If you want to know where money is moving these days, you need to get on TikTok. 
Good morning.
Facebook’s troubles have been driving the news this week, but Facebook is so, well, yesterday. Sorry boomers, but if you want to know where money is moving these days, you need to get on TikTok.
As Jeffrey O’Brien explains in a story released this morning, this brain candy buffet of brief homemade videos has been the most downloaded app for two years running now, claiming more than 1 billion active global users. And brands are taking notice. TikTok says the number of companies advertising on its platform jumped 500% last year during the pandemic. Top creators can earn tens of thousands of dollars for a single sponsored post, and brands see a quick payoff in sales. Seth Kean, CEO of ROI Influencer, told O’Brien that TikTok drives $7.2 million in sales over 90 days for every million dollars spent, outperforming the next best performer, Instagram, with $6.6 million in sales, as well as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.
How does it work? O’Brien details some of the success stories—like #fetapasta, a series of feta cheese recipes launched by a Finnish chef; or #BamaRush, featuring University of Alabama sorority sisters detailing their party outfits; or Carly Joy’s profanity-laden how-to video on grooming her lady parts with her preferred shaving cream. This may not be your thing. But it is a thing—and an increasingly big one.
You can read O’Brien’s smart and entertaining piece this morning, here. Then when you are done, spend some time exploring Fortune’s newest list, The Creator 25, which celebrates the most successful TikTokers, Instagram Influencers, independent newsletter writers and podcasters that you need to know about. (Sadly, Leadership Next didn’t make the cut.) The list ranges from the cerebral—Ben Thompson, who writes the clever Stratechery Daily—to the physical—Yoga with Adriene, which has 10.3 million s on YouTube—to the profitable—Humphrey Yang, who has managed to snag 23 million followers with snappy and savvy financial tips. If you don’t really understand what the creator economy is all about, it’s time to learn. Go here this morning for a delightful education. I promise, you won’t regret it.
More news below.
Alan Murray
@alansmurray
alan.murray@fortune.com
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This edition of CEO Daily was edited by David Meyer.
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