We Know How to Make TikTok Better

Magnificent Monday merchants!

Today’s log is a bittersweet one. Us captains have gone 10 weeks straight producing these, and even longer when considering ideation.

We are going to take two weeks off in order to close our eyes, consider a fresh rebrand (exciting!) and reset our minds.

Before we get started, we want to just say thank you for this special community. It exceeded all of our expectations. Alright - Captain McMahon, take it away.

So, as of last week, you can now post a TikTok twice as long as Smells Like Teen Spirit by Nirvana.

Naturally, it's a split opinion. Viewers are confused, creators are intrigued, and TikTok HQ are laughing.

Because whether the reception is well received or not, we're talking about it. Why? Well, there's a lot to say.

At first, I was adamantly against this decision. It just seems like TikTok is chasing YouTube, while YouTube is chasing TikTok. Can any of these platforms just accept what they are, what built them, and what users expect?

But maybe that's silly. Without competition how do we innovate? So this got me thinking: what would I change about TikTok? And how do these changes reflect who I am as a creator?

I'll start by saying I don't think 10-minute TikToks are necessarily a bad idea. In fact, I think it opens the door to a whole new type of creator that perhaps we've not seen yet. My only problem: the power is still not in the creator's hands.

When we scroll to a new video on TikTok, a number of factors determine whether or not we'll stick around - or continue scrolling.

• Do we recognise anyone's face?

• Do we like the music?

• How many likes does it have?

• How engaging were the first couple seconds?

If these parameters aren't met, we move to the next randomly chosen video, and repeat. The fate of our entertainment is in the FYP's hands.

So - how about this. Let's introduce a thumbnail page. If we're chasing YouTube here, why not go all in? As a creator, it's a whole new method of getting your TikTok seen. Over the years, YouTube thumbnails have become their own artform - crafting the perfect image to capture the attention and curiosity of a potential viewer. Not only does it put the power back in the hands of the creator, but it enables the user to dictate what they consume.

Now, I’m not saying this should replace the FYP. I actually think the way TikTok works currently is what makes the app so addicting. But no one's watching a randomly chosen, 10 minute TikTok while they’re in the line at Subway. But maybe, just maybe, they would if they chose it themselves.

In lieu of TikTok dropping their newest feature - the ability to upload videos up to 10 minutes long for some reason - I challenged myself to think of two ways to level up the user and creator experience of TikTok.

Now, mind you, TikTok itself is pretty perfect - a top-to-bottom vertical scrolling platform with an algorithm that collects more data on you than you’d like to imagine so it can feed you the exact content that you want and need.

What if TikTok allowed you to narrow down the videos it feeds you? We all know that there’s tons of creators on the app who upload home runs every single time (two of them are writers for this newsletter), so why don’t we make it easier to find these kinds of creators. I’m proposing FYP Filters - categories you can purposefully switch on and off depending on what you want to see during your scrolling session. Filters can be things like “entertainment” or “education,” or even “mindfulness.” Heck, why not give the ability to customize the filters? Having a filter that only shows content with a particular hashtag, from a certain group of creators, etc. The For You Page knows what you want, but FYP Filters would allow YOU to know what you want.

Next, what if there was a way to lose yourself even more into this god-forsaken app? What if there was a way to make the minutes, hours, days, months, and years, fly by at light speed with the app? Introducing Fullscreen Mode. Do away with metrics, captions, numbers, and share buttons, and instead, immerse yourself in the world of short-form content - right in the palm of your hand. Videos in Fullscreen Mode would take up the entire screen, allowing the viewer to place all of their attention on the content. It would be a conscious choice, switching Fullscreen Mode on, and would likely happen when the viewer would want to sit back, relax and enjoy the internet. Throw in an Auto-Scroll feature to Fullscreen Mode and you’re ready to grab some popcorn and a blanket.

With FYP Filters and Fullscreen Mode working in tandem, TikTok has the potential to graduate from just another social media app to something that truly rivals network television and becomes even more of a threat to other platforms like YouTube. But, like all good things, there’s always potential downside. Playing devil’s advocate, these two proposed features, while innovative, could increase viewer retention on the app to a really dangerous point. This could be an expedited route to ending up like those people aboard the ship in Pixar’s Wall-E.

TikTok works as it is right now, of course, but turning our sights to the future is what Out West is all about.

The longest TikTok I have ever made was 65 seconds, and that’s an anomaly on the platform. Most people I see at least have a screenshot of a tweet on the screen as they stare into the camera… for 7 seconds.

But why did TikTok do this change then? They are a giant tech company and every decision they make is calculated for some reason.

My theory - create a new source of revenue for creators. As Hank Green pointed out a month ago, there is a major flaw in how TikTok gives back to its creators, notably put, “when TikTok makes more, creators make less.” This is because there is a $200M stagnant pool that is split among creators. The more creators that join TikTok, the less each one makes.

But it’s not entirely TikTok’s fault. Unlike YouTube, ads are placed on this infinite stream of content, not on individual videos. Therefore, if TikTok is to split it's revenue with creators, who is responsible for what?

My theory – TikTok allowing 10-minute videos opens up the possibilities for mid-roll ads. That ad would be rev-split with that respective creator and now, TikTok is in good press.

Sounds all fun and dandy right? Well, not yet - for the reason that Daniel said above. Who the fuck is going to watch a 10 minute TikTok?

It feels as if the world is slow to this concept of how much a view is worth. 1M views on TikTok is not worth 1M views on YouTube and it’s because of one simple reason: YouTube users choose to watch their content whereas TikTok chooses the content for the user.

That’s why there are so many TikTokers (including myself!) that have trouble converting their audience over to YouTube. We are the perfect “ahh thanks TikTok! Sure, I’ll watch this content, it’s only 30 seconds!” but not quite the “Ahh love this creator! I want to dedicate the next 10 minutes to choosing to watch this creator!”

This difference is key and I agree with Daniel that having some sort of thumbnail feature on TikTok would bridge these creator-audience relationships. How would that look? Idk but that’s the beauty of this industry…

No one knows shit.

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Let us know in the comments — what would you change about TikTok? Anything? Nothing? Why or why not. As always, we respond to every comment.

OUT WEST READERS: THANK YOU FOR A BEAUTIFUL SEASON. This is no end, rather the start of something really cool. We will return March 28th, at the head of quarter two.

See you in Season 2 of the Out West Chronicles.