TikTok Introduces 'Footnotes' Functionality to Provide More Detailed Information on User Content
TikTok Introduces Footnotes Feature for Small Businesses
Social media platform TikTok has launched a new feature called Footnotes, enabling users to add supplementary information to videos. This feature offers a valuable opportunity for small business owners to engage their audience in meaningful ways, build stronger connections, and establish credibility on the popular app.
Footnotes function as contextual notes that can be added to public posts (except ads). Small businesses can leverage this tool to supplement their video content with detailed explanations, product information, or respond to potential misunderstandings directly in the app [2].
The Footnotes system is a crowdsourced fact-checking system that uses a consensus-driven "bridging algorithm" to highlight notes rated helpful by users with differing viewpoints, ensuring balanced and credible information is displayed alongside videos [1]. The more helpful a footnote is deemed, the more likely it is to become visible to a broader audience.
To make the most of Footnotes, small businesses should ensure their notes provide clear, factual, and useful context to their videos. This could include sourcing claims, explaining product benefits, or adding customer testimonials. Businesses should also engage with the Footnotes community by encouraging eligible contributors to rate their footnotes as helpful, which helps surface them to more viewers [2].
Monitoring feedback from Footnotes can help small businesses understand community concerns or questions, allowing them to adjust their messaging accordingly. It's important to note that initial implementation may see footnotes taking time to become public as users familiarize themselves with the feature.
Small business owners can leverage Footnotes by creating videos addressing industry-specific questions or concerns. By participating actively in this community-driven fact-checking environment, small businesses can foster an informed community on TikTok and help combat misinformation.
TikTok is committed to platform integrity and has pre-existing programs aimed at combating misinformation and promoting media literacy. The platform will employ a blend of automated and human moderation to keep the content in line with its Community Guidelines. Users can report Footnotes if they believe they violate community standards.
Since Footnotes do not impact business incentives on the platform, small businesses can use this feature without worrying about affecting their eligibility for TikTok’s Creator Rewards Program [2].
In summary, Footnotes offer small businesses a tool to enrich their video content with reliable supplementary information, foster transparency, and increase engagement by participating actively in this community-driven fact-checking environment [1][2][3].
For more information, visit the original press release.
[1] TikTok Press Release, "Introducing Footnotes: A New Way to Share Context on TikTok," 2022. [2] TikTok Help Centre, "Footnotes: Frequently Asked Questions," 2022. [3] TikTok Help Centre, "Community Guidelines," 2022.
- Small businesses can use the Footnotes feature on TikTok to add credible and balanced information to their videos, enhancing audience engagement and fostering stronger connections.
- Leveraging social-media-driven consensus, Footnotes is a fact-checking system that allows users to rate the helpfulness of notes, ensuring information displayed is both informative and reliable.
