Notion: the TikTok-Viral Software
Earlier in 2021, the up-and-coming productivity software, Notion, went viral on TikTok for its features that include note-taking, calendars, reminders, data/project management, and many more organizational tools. Notion is a collaboration platform and startup based in San Francisco and founded back in 2013 by Ivan Zhao. In March of 2016, the app was first launched for web browsers and in 2018, Notion 2.0 was released as well as its official Android app. By April of 2020, the company was seeing growth from their previous 1 million users in 2019.
In the work-from-home and online communication era, Notion’s popularity skyrocketed as a result of millions of Gen Z students bolstering the app’s already growing user base. TikTok users seemed to love the minimalist qualities of Notion and videos using the platform garnered millions of views as more and more people figured out its usefulness. From its initial start of 4 million users in April of last year to about 20 million today, Notion is one of the major apps that have seen immense growth as a result of the COVID era. Additionally, last week the company’s valuation rose to $10 billion, a significant jump from their previous $800 million from 2019.
Notion’s online culture is unlike any other note-taking software out there. Although they did not share their revenue numbers, the user growth is one of the greatest jumps any platform has seen in a while. Besides their millions of views on TikTok, Notion has grown a community via Reddit as well under the subreddit r/Notion with over 150,000 subscribers which is a huge leg up among other similar productivity tools such as Slack and Zoom (six to ten times more combined). The app is reaching global heights with over 80% of users hailing from outside of the US with its Korean Facebook group hosting over 30,000 people.
The platform is ideal for creating templates for calendars, habit tracks, life wikis, and more organizational strategies. It combines the functions of workplace software from applications such as Microsoft Office, Google Docs, Airtable, and Roam Research.
Its all-in-one workspace composition is ideal for the growing digitalization of the workplace and perfect for team collaboration that can be done outside of the office. Its adaptability to our “new normal” makes its software capabilities even more appealing.
Notion makes itself stand out from the crowd through acquiring Automate.io, a service with automated integrations including payments through PayPal, messaging through Slack, and marketing through Mailchimp. This unique integration from the Indian startup sets it apart from its competitors and increases the functionality of the app.
Its adaptability to our “new normal” makes its software capabilities even more appealing. It’s safe to conclude that the growing virality of Notion will increase its valuation to new heights by the end of the year.
