The buzz around TikTok’s ad spending is that it's not what it used to be. Even though the platform’s ad dollars were climbing year over year, things started to shift when talks of a possible U.S. ban popped up back in March.

Since that ban scare, brands and creators are tweaking their strategies on TikTok. They're moving away from just trying to get their name out there, and are now focusing more on getting a solid return on their investments.

“We’re seeing ad spend decelerate a bit YoY,” the first agency executive said. “That’s because the ban triggered more of a performance-centric mindset, and TikTok stands weaker in performance compared to Meta.”

Also, TikTok’s usually user growth is showing signs of slowing down, especially among the younger crowd. 

So what does this mean for you as a creator? I think it's time to seriously make some contingency plans for what you might do if you're primarily a TikTok creator.  you might want to consider increasing what you do on other platforms, or even checking out some platforms that you're not on yet, and diving into those. 

For the first time, it seems like their numbers are plateauing, and they’re actually seeing fewer young users. Last year, about 35% of users aged 18 - 24 were on TikTok weekly, but now, that’s down to 25%. However, the platform is gaining more users in the 35 to 44 age bracket.

Financially, TikTok’s ad spend was still up 19% in March, the same month everyone started talking about the ban. But after that, the increases weren’t as steep—11% in April and just 6% in May.

And, get this—four of the top ten advertisers, including big names like Target and DoorDash, actually cut back on what they were spending in April.

From the start of the year through May, TikTok still saw over $1.5 billion in ad spending, which is up 11% from last year, but it's clear things are starting to cool off a bit.