For the time being, Belgian young people are reacting remarkably cautiously to the arrival of TikTok Shop. This is evident from new research by Artevelde University among Gen Z users of TikTok. Testaankoop calls the new player “a disaster for the financially vulnerable”.
Journalist at HLN
Source: Belga
82 percent of Belgian young people between 16 and 29 years old who use TikTok every week would rather not use the function for the time being. Only 6 percent say they want to try out TikTok Shop right away.
Users will be able to add products promoted by their favorite influencers on TikTok to their shopping cart with just a few clicks. They can also make purchases through hours-long live shopping events without leaving the app.
Apple Pay and Google Pay
Payment is made immediately, via Apple Pay and Google Pay, among others. The option to pay deferred may be introduced later. Delivery will be made in our country via Bpost.
TikTok will launch the new feature in our country on June 15. Other countries and language areas have already gone before us. Laura Clays from Testaankoop warns against impulse purchases in the video below.
It remains to be seen how en masse young people will ultimately use the function. The researchers took the arrival of TikTok Shop into account in their survey. The SMI Barometer therefore included specific questions about the attitude of young people towards the new shopping function.
Sellers reliable enough?
The results show that privacy, security and reliability in particular cause a lot of distrust. About seven in ten young people do not trust that TikTok Shop will be safe or that sellers on the platform will be reliable.
There are also major doubts about product quality and consumer protection. More than six in ten do not expect products to always meet European safety standards.
“Young people have no doubts about the ease of use,” says researcher Marijke De Veirman. “But there appears to be a lot of mistrust in matters such as privacy, product safety and reliability.”
