TikTok has emerged as a cultural phenomenon and one of the dominant platforms for content creators. But the app has recently come under fire, facing mounting pressure from US lawmakers. Congress grilled the CEO of ByteDance, the Chinese company that owns TikTok, over the company’s data-handling, and the Biden administration has banned the app from government-issued phones.

What once seemed highly unlikely is starting to feel like it could happen: a total ban of TikTok in the United States.

So, what’s a creator to do? The answer: what smart creators have done as long as the internet has been around — diversify their publishing so they don’t rely on a single platform. Even though TikTok has sparked countless viral trends, chart-topping songs, and widespread memes, it still falls under that golden rule of social media. Relying solely on TikTok to find success can be problematic for any creator. Here’s why, and what to do instead.

The platform is not your friend

Even beyond government bans, there are many reasons not to rely on a single platform for sharing all of your content. First, TikTok's algorithm is notoriously unpredictable. While some creators may strike gold with a viral video that reaches millions, others may struggle to gain traction even though they consistently produce high-quality content. And even if your video does go viral, there’s no guarantee the next one will do the same. The company has been known to unevenly influence the success of certain videos. And the app encourages short, attention-grabbing videos that may not reflect a creator’s creative vision or ability. 

TikTok's fast-paced nature can also make it difficult for creators to build meaningful relationships with their audience. Unlike YouTube or Twitch, where creators can upload longer videos and engage in direct communication with their fans through comments and livestreams, TikTok's short-form format can feel more like a content treadmill than a community.

A content treadmill

Downloading your favorite video from TikTok is the same for both iPhone and Android phone users. All you need is the TikTok app. Here’s how to do it in only a few simple steps.

1. Find the video you want to download. Open the TikTok app and navigate to the video you want to save.
2. Choose your download method. To download videos from TikTok within the app, navigate to the Share icon on the bottom right of the screen, which brings you to the Share to app window. Here, you’ll find sharing options like Message (which allows you to share videos via your messaging app), Copy link (which gives you a link to the video that you can share), and Messenger (which lets you share the video directly via Facebook Messenger). In the next row, after Report and Not interested, you’ll find Save video, which you can click to download the TikTok clip. For quicker access, you can skip the share button and just press and hold your finger directly on the screen to bring up a menu with the Save video option.
3. Find your saved TikTok. Once you select “save,” TikTok may request permission to access your photo gallery, which you can specify in your phone settings. You can then see your saved videos in your camera roll. The TikTok watermark, including the user handle, stays on the video.

Have you seen a TikTok video you’d like to get your hands on but you’re not sure how?

In this blog post, we’ll share steps on how to download any TikTok video. 

TikTok makes it easy to download videos. In fact, unlike other social media platforms, TikTok has built-in a feature that allows you to access videos that creators have made available in a few short steps. What’s more, you don’t need to have a TikTok account to download videos. All you need do is download and install the app and follow the instructions below.

How to Download TikTok Videos

TikTok videos fall into two categories:

1. Videos that are freely available for download. These are public videos.
2. Videos that are protected by creators. Private or protected videos are not downloadable through TikTok. Instead, we’ll show you how to download them using a third party tool.

There are two ways to download TikTok videos that are freely available. Both methods apply to Android and iOS devices. The first method is as follows:

How to Download Freely Available TikTok Videos