Perpetual Help College of Manila

1240 V. Concepcion Street, Sampaloc, Manila

Senior High School Department

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CHAPTER 1
THE INFLUENCE OF THE TIKTOK APP ON THE SPENDING BEHAVIOR OF
GRADE 11 STUDENTS ON ONLINE SHOPPING

Introduction
In the era of digitalization, where technological advancement has

penetrated through our daily lives, market strategies and consumers’ spending

behaviors have also adjusted rapidly (Gelati & Verplancke, 2022). Especially directed

towards the generation Z (those born the late 1990s and the early 2010s), macro and

micro-targeting has been a marketing strategy for many companies in the Philippines

and elsewhere around the world.

A cursory look at existing studies show that there is a growing consensus among

market scholars that social media applications, especially Tiktok, have heavily

influenced the consumption patterns of teenagers around the world. The use of social

media marketing through TikTok social media influencers have shaped the way people

appreciate certain products and create compulsive behaviors among them. With the

advent of online shopping, social media hypes have drastically provided an enabling

environment for more compulsive behaviors of the youth.

In the Philippines, GritPH enumerates Lazada and Shoppee as the leading online

shopping companies. Affiliate companies boost their publicity and hype their

products. Social media influencers like controversial artist Alex Gonzaga influenced her

fan base and media reach, allowing online shopping platforms such as Shoppee and

Lazada to grow exponentially.Moreover, a Dirir (2022) findings demonstrate that Tiktok

influencers have the capable of turning anything they touch into gold and can

influence the purchase behavior by directing them to particular brands.

But while there is ample evidence on the apparent influence of the TikTok App to

spending patterns of teenagers on the global front, there is a thin set of literature that
contextualizes this in the Philippine setup. The Philippines, a developing country with

one of the slowest internet connection in the world, shares the global trend of influence

but also has its peculiarities in terms of spending patterns. This study attempts to capture

such peculiarities. It will provide empirical evidence by particularly looking into the

influence of the Tiktok social media app on the spending behavior of Grade 11

students In Perpetual Help College of Manila towards online shopping.