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Under the impression that the app was mainly for dancing, skits and entertainment, the 23-year-old was pleasantly surprised when he received positive responses for showcasing his craftsman skills. Arias is so skilled, that he's won the “Forged in Fire� History Channel blacksmithing competition twice.

“The algorithm of TikTok is actually extremely beneficial, kind of an unprecedented way of marketing,� Arias said. “There’s a community for basically every single niche on TikTok, so it’s a very valuable marketing tool.�

But that marketing tool could soon go away for Arias and millions of other Americans.

On Friday, the Supreme Court upheld a federal law that will ban TikTok on national security grounds if its Chinese owner ByteDance does not sell it before a Sunday deadline. President Joe Biden, who signed the bill into law in April, said Thursday he would punt enforcement of the ban to President-elect Trump, who is sworn in Monday.

TikTok, which has 170 million users, has been used as a tool for small businesses and creators worldwide, including in Nebraska. An Oxford Economics study found that 25,000 businesses in Nebraska were actively using TikTok as of June 2023.

On Friday, Gov. Jim Pillen praised Attorney General Mike Hilgers, who brought a separate civil case against the social media giant alleging the company made misrepresentations under state consumer laws.

“TikTok is a massive national security threat and nothing but a tool for the Chinese Communist Party in its war against our way of life and to manipulate our kids," Pillen said in a statement. "Nebraskans don’t want their data stolen by anyone — let alone a foreign adversary."

While Arias would like to see TikTok stay, he said there are some genuine concerns about data security.

“I think that is a genuine issue, especially because it’s run by a foreign nation. But at the same time, I think those are things that could be addressed without removing the app entirely,� he said.

His account has nearly 662,000 followers and has earned 14 million video likes over the year.

As a marketing major, Arias has utilized the app’s analytics tools where he’s found 25% of his market comes from outside the United States, ranging in ages from 16 to 60.

“TikTok is basically the best-case scenario for marketing,� Arias said. “We’ve never seen anything like it before. Something that can reach millions of people with one post, that can get you tons and tons of leads and orders and references and clicks, just from one platform.�

Amid the impending ban, Arias said he’s worked on connecting with customers on other forms of social media.

“It’s harder to get followers on Instagram than it is on TikTok, but I have built up quite a following on there,� Arias said. “Most of my business runs through Instagram anyways because you can post photographs and a variety of content and have more correspondence with customers."

Arias said that isn’t the same case for many small businesses who rely solely on TikTok for features such as paid advertising, the TikTok Shop, where people can buy and sell goods, and the Creator Fund, where TikTok pays creators for generating content.

JT Martin, the founder of Loudr, a viral content agency in Lincoln, is responsible for helping businesses run their own social media accounts in addition to his own account, The Corn Belt. He started his page three years ago on TikTok, Instagram and YouTube when he moved back to Lincoln after stays in California and New York City.

“Seeing Nebraska again after moving back through this global or coastal lens and being able to communicate that through social media was just super exciting to me,� Martin said.

While his platforms on Meta, which includes Facebook and Instagram, draw more local followers, his TikTok account attracts more viewers from out of state.

“The TikTok algorithm values absurdity and novelty. That’s why people go to TikTok,� Martin said. “A lot of my TikTok viewers end up being people who don’t even know what Nebraska is, or may be from outside of Nebraska, and they see something really cool on their screen that’s like a pattern (interruption) that gets them to stop.�

Martin doesn’t make money from the Creator Fund, but he does monetize sponsored posts on The Corn Belt and through his work as a media strategist. He’s also made money by selling products on the TikTok Shop.

Martin said that his business will continue no matter what as he diversifies with other social media platforms, but he is glad that the national security concern is being addressed.

“It’s really important that we acknowledge that as a species, we’re so much more suggestible than we think, and that the impact that these social media platforms have on swaying public sentiment is so much more powerful than we really understand,� Martin said.

Emma Harner’s social media isn’t responsible for her income, but it is a way for the 22-year-old to make meaningful connections as she builds her career in the music world. She started using TikTok last January as a way to post some guitar content and cover songs.

“It was a safe space where really nobody from my real life followed me,� said Harner, a Lincoln native who moved to Boston to study at the Berklee College of Music. “Even if it was a little cringe, I didn’t have to worry about it finding me in real life.�

In preparation for a potential TikTok shutdown, Harner said she’s been transferring her connections to other sites to save her networking work.

“Otherwise, I just kind of completely lose them,� Harner said. “Some of those follows and follow-backs are big deals for me. People that I look up to, other artists in the industry, I had to make sure to preserve those as well.�

She’s also hoping to move to long-form-based media on her accounts on Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and Substack. She’s also created an account on Xiaohongshu, a Chinese social media platform also known as Red Note, just in case it continues to pick up popularity.

“TikTok going away is certainly bad for a lot of people, but I am excited to see what happens next,� Harner said. “It feels very unfair just the way that it’s being taken away." 

Last February, Lincoln resident Keenan Serrano, 28, decided to create a social media identity by reviewing Lincoln restaurants under the name, "Keenan Eats." A few months in, his reviews turned into short videos promoting local restaurants on TikTok and Facebook.

“I wanted to make something that felt natural and authentic,� Serrano said. “My whole thing is helping restaurants tell their brand story.�

While it doesn’t bring a large paycheck in, Serrano said it’s important for him to help encourage people to spend money locally.

TikTok’s potential shutdown in America isn’t stopping Serrano’s brand growth as he’s already claimed his name, “Keenan Eats,� on other platforms, such as YouTube, and for a website domain.

“It’s really out of my control, so I just let it be what it is,� Serrano said. “I’m not really worried. I know if it’s to be banned, we’ll make the moves necessary to adjust. Things might look a little different, but maybe it’ll be beneficial.�