In comparison, TikTok is almost the antithesis of Tumblr’s format, but it offers similar content. The program's structure allows for a similar paid content opportunity as a typical influencer, but still lacks that identifiable face that other platforms champion. It features artists and their work for potential pairing with brands and advertisers in paid campaigns. "Even though you can do that in Tumblr, I feel like it was more of a place for curating content and mood boards, which didn’t match the direction that society was heading."Īlthough not exactly an influencer platform, Tumblr does currently have its Creatr (Opens in a new tab) program which launched in 2015. "I think part of was the growing vanity around social platforms, where your image and content provides a reward for sharing yourself or an edited version of yourself," said Haley Peterson, former active Tumblr user, in a DM. You could have a super successful blog without ever showing your face or talking directly to your followers, and that’s the difference between an influencer-type of success and blogging fame. And back then, short form videos were on Vine (RIP).Īnd while that was all fine and good, the lack of video content on Tumblr didn’t let true Tumblr personalities develop. If you wanted longer content, you’d move to YouTube. Since the dashboard was a never-ending scroll, similar to TikTok, users didn’t want to sit on one post to watch a five minute video. People didn’t log on to Tumblr to watch videos, because nothing about Tumblr’s video format was specific to its platform.
While Tumblr did have the capability to post video content, it just wasn’t that popular. The closest it came was GIFs, which used to take a thousand years to load, so it was more worth it to just keep scrolling. And while Tumblr had the joke text post down, you would be unlikely to find a true video post in your Tumblr dashboard. Quick how-tos, lifestyle vlogs, and meme videos give me a hit of dopamine in a way that static posts just can’t accomplish. Long story short, the social media world loves videos. Tumblr content just didn’t keep up with the times While a Tumblr spokesperson says that 48 percent of its current user base is Gen Z, it's undeniable that the site's total user numbers have dropped off in the past few years.Īfter a deep dive into my own archived blogging history and current For You Page, here’s why I think that is - and some takeaways on how TikTok can avoid the same fate. But Tumblr is practically dead, and TikTok is very much alive. (Opens in a new tab)īasically, if you think about it hard enough, TikTok is a modern iteration of Tumblr. If you search for the older Gen Z cuspers or millennials on TikTok, you might even see specific references to Tumblr inside jokes. These days, you can still find almost all of these same trends on TikTok: 17-year-olds posting their personal drama with #messytok (Opens in a new tab), artists capturing their creative processes (Opens in a new tab) and final results, and Draco Malfoy thirst trap edits (Opens in a new tab) that make me slightly uncomfortable.
And in those days, if you had an angsty text post, an artsy photo edit, or a sexy GIF of your favorite fictional character headcanon, you posted it on Tumblr. The teens are on TikTok these days, but back in my day, Tumblr was the place to be.ĭoes this make me sound ancient? Well, joke's on you, because I’m actually Gen Z, but old enough to remember life before TikTok.
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