TikTok Confirms Employees Can Make Certain Videos Go Viral With A “Heating” Button

TikTok confirms its employees can promote specific videos to enhance relationships with creators and businesses.

According to Forbes, the streaming app recently confirmed some of its employees can decide on which videos go viral. TikTok says the company allows this to happen in order to “introduce celebrities and emerging creators to the TikTok community.”

TikTok controls the videos by using a “heating” button, which allows employees to add certain videos onto users’ For You pages. Doing this helps boost views by bypassing the app’s algorithm.

In addition, TikTok spokesperson Jamie Favazza, says another reason for the heating button is to “promote some videos to help diversify the content experience.” Favazza added that TikTok doesn’t use the heating button often. In fact, user’s FYP only consists of roughly .002% heated videos, which makes up “around 1-2 percent” of “total daily video views.”

However, Forbes also reported that some TikTok employees have been using the heating button to promote their friend’s content as well as themselves.

Nevertheless, users can expect to see a few “heated” videos on their FYP but will not know it because unlike the advertisements and sponsored posts, the videos will not come with a label.