ATREVIA, a global company specializing in communication, marketing, and corporate affairs, introduces its project ATREVIA Lab, a cross-disciplinary knowledge center focused on trends. This is revealed through the data from the study “TikTok and Google: A Radical Change in How We Search,” which analyzed over 5,000 keywords across 10 categories used on both search engines over the course of a year.
The search for information on social networks has been gaining importance in recent years, but TikTok is the only platform that has integrated keywords organically from the start and in a manner similar to Google, forcing the search engine to change its strategy and affecting more established networks like Instagram and YouTube.
Therefore, this study takes this social platform as a reference point to draw conclusions about how social networks and new content formats are transforming user behavior.
The data show that social networks have changed the rules of the game. Google continues to lead, but TikTok competes head-to-head in half of the searches, surpassing the traditional search engine in 26% of the total keywords analyzed and matching it, with a difference of less than 900 searches per month, in 24.8% of the cases. Indeed, searches are no longer conducted solely on Google, which communication professionals and brands must consider when developing more comprehensive strategies.
We visit multiple platforms simultaneously before making a purchase.
Google leads the searches for fashion brands and also those related to food and gastronomy. The leading technology brands are searched more on TikTok, a platform that has already surpassed Google in 45% of the tech keywords analyzed. Regarding cars and motorcycles, TikTok now leads with 59% of the searches, with keywords related to brands standing out. For instance, “BMW” exceeds one million monthly searches in Spain and “Audi” 700,000.
In other sectors, such as fashion and beauty or home decor, the searches conducted on the social network prior to a purchase are more generic. Google leads the searches for specific brands, but keywords like “T-shirt” or “Sneakers” exceed 100,000 monthly searches on TikTok, and terms like “Sofa,” “Furniture,” or “Wardrobe” have a difference of more than 400,000 searches per month in favor of this platform.
These figures show that when buying a product, the user does not behave linearly but decides which channel to use depending on what they intend to search. Moreover, brands are now content, search keywords, and the conversation about them is led by the user.
As a result, the ATREVIA LAB study tells us that brands must focus their positioning strategies on content creators and activate their consumers and followers to generate conversation about them beyond their own channels.
Dr. Google and Dr. TikTok coexist in harmony.
In health, both platforms are important. Searches on TikTok for medications like “Aspirin,” “Paracetamol,” “Ibuprofen,” or “Enantyum” exceed 200,000 per month in our country. Searches about symptoms are more common on Google.
Additionally, health professions play a significant role in searches on TikTok, directly related to the growing popularity of health influencers.
The study provides clues for the health and wellness sector. Laboratories and health entities need to create more valuable content for consumers/patients on this platform.
Learning in video format.
Although Google leads navigational searches in education-related topics, the self-taught user who wants to acquire a new skill no longer wants to do it through a plain text URL but prefers to watch a video about what they want to learn, whether it be languages or programming courses.
There is particular interest in topics related to the financial sector shown on both platforms. Noteworthy are keywords like “IBEX 35” with over 2 million monthly searches on TikTok.
In the services sector, searches associated with cities, although performed on both platforms, are more common on Google. The search engine also leads the keywords related to websites like Idealista, Fotocasa, or Booking.
TikTok accompanies us, for example, throughout the travel planning process. Searches about flights stand out, with keywords like “Flights to Madrid” approaching 50,000 monthly searches. Once at the destination, we also turn to the platform for searches like “What to do in Amsterdam” or “What to see in Italy.”
The format of TikTok has also perfectly matched the real estate sector. Searches about renting and buying apartments occur more than on Google. For example, “Rent apartment” is searched up to 109,000 times more per month, and with the keyword “Vacation rental,” the platform surpasses Google in 172,000 searches monthly.
ATREVIA LAB
ATREVIA LAB is the first innovation lab in marketing and communication. It aims to discover the practices, tools, and resources used by successful brands, companies, and organizations.
According to Fernando Carruesco, Director of Digital Marketing and Social Mobilization at ATREVIA and also Director of ATREVIA LAB, “this project emerges to support professionals working with brands, offering them keys and successful practices through the website https://lab.atrevia.com ATREVIA LAB was created to be by their side at a time like the present, marked by distrust and noise.”
For the complete study download click here.
