Who said TikTok was for Gen Z?

TikTok is mostly recognised for appealing to a younger audience - 66% of TikTok users are under the age of 30, However, TikTok’s audience is growing in demographic YOY, with a further spike in popularity as a result of the global lockdown and it appears there are older users on the platform.

Recently, a few older TikTok users, coaxed by younger family members and co-workers, have found their way onto the platform and often they’re killing it, with hundreds of thousands of followers. 

Here is a selection of our favourite older TikTok users:

Tim McNeely, the dancing dentist, 46, is a dentist with a knack for making patients comfortable. While he sometimes tells jokes or dances to calm clients down, he never expected to be famous for his moves. 

McNeely has amassed 1.5 million followers on TikTok and regularly films with trending dance moves like "the whoa" and includes tricks with his hat or his backpack. 

Dan Phelps, the comic chameleon, 55, Phelps, loved doing silly impressions and voices growing up. He didn’t go pro as an actor but when one of his younger employees showed him the app, Phelps thought, “That looks like fun” and made an account. His first video was a hit. Sitting in his car, he holds an empty paper towel roll to his mouth and roars like a lion. It received over 3 million views.

Lillian Droniak, a Lill wonder, 89, Grandma Lill, as she’s known online, has been making YouTube videos with her 22-year-old grandson, Kevin, since 2012. Their joint channel has 545,000 followers. In Lill’s first TikTok video, she behaves exactly as you’d expect an 89-year-old woman to when confronted with confusing technology: “I don’t understand TikTok,” she says, then riffs nonsensically. “I’m going to be like a clock.” The video blew up overnight. 

So, there you go, it appears TikTok is no longer just for younger users. TikTok is getting older. This is a great sign that the app and the best time to start getting involved is as soon as possible. But how will Gen-Z’s react to their parents (and grandparents) being on the app? Time will tell.

 Be sure to get in touch to discuss how to reach audiences (young and old) on TikTok.