Your TikTok moment is coming

The TikTok ban is another reminder to control your own internet presence.

For a few hours this weekend, visitors from the United States were shut out of TikTok.

That was just a minor inconvenience for most TikTok users. They found something else to do with their time rather than mindlessly swipe through short videos of cats and sports highlights.

But it was a stressful time for creators who depend on TikTok for their livelihoods. Whether they promote their likeness or sell goods to their followers, the app’s ban meant their business could evaporate overnight.

It’s a stark reminder of the risks people take when they build a business or a following on a firm’s platform. You don’t own the platform, and the platform surely has different incentives than you do.

Previously, it was the platforms themselves that harmed users who grew dependent on them. Facebook convinced firms to build their fanbase on Facebook, only to charge them to get in front of those fans. X (Twitter) has changed the rules of engagement under fresh ownership, making it harder for some users to benefit from their activity.

The TikTok ban is a different kind of threat. While the U.S. banning an app may seem shocking, it’s quite common for countries to do this. (China has blocked Facebook, YouTube, and WhatsApp, among others.)

Whether it’s the platform itself or the government, building an audience on a social media platform is risky. It can be taken from you at any moment.

Let this serve as another reminder that you need to own your audience. You need a website and email, and you need a domain you can build upon—something that won’t be taken away at a platform’s whim.