TikTok has spawned a variety of viral career trends such as “lazy girl,” “bare minimum Mondays,” and “quiet quitting.” There are a growing number of TikTok creators with various backgrounds giving all sorts of career advice on the platform.
To learn more about the career-related information working Gen Zers and millennials are getting from TikTok and how it’s influenced them, in October, ResumeBuilder.com surveyed 1,000 full-time workers aged 21 to 40.
Key findings:
- Half of Gen Zers, millennials are getting career advice on TikTok
- 1 in 5 Gen Zers, millennials have made decisions based on advice from TikTok creators
- 88% say these decisions have had a positive impact on their lives
- 11% of respondents say they’ve paid TikTok creators for career-related services
Half of Gen Zers, Millennials Get Career Advice on TikTok
A majority of Gen Zers and millennials use TikTok. More specifically, 77% of Gen Zers (21-26 years old), 59% of younger millennials (27-33 years), and 54% of older millennials (34-40 years old) use the social media app.
Of those who use TikTok, 86% (or half of the total sample) say they get career advice from the platform with some frequency. Overall, 27% say they get career advice on TikTok frequently, 38% say sometimes, and 22% say not very often. Only 14% say they never do.
Gen Zers more frequently get career advice on TikTok than both younger and older millennials.
Two-thirds of respondents who get career-related advice from creators on the platform say they are very trusting (18%) or somewhat trusting (49%) of the advice. Gen Zers are more likely to be trusting of the information they are receiving than millennials.
Despite most consumers of this information saying they are trusting of the information, the majority say they do encounter misleading career-related information. Twenty-five percent say they encounter misleading information frequently, and 53% say they sometimes do.
“Most creators are sharing their personal career experience and calling it career coaching, which isn’t coaching,” says ResumeBuilder.com’s Resume and Career Strategist Julia Toothacre. “Personal experience is a way to connect, but it does not account for the unique experience, personality, and needs of their followers.
“Recruiters and HR professionals are another group providing advice, and the majority of that information is solid because they are in the hiring end. However, some recruiters and HR professionals have only been in certain industries or recruiters for certain types of functions, so make sure they align with what you do.
“There can be great advice on TikTok if you understand who is providing the information. I would advise people to research the background of creators. Although some are really good at marketing or repackaging advice they saw from experienced professionals, it doesn’t mean they have the background or experience to give you advice.
“Especially with one-on-one coaching, you need to really vet that person because you want to ensure they can help you with your unique situation. Anyone who offers a quick fix or guarantees that you’ll get a job within a certain amount of time is probably not a reliable resource.”
4 in 10 have made career-related decisions based on information from TikTok creators
Overall, 36% of those who say they get career advice on TikTok (or 21% of the total sample) say they have made career-related decisions based on information they’ve consumed. Gen Zers were more likely than millennials to say they’ve made decisions based on information they’d received from TikTok, with 41% of this group saying they have.
Overall, the majority (88%) say these decisions have had a positive impact on their lives. Only 2% say the decisions had a negative impact, while 10% say the impact was not positive or negative.
11% Have Paid TikTok Creators for Career Coaching
Of the TikTok users we surveyed, 62% say they’ve encountered a TikTok creator who offers career coaching services. Of this group, 30% (or 11% of the total sample) say they’ve paid for offered services.
Of those who paid for services, 32% say they spent $501 to $1,000, 29% spent $1,001 to $1,500, and 7% spent over $1,500.
For most, it may have been worth the cost, as 61% say the services they paid for were extremely useful, and 34% say somewhat useful. Only 5% claim the services were not very useful, and no respondents answered that the services weren’t useful at all.
“People pay for a career coach to help them manage difficult interpersonal relationships at work, deal with toxic environments, and advance or change their career direction. An outside perspective and experience from a coach can provide significant value,” says Toothacre.
“I like to put career advice into two categories: transactional and transformational. Transactional advice is about the job search process (résumé, interview prep, negotiation skills, and general job search strategy). Transformational advice is about digging into your specific situation to help you make the best decisions in your career moving forward. Understanding whether you need transformational or transactional advice is important because you need to ensure you find a coach who can offer the type of advice you need.
“A trained career coach will ask hard questions and be honest with you about your situation. They won’t lead you on or sell you something you don’t need.”
Methodology
This online poll was commissioned by ResumeBuilder.com and conducted on SurveyMonkey Audience in October 2023. Overall, 1,000 respondents between the ages of 21 and 40 completed the survey who currently work full-time.
Respondents consist of a national sample that was randomly selected from a U.S. panel and balanced according to U.S. census data for gender and region.
Learn more about SurveyMonkey’s methodology or contact [email protected] for more information.
