DUBAI: Ahead of Ramadan, which is expected to begin on April 12, TikTok has shared some insights into the behavior of users on its platform during the holy month, based data it collected last year.
In 2020, content consumption during Ramadan increased by 17 percent in terms of video viewership, and 91 percent for video engagement. Although content consumption varied throughout the year, during Ramadan users were more active on their devices and engaged with content in a variety of categories, most notably cooking, health, family entertainment and gaming.
Content consumption
The time users spent on the app and the type of content they consumed varied throughout the day.
Around sahoor families spend more time together, which resulted in increased consumption of game-related content, whereas around noon more women used the app to look for short-form content related to cooking. Content engagement decreased in the late afternoon but increased significantly after iftar as people created and posted videos while spending time with family and friends.
Prime time
The amount of video publishing and viewing decreased during the fasting hours but picked up after iftar.
Content categories
During Ramadan, four content categories were more prominent than others: cooking, entertainment, health and gaming, giving rise to hashtags such as #RamadanFood, #SahoorTime and #CookFromHome.
“In spite of the restrictions in place due to the pandemic, it is heartening to see the region excitedly resume its preparations to mark this Ramadan in all its fervor,” Shant Oknayan, TikTok’s general manager of global business solutions MENAT (Middle East, North Africa and Turkey), told Arab News.
“Social and entertainment apps have played a substantial role in keeping the spirit of Ramadan alive in the absence of physical connections, and our recent research was indicative of this.
“We also saw brands embrace TikTok further as they truly connected with their audience in an authentic and meaningful way, while also using the platform to give back to the communities they operate in.”
TikTok is attracting growing numbers of advertisers. Its own global research reveals that 43 percent of “heavy” TikTok users feel that the advertising blends in with content on the platform, and 61 percent described the ads as “unique”. Users also said they found advertising on the platform to be relatively fun and authentic.
