Content creators from Kenya, Nigeria and South Africa dominated the inaugural TikTok Top Content Creators Awards 2022.
by Bird Story Agency
Former rugby player turned food vlogger, Dennis Ombachi AKA @theroamingchef, emerged victorious at the inaugural TikTok Top Creator 2022 Awards. The Kenyan content creator, known for his culinary exploits, took home the Africa Winner award with Nigerian comedian, Charity Ekezie (@charityekezie), as the runner-up.
The TikTok Top Content Creators Awards took place in Nairobi and saw winners walk away with #TopCreator2022 trophies across various categories. The ceremony followed a highly competitive, eight-day-long public voting process on the popular social app. According to a statement by TikTok Africa, the inaugural award “recognises and awards content creators across Sub-Saharan Africa for the immense talent and creativity they brought to the platform in the past year.”
Boniswa Sidwaba, Head of Content Programming for TikTok in Sub-Saharan Africa, explained that the award aims to recognise and reward content creators for their positive impact on the platform’s users. “With these inaugural awards, TikTok aims to give creators in Sub-Saharan Africa the recognition they deserve and to encourage them to tell the African story while spreading joy at all times”.
Dancing queen, Ifeoma Efiokwu, @e4ma on TikTok, won for the West Africa region, with Maduakor Faustina Chisom (@berby_picxy) as her runner-up. South Africa dominated the southern Africa region, with @Pilot_onthegram, an aviation and lifestyle content creator and the first South African pilot to be verified on TikTok
Kenyan beauty enthusiasts, Natasha Gwal @natasha_gwal and @beautyby.nita, were the winner and first runner-up for the East African category. Roy Kanyi, a Kenyan content creator, considers the awards a motivating development for creators like himself. “Many will be more committed to the platform because the award confirms it cares for its creators and pushes for networking among them, which of course, comes with its share of benefits”.
With the growth of the social media market, TikTok continues to appeal to audiences from across the continent. According to Dataxis, a digital data hub, TikTok built a 31.9% market share within Nigeria by 2020. The popularity of the platform on the continent has prompted TikTok to invest further in its growing customer base. In December 2022, TikTok Africa collaborated with Ghana to put together one of the biggest Afrobeats music festivals in Black Star Square, Accra.
The platform’s African content creators are also seeing increasing demand for their creative skills. Fintech and marketing agencies are leveraging their experience to create and amplify marketing campaigns. According to Forbes Africa, TikTok has an advertising reach of 28.9 million users in northern Africa and 7.9 million in southern Africa, as of 2021. While the platform has started paying creators through its Creator Fund, most use other means to make money.
“Lately, creators are actively approaching corporate organisations. But only as long as the product and services to be marketed are consistent with the creator’s content”. Nkululeko Dladla, a South African-based social commerce specialist, added that because TikTok is visually driven, it is more appealing when showcasing products and services. “In South Africa, TikTok can be a powerful tool for fintechs to reach a younger, more digitally savvy audience”.
EDITOR’S PICK: Put Some Respect on TikTok Creator’s Names And Some More For The Female Creators
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