Should TikTok Be Testing Online Gambling Ads?

The lifeblood of the online gambling industry is exposure. Whether it is an online casino, an online poker site, or a sportsbook, a business will only succeed with the ability to attract new customers.

To this end, online gambling sites have always been at the cutting edge of new technology, which includes finding the best way to engage with fans and prospective players via social media.

TikTok Test the Waters

The popular video-sharing platform TikTok is not new to controversy. In recent memory, it has come under fire in the United States for its connection to the Chinese government and the risks it poses due to the amount of user information it exposes.

The news that the platform is running limited ad tests for online gambling sites is now raising a few eyebrows in Australia. Historically the site has not allowed gambling ads but initiated a trial program in November last year regardless. Earlier this month, it added two new operators, which leaves the impression that the test is working for them.

 The Perfect Platform for Reach

Like any other industry when it comes to finding new players, most gambling sites pursue the “knock on many doors” approach. This means that sites that offer access to a large number of users are always an attractive option – and here TikTok shines!

TikTok has incredible reach with Hootsuite documenting the following insightful data points:

• It is available in more than 35 languages across 150 countries.
• The app has been downloaded more than 3 billion times.
• It boasts more than 50 million daily active users.
• Users spend an average of 90 minutes per day using the app.
• It is the 6th most popular social media platform in the world.

Extensive studies show how TikTok video content is shared across multiple other platforms, including Instagram and YouTube, creating a vast net to engage potential customers.

 The Risk to Safer Gambling

The platform’s strength is also its greatest weakness. With this massive net comes its appeal to a young audience and the challenges inherent to targeting its content to ensure only gambling-age-ready viewers see what is being shared.

In many regulated markets, celebrity advertising is being banned because of this inability to target adults only. TikTok is the ultimate example of the power of an influencer-driven marketplace. To maximise the reach of an advert on the platform, companies need to engage with its version of a celebrity. All of whom will be hard-pressed to prove their content only reaches users aged 18+, given TikTok's limitations.

According to Wallaroo Media, around 60% of TikTok's general audience falls into the 16-24 age bracket. The Social Shepherd digs deeper, reporting that 25% of the platform's users fall into the 10 to 19-year-old basket. The fact that the researcher proved there are so many accounts in this younger basket is cause for concern, given that TikTok's official account signup age is thirteen.

A youth-heavy customer base and virtually non-existent age verification make the case that the platform's risk of gambling harm could very well outweigh the value it adds to an industry that has been working hard to prove it is maturing.