A few days ago, two creator economy behemoths released their end of year trend reports. For this week’s newsletter, I went through both the TikTok 2024 Trend Report and YouTube's 2024 Global Trends Report so you don’t have to! We’ll start with TikTok and then move to YouTube.
TikTok 2024 Trend Report: Key Takeaways
Overall, TikTok was eager to highlight its contributions to the U.S. economy and its widespread usage as it faces the prospect of a potential ban in the U.S.
Community Impact
Over 170 million Americans participated in TikTok’s global community of over 1 billion users in 2024.
E-Commerce Success
TikTok Shop LIVE sessions tripled in the U.S., increasing live commerce sales by combining content, product discovery, and purchasing.
Entrepreneurs like Stormi Steele and Mandy Peña had record-breaking sales, including $2M and $1.2M in single live-stream sessions, respectively.
Small businesses like NerdyNuts, Kaylin Pickles, and The Skincare Bakery grew significantly through TikTok’s reach.
TikTok Year in Review
#BookTok Dominance
#BookTok has been reshaping the literary world, turning obscure titles into bestsellers and driving a 300% increase in #Romantasy posts.
Self-published authors like Kelia Shaheen and emerging talents like Laura Swan were examples of authors that did exceptionally well thanks to the platform.
Cultural Movements
Iconic phrases like “very demure, very mindful” and trends like Kelley Heyer’s “Apple dance” shaped pop culture.
Animal-focused content, such as Moo Deng the pygmy hippo, became global sensations.
Culinary content pushed massive food trends, turning simple recipes like cucumber salad into global sensations.
Music Industry Influence
TikTok cemented itself as a major launchpad for artists, with 13 of 16 Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 songs in 2024 gaining traction on TikTok.
Latin music and K-Pop saw massive growth, with artists like Yeri Mua and ENHYPEN dominating the global charts.
There was a 350% increase in #SportsOnTikTok posts, showing the influence in the sports industry.
Women’s sports saw HUGE growth, with #WomenInSports posts increasing over 2400%.
2024 Year on TikTok
TikTok & Education
Educators and museums used TikTok to connect with audiences, with #TeachersOfTikTok inspiring over 5.5M posts.
STEM content saw a 45% increase in #science posts, boosting creators like astronaut Kellie Gerardi and educators like Chemical Kim.
Film and Entertainment
#FilmTok brought creators and new talent to the forefront, connecting fans with major industry events like the Oscars and Sundance.
Iconic short films and storytelling series gained widespread popularity, with creators like Reesa Teesa achieving real-world opportunities like TV deals.
As we come to the end of the year, YouTube’s annual report highlights what went down on the world’s largest video platform. From trending topics and creators to influential global songs. Here are the some takeaways:
Digital Franchises Are Thriving: Shows like Amazing Digital Circus and Roblox’s Dress to Impress captivated global audiences, sparking billions of fan-driven views and reshaping entertainment norms.
Legacy Media Goes Digital: The Paris Olympics and Hollywood hits like Deadpool & Wolverine embraced YouTube trends, proving traditional franchises can have an additional life online.
Indie Animation Breakthroughs: Creators are democratizing media with viral successes like Basics in Behavior, moving beyond YouTube to platforms like Netflix.
The Rise of Video Podcasts: Shows like Club Shay Shay dominated the scene, and several podcasts made waves in the US election.
Gaming Culture Evolves: Creator-driven franchises turned games into cultural phenomena, with hits like Five Nights at Freddy’s crossing into Hollywood.
Global Trends: From Brazil’s viral funk to India’s cricket mania, YouTube took countless diverse, localized moments that brought together audiences on a global scale.
Fandom remains key to everything: The future of entertainment lies in creator-remixed content and committed fandoms.
You can read more highlights from YouTube’s report here.
