TikTok's Engagement Rate Is Dropping in 2023: What This Means for the Future of the Platform

With every marketer wanting to get into the nitty-gritty of TikTok and understand how the magic happens within the platform (in other words, how a video can become viral overnight) or uncover what the future trends will be, keeping an eye on the data is crucial.

Luckily, when it comes to numbers, there’s one trusted source covering the shifts of the social media landscape year after year - which is Socialinsider’s social media industry benchmarks study.

Let’s briefly take a look at what 2023 seems to have in store for TikTok, as well as the other major social networks.

A. TikTok Engagement Data

TikTok experienced notable success in the last few years, becoming one of the most widely used social media platforms globally. The popularity of the app was likely due to its innovative algorithm, which allowed users to instantly discover content targeted to their interests.

Besides, the platform's short-form videos and viral challenges gained traction as a source of entertainment and self-expression, particularly among younger users.

Several people and businesses took advantage of TikTok's popularity, resulting in significant growth for creators, companies, and marketers on the platform.

With brands like Ryanair and Duolingo dominating the "For You" page and getting millions of views with their funny videos, it's no surprise that the average social media engagement is higher compared to other platforms.

And speaking of TikTok’s engagement and how some industries seem to have found their way into the user’s hearts - did you know the beverages sector has shown exceptional skills in TikTok marketing and has achieved an engagement rate almost double the platform's average score, making it the most engaging industry on TikTok?

Here’s a thought! Could this be associated with the launch of Prime Energy, which was promoted on social media by nemeses Logan Paul and KSI? One can never know.

Upon its release, TikTok was flooded with videos depicting the frenzy produced by the rapidity with which the energy drinks were sold out in supermarkets.

This clearly shows that influencer marketing still has a significant impact on purchasing decisions, especially for young people.

However, despite the fact that TikTok is undoubtedly the coolest kid on the block, with 2023 kicking in, the platform registered signs of an engagement decrease.

Actually, according to the data, TikTok has experienced a decline in the average engagement rate of 28% compared to last year.

That leaves us wondering if TikTok will trace the history of Vine and Musical.ly and ultimately fade away over the years. But ultimately, only time can tell.

B. Instagram Benchmarks

Probably seen as TikTok’s most fierce competitor, nowadays, Instagram struggles to keep its user base and adoption rate, making Reels a feature that will shine through the years.

In trying to align with the youngsters’ video preferences, the platform has made a significant change in its video integrations lately and shifted all videos under 15 minutes into Reels, which is the platform's own version of short-form videos.

With Reels, users can add music, special effects, filters, and text to their videos, making them fun, engaging, and a way to showcase creativity for regular users and companies.

The platform's algorithm also facilitates Reels' viewership through multiple means due to its double placement in both the regular and exclusively Reels video feeds.

To see how Reels stack up against TikTok, as well as the other Instagram content formats, from a performance perspective, we’ll take a look at the almighty social media metric called engagement rate.

As the previously mentioned study has revealed, in comparison to the values of the other post formats, Instagram Reels record an average engagement rate of up to 0.93%, which is nearly twice as high. However, truth be told, it does not come any near to TikTok’s levels.

Instagram is a platform that prioritizes aesthetics and visual appeal. Because of its emphasis on these characteristics, brands in the beauty and fashion industries are drawn to this network.

But when talking about performance, the food industry is the leading engaging sector within the platform. Who would have guessed that mouth-watering images and videos of appetizing dishes would be so successful in catching people’s interest?

Although, if we were to be honest, we’ve probably all tried to act like chefs for a day and practiced our culinary abilities using recipes found on Instagram. Right?

As for other social media industry benchmarks, you might want to know that business lines, such as airlines, arts & crafts, travel, beverages, and alcohol, also have scored above-average Instagram engagement rates.

C. Social Media Benchmarks for Other Platforms

Truth be told, while TikTok and Instagram are the catchier social platforms of today, let’s not forget there’s an interdependent connection between all the social platforms out there.

Naturally, changes within one have - to a heavier or lesser extent - influences over the others. Therefore, to gain a deeper understanding of the landscape and understanding of the trends, it’s important to look at the whole picture as well.

So, let’s head over to Facebook and Twitter for just a bit and explore the most engaging industries on these networks as well.

In Facebook’s case, the industry that scored the highest engagement rate was the food and beverage sector.

With the platform’s main users being men and women between the ages of 35 and 44, it’s safe to say that brands within these industries that target that specific segment should have a good chance of reaching their goals by leveraging this network.

As for Twitter, that platform’s average engagement rate has remained flat for quite a while now, with arts & crafts, jewelry, and food being the best-performing line businesses.

An important takeaway would equally be that although Instagram and TikTok are the main driving forces behind the popularity of video content on social media, older platforms have gradually started to incorporate more and more features for video content consumption.

Take Facebook Rooms and Reels as an example, two of the platform’s most recent additions.

Final Thoughts

Social media started as a pioneering tool for building connections and building communities but has since evolved into a captivating stage for entertainment and content creation, especially for brands.

One cannot help but reminisce about the days of MySpace, Hi5, and Facebook when social media first came around.

Despite the success of some industries on social media, there has been a noticeable decline in engagement rates.

In order to thrive in this ever-changing landscape, brands need to benchmark social media engagement rates across all key platforms, along with data relevant to their industry.

Predicting what the future holds for social platforms is not easy due to their dynamic nature. Only time will unravel the answers.