided by the platforms themselves and by other measurement providers are siloed and lack cross-platform insight. To move beyond today’s volatile environment, marketers need to prioritize a holistic approach to their advertising effectiveness measurement. This requires three pillars in their measurement framework:

1. Cross-platform measurement
2. Full-funnel insight
3. Always-on approaches

1. Cross-platform measurement

Why it matters:
When you measure performance across platforms, you get a unified, apples-to-apples view of how effectively your ads are working in different environments—whether that’s TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, or another emerging channel. This approach eliminates blind spots and makes it easier to identify which platforms are driving awareness, engagement, and conversions.

How it helps:

• Holistic performance insights: By harmonizing data from multiple channels, brands can more accurately see where their marketing dollars are most effective.
• Faster pivots: If a platform goes dark or becomes less reliable, a cross-platform view enables marketers to pivot budgets quickly.
• Reduced risk: Depending too heavily on one channel creates exposure to that channel’s policy changes or algorithmic shifts. Measuring across platforms spreads out the risk.

DISQO’s role:

Using identity-based measurement, DISQO helps clients break through silos and compare metrics for Brand Lift and Outcomes Lift across different platforms, including notoriously opaque social media platforms.

2. Full-funnel insight

Why it matters:

Modern consumer journeys are rarely linear, and focusing on one part of the funnel may miss important shifts in brand sentiment or purchase behavior. Especially when a major channel like TikTok faces disruption, it’s crucial to evaluate how your campaigns perform from initial awareness all the way through consideration, purchase intent, and action.

How it helps:

• Discover hidden opportunities: Measuring only top-funnel metrics (like impressions) can conceal crucial down-funnel behaviors (like website visits or purchase).
• Future-proof your strategy: With near-constant shifts in the social media landscape, you need insight into where and how your audiences engage and convert.
• Capture brand sentiment and outcomes: A comprehensive view of metrics like unaided awareness, brand familiarity, search activity, and site visitation helps you see where consumers are in their journey—and why.

DISQO’s role:

DISQO combines brand and performance measurement to show how ads impact throughout the funnel, from initial awareness (Brand Lift) to specific online actions like search or website visitation (Outcomes Lift).

3. Always-on approaches

Why it matters:

Marketing is dynamic, and consumers’ behaviors can shift quickly when platforms rise or fall in popularity—especially under threats like government bans. Relying on one-off or periodic metrics means you’ll only spot problems in hindsight. Continuous, always-on measurement provides the real-time feedback you need to adapt your media investments as consumer preferences evolve.

How it helps:

• Real-time optimization: With ongoing data, marketers can make immediate course corrections.
• Early detection: Spot platform shifts or changes in audience sentiment before they affect your bottom line.
• Data-driven agility: Always-on insights help you turn small wins into bigger ones by reinvesting in tactics that work—and phasing out what doesn’t.

DISQO’s role:

By continuously monitoring brand and behavioral metrics, DISQO helps you keep a finger on the pulse of ad performance. This always-on approach empowers quick pivots if platforms change, consumer sentiment shifts, or new opportunities emerge.

The bottom line

The TikTok ban has created a volatile social media advertising environment that forces advertisers to remain flexible and observant. By adopting cross-platform measurement, focusing on full-funnel insight, and employing an always-on approach, marketers can future-proof their campaigns against social media’s ups and downs—and continue driving meaningful business outcomes.

Want to see how DISQO can help you stay ahead in an unpredictable landscape?

Download our 2024 TikTok Advertising report and then learn more about how our Brand Lift and Outcomes Lift solutions provide comprehensive insights across every campaign, channel, and media tactic—so you can make smarter decisions, no matter what happens next.

Methodology

* DISQO surveyed 1,555 US adults from our first-party audience on Friday, January 17, 2025. More than 28 million people have opted in to share their brand experiences with DISQO, empowering clients to cultivate deep insights about their target audiences and perform objective, single-source measurement of advertising effectiveness on attitudes and digital behaviors.