If you still think TikTok is just a platform for viral videos, it is time to think again. Across Europe and here in Ireland, younger audiences (those aged 18 to 28) are routinely turning to TikTok before they open Google, particularly when looking for recommendations, reviews, and how-to content. For businesses that are not paying attention, that is a significant missed opportunity.
The Numbers Do Not Lie
The European Union reported 169 million monthly active TikTok users in the first half of 2025, and Ireland has been identified as one of the platform’s strongest growth markets in Europe, with user growth upwards of 170% in recent years. Globally, TikTok now reaches approximately 1.9 billion monthly active users.
Among younger demographics, the shift in search behaviour is striking. Research by Revel Interactive found that 74% of Gen Z users actively use TikTok’s search functionality, and 51% now choose it over Google as their preferred search engine. Google’s own internal data confirms that 40% of young people prefer TikTok or Instagram when searching for restaurants, product reviews, or how-to content. That is a remarkable thing for Google to acknowledge.
74% of Gen Z users actively use TikTok search. 51% now choose TikTok over Google as their go-to search engine. (Revel Interactive, 2025)
Why Are People Searching on TikTok?
Traditional search engines deliver text-based results. They are excellent for facts and directions, but when someone wants to know what a restaurant is really like or how a product actually performs in real life, a short video from a genuine customer is far more convincing than a written page.
A 2025 peer-reviewed study found that TikTok scores highly on experiential credibility, meaning users trust creators who share first-hand experience. For Irish businesses in hospitality, retail, food and drink, and lifestyle, that authenticity is a significant advantage over polished web copy. TikTok essentially digitises word-of-mouth at scale, and in Ireland, word-of-mouth has always carried enormous weight.
What People Are Actually Searching For
Research by Rise at Seven, which analysed over 5,000 keywords across multiple industries, shows that TikTok is competing directly with Google across commercially valuable categories. There are 503% more fashion-related searches on TikTok than on Google, road trip searches receive 447,000 monthly queries on TikTok versus 301,000 on Google, and 73% of high-volume TikTok keywords are informational, the same intent that Google has built its business on.
Locally, younger consumers are increasingly searching phrases like ‘best brunch spots in Dublin’ or ‘gyms near me’ on TikTok. If your business does not show up in those results, you are invisible to a growing segment of your potential customers.
What This Means for Your Strategy
TikTok is no longer just a brand awareness tool. Brands running activity on the platform see an average 26% increase in brand search volume, and TikTok’s own research shows that campaigns with a search component deliver twice the purchase lift compared to those without. TikTok Shop is now also live in Ireland and across key European markets, adding a direct commerce layer to the platform’s growing influence.
Getting started does not require a complete overhaul of your marketing strategy. A focused, intentional approach will always outperform posting at high volume with no clear purpose.
- Start with your customers’ most common questions. Those are your TikTok keywords.
- Create short, clear video content that answers those questions directly and gets to the point quickly.
- Use TikTok’s Creator Search Insights tool to see what people in your category are actively searching for.
- Be consistent rather than constant. A few strong videos per week will outperform daily posts with no strategy behind them.
TikTok’s rise as a search engine is not a trend to monitor down the line. It is happening now, and Ireland is one of the platform’s fastest-growing markets in Europe. The businesses building a presence today will have a meaningful head start over those that wait.
Sources: Revel Interactive, 2025; Rise at Seven TikTok SEO Statistics, 2025; TikTok EU Transparency Report, 2025; GWI TikTok in Europe; Telematics and Informatics, 2025; Charle Agency TikTok Statistics, 2026.
