TikTok Copycats Hot App BeReal

BeReal, or the ‘anti-Instagram’ app, is a social media app where,"everyday at a different time, everyone is notified simultaneously to capture and share a photo in 2 minutes"(Perreau, 2022). The app uses your front and back camera simultaneously, highlighting what you’re doing in that exact moment. This app was created by French entrepreneur, Alexis Barreyat, who formerly worked in media production at GoPro. I believe that this app was created in response to the current trends and algorithms on other social media platforms. BeReal is currently the rawest social media platform by not allowing you to edit your photos, use filters or show how many followers you have. This app restricts you from creating that picture-perfect life or image many people are trying to show on other social media platforms. If your end goal is to be an influencer, I suggest sticking to Instagram and TikTok.

BeReal was originally created in 2019, but as of October 2022, the app has over 53 million downloads worldwide (Sklencar, 2022). The chart below, taken from Sensor Tower highlights the vast increase in downloads per month. If I do say so myself, it is quite impressive.

(Chan, 2022)

However, I am apparently not the only one impressed by this growth and instant popularity of the app. TikTok was clearly inspired by this new app and loved it so much that they decided to add a feature to their app called 'TikTok Now'. A quote from TikTok’s website explains the new feature; "TikTok Now invites you and your friends to capture what you're doing in the moment using your device's front and back camera"(TikTok, 2022). Sounds exactly like BeReal to me. Further down in that article, they also mention, "TikTok Now brings the authenticity of TikTok to a whole new creative experience that connects you with those closest to you,” and I couldn’t disagree more. There is nothing authentic about this new feature, in fact it’s actually quite bogus. The only thing authentic about it is the fact that it is a video rather than a photo.

Just as Instagram stole the idea of stories from Snapchat and creating reels from Tiktok, TikTok has now taken matters into their own hands by stealing the idea of BeReal. If this whole copycat trend continues, I hope these social media platforms will consider hiring a new creative team to produce real, authentic ideas.

Footnotes:

Chan, S., 2022. BeReal Exceeds 50 Million Installs WorldwIde. [online] Sensor Tower. Available at:

<https://sensortower.com/blog/bereal-50m-installs > [Accessed 14 October 2022].

Perreau, K., 2022. BeReal. Your Friends for Real.. [online] Bere.al. Available at: <https://bere.al/en2>

[Accessed 14 October 2022].

Sklencar, A., 2022. 18 Stats to Know About BeReal App (Updated Oct. 7th, 2022). [online] Online

Optimism. Available at: <https://www.onlineoptimism.com/blog/bereal-stats-app-figures-data-be-

real-numbers-to-know/ > [Accessed 14 October 2022].

TikTok, 2022. Introducing more ways to create and connect with TikTok Now. [online] Newsroom TikTok.

Available at: <https://newsroom.tiktok.com/en-us/introducing-tiktok-now?

utm_source=COMMSTWITTER&utm_medium=SOCIAL&utm_campaign=20220915> [Accessed 14

October 2022].