The Utilization of Social Media by Women's Associations: A Study on UN Women’s Communication Strategies on TikTok

Women's entities utilize TikTok, a platform with over 1.5 billion users, as a strategic communication tool to engage individuals primarily within the 16-34 age demographic. UN Women established an official account on TikTok on March 4, 2020. A thorough analysis of the literature reveals a notable absence of academic inquiry into the communication strategies employed by UN Women on TikTok and other social media platforms. This study sought to analyse the themes, linguistic constructs, typologies, objectives, emotional undercurrents, formats, engagement metrics, and spokespersons of the posts on the TikTok account of UN Women, thereby elucidating the manner in which the entity engaged with the platform. Thus, the study aimed to contribute to the literature on the digital communication strategies of UN Women and the role of TikTok in the communication strategies of international entities operating within the field of women's rights. In the study, a content analysis was conducted on 164 posts disseminated through the UN Women TikTok account from March 4, 2020, to November 26, 2024. Upon analysis of the findings, it was determined that UN Women has employed elements such as music, subtitles, captions, and hashtags in its TikTok posts, thereby constructing an effective digital communication strategy. Moreover, the analysis revealed that the entity utilized various video formats to convey targeted messages to its audience. The findings indicated that the entity employed a strategy consistent with the platform's dynamic nature by incorporating a higher representation of youth in its videos. However, the analysis identified that the entity did not adequately address the needs of marginalized individuals and failed to fully implement the principle of multilingualism. Finally, the entity was found to have disseminated various content on TikTok addressing the issues faced by women. Nevertheless, it was determined that insufficient emphasis was placed on issues such as child marriage, the challenges encountered by migrant women, inequalities experienced by women with disabilities, and abortion rights.