Twitter moves closer to TikTok

Sahail Ashraf posted on 17 October 2022

Twitter has added two updates that mean the platform will start to become more like TikTok. This is of course not a bad thing, but will the updates really improve the video experience on the platform?

Twitter has edged closer to becoming very similar to TikTok with two new updates that have just been released. The updates are video-based, which makes sense considering the fact that TikTok has been such a huge success. They are not huge updates as much as they are tweaks that make the discovery and enjoyment of video much easier on the platform.

Immersive

Twitter took to its blog to outline the new updates and how they would impact users. The first update is all about the viewing experience.

“Twitter’s updated immersive media viewer expands videos to full screen with a single click, allowing you to easily access the full, immersive viewing experience. To activate it, simply tap/click on a video in the Twitter app.

Once the video has been launched in full screen mode, we’ve made video discovery easier as well. Just scroll up to start browsing more engaging video content. If you want to exit the viewer and go back to the original Tweet, click the back arrow in the top left corner.“

That’s right, it’s all about the scrolling. This is a full-screen video experience with scrolling to find more video content. This is where the algorithm will come to the fore and essentially act in the same way that it does on TikTok.

The update should have started to hit accounts now for anyone who uses Twitter in English. First impressions look favourable. Once you tap it moves into fullscreen very quickly and smoothly. The scrolling is easy and smooth too. So it feels like TikTok and moves like TikTok.

Explore gets upgraded

This update is essentially about including a Carousel feature that brings users a smoother experience when it comes to seeing more video content:

“With our new video carousel, you can now easily find more videos you like alongside Tweets and Trends that might interest you. Just open the Explore tab to discover some of the most popular videos being shared on Twitter.“

What does this mean?

It’s clear that Twitter is making a real push to make video content more important. By making it easier to access video content, and more of it, it’s paving the way for what might well be a significant change in the nature of the platform. 

Twitter has always been about news in some form or another. Making video a big part of the equation means that brands have to think about their presence on Twitter. 

If your brand/client is on Twitter then maybe it’s time to start thinking about doing things the TikTok way. Short videos that are meaningful and helpful to your audience will clearly have a huge impact on what is looking like the ‘new’ Twitter.

For now, if you want to get a foothold, consider short helpful pieces. A good ‘how to’ video can really get people’s attention and stop them scrolling (since Twitter is now becoming a video scrolling platform). They are easy to do and will build engagement.

This is still fresh and new. But it is very significant that Twitter has started the scrolling thing. It means that, not only is the platform becoming more like Tiktok, but that it is investing heavily in video content. It wants to win TikTok audiences, and has definitely taken the first steps towards this goal. 

Give it another year, and we will see if it manages to take some of that TikTok audience and bring them over to Twitter. 

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