‘Benefits outweigh the harm’: Worried about their livelihood, small business owners push back on potential TikTok ban

When Aparna Singh archetypal heard astir a imaginable TikTok ban, she "immediately went into panic mode."

"With the bulk of my income coming done TikTok, I decidedly was thinking, 'Is this going to beryllium the extremity of my business?'" 

Singh is the proprietor of a tiny concern called Indian Goddess Boutique, which sells Indian-inspired jewelry and accessories. The societal media app has been an "integral part" of her business, said the 33-year-old. 

"I get 90% of my income done TikTok. Everyday I effort to station astatine slightest 1 video astir my business. Days I bash not post, I spot a diminution successful website postulation and sales." 

That is the aforesaid interest connected the minds of immoderate tiny concern owners connected TikTok, who person recovered success and built sizable audiences without having to wage for marketing.

Their concerns travel aft TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew was grilled by lawmakers connected the app's addictive features and whether information from U.S. users could extremity up successful the hands of the Chinese authorities done its China-based owner, ByteDance.

Politicians person besides threatened a nationwide TikTok prohibition unless ByteDance sells its involvement successful the app, a determination China said it "strongly" opposed. The app is already banned connected government-owned devices successful countries similar the U.S., Australia and the U.K. 

Concerned astir a imaginable prohibition of TikTok, tiny concern owners told CNBC Make It wherefore they deliberation the short-video app should stay. 

Like galore different contented creators, Singh started a TikTok relationship during the Covid-19 lockdown successful 2020 — and began advertizing her concern connected it. 

"I antecedently was focusing connected Instagram to turn my business. Unfortunately the Instagram algorithm has changed truthful overmuch implicit the years, I was hardly getting immoderate engagement," she explained. 

On Instagram, she was "barely making immoderate sales" — possibly 5 to 10 orders a month, she said.

"Hashtags weren't helping. It conscionable wasn't helping maine scope the broader assemblage I needed."

But everything changed for Singh erstwhile she started utilizing TikTok — 1 video of her wearing a chemoreceptor ringing she sold went viral and income "skyrocketed overnight."

In 2020 — the twelvemonth she started utilizing the app — she made $20,000 successful sales. One twelvemonth later, Singh said she made $350,000, portion "spending $0 successful advertising." 

"That video showed maine what merchandise I should beryllium focusing much connected and what my customers truly like," she added. 

That's the quality of TikTok, according to tiny concern owners that CNBC Make It spoke to — it has helped them find their lawsuit and assemblage "faster than immoderate different platform." 

"I emotion however the TikTok algorithm boosts your videos to much radical adjacent if you person a tiny following, arsenic agelong arsenic the contented is relatable to who you are trying to reach," said Teena Ho, who sells stickers with archetypal designs via @kawaiiflavor. 

"When I created my TikTok page, my precise archetypal video reached thousands of views whereas connected different societal media apps, it would lone beryllium nether 200 views."

Renee Powers, who runs Feminist Book Club, an online assemblage and publication subscription company, agreed. She said TikTok has been "brilliant" for identifying a niche assemblage and a instauration for growth. 

"For tiny businesses, it is the overwhelming person successful discovering the cleanable assemblage for your marque … however does a tiny marque similar ours scope them without investing thousands of dollars successful accepted media advertising? That's what TikTok helps america do." 

She said each clip a TikTok video gains implicit 50,000 views, her concern sees a "30% to 50% influx successful traffic" connected the company's website and followers connected different societal media platforms. 

"It got to the constituent past summertime that we had to upgrade our website big due to the fact that our postulation was consistently overmuch higher."

TikTok has raised fears implicit privateness and information concerns — including claims that U.S. idiosyncratic information could autumn into the hands of the Chinese government.

In April, TikTok was fined $16 cardinal successful the U.K. for misusing children's' data, aft it allowed 1.4 cardinal children nether the property of 13 to usage the app successful 2020. 

Despite the information concerns, tiny concern owners person expressed frustration implicit the possibilities of a implicit ban. Those that CNBC Make It spoke to said a prohibition is not the "appropriate measure" to safeguard the privateness of users. 

"As a erstwhile National Science Foundation chap successful Electronic Security and Privacy, the privateness concerns are not mislaid connected maine …  That's not to accidental I don't person concerns astir TikTok, but I bash deliberation the benefits outweigh the harm," said Powers. 

"A prohibition connected TikTok is not the reply to this issue. Rather, TikTok has go a scapegoat for information privateness concerns. Bytedance is not the first, nor volition it beryllium the last, institution that misuses our idiosyncratic data." 

She added that if the authorities "throws the publication astatine TikTok," it needs to bash the aforesaid for each societal media platforms.

Back successful 2018, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg was questioned implicit the societal network's role successful the 2016 statesmanlike elections and however it handles information — though nary prohibition was proposed. 

"What genuinely needs to hap is not a ban, but a nationwide idiosyncratic information extortion argumentation that is level agnostic and enforced by a dedicated autarkic organization," Powers said.

Singh added: "If I was this acrophobic astir this [privacy] issue, I would not person immoderate societal media apps oregon [use] technology."

TikTok is "helping millions of Americans beryllium capable to supply for their families successful specified a hard clip successful our economy. Why instrumentality that away?"

Without TikTok, tiny concern owners accidental they volition beryllium astatine hazard of losing maturation momentum and that their company's income volition beryllium "taking a hit." 

"We person a squad of contented creators that lend TikTok videos, podcast segments, and blog posts," said Powers.

"Obviously, without TikTok, we would person to fto spell of our TikTok creators. Without the integrated marque consciousness that TikTok brings, we would person to descend wealth into much accepted selling strategies." 

Singh added: "I presently person 1 employee, my sister, truthful this prohibition volition instrumentality a toll connected my family. If the TikTok prohibition takes spot and I volition person to pivot my selling successful different direction." 

For now, Ho and Powers are looking to Google-owned YouTube shorts — a abbreviated video rival to TikTok — arsenic an option. 

"Start making contingency plans now. Grow your email list. Let your followers cognize wherever they tin find you if the prohibition is approved," Powers advised different tiny concern owners connected TikTok. 

As for Ho, "building a beardown community" online volition beryllium each the much essential. 

"If TikTok were to beryllium gone 1 day, your assemblage volition travel you to the adjacent platform," said Ho. "It's important not to enactment each your eggs successful 1 basket."

The concern owners besides stressed the value of not solely relying connected TikTok for income but each different platforms arsenic well. That includes optimizing email marketing, ads connected Google, Instagram and Facebook, Singh said.  

"TikTok is not the lone spot to enactment tiny businesses. We're connected Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Yelp, Google, Etsy," Powers added. 

"TikTok whitethorn marque it casual to observe new-to-you tiny businesses, but if you're passionate astir buying small, delight enactment successful the other effort to find us."

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