Expert Article - FINAL

The Keithification of TikTok

How One TikToker Changed the Food Landscape of Las Vegas

Scroll, scroll, ugh NEXT. It’s 7am and you're perusing TikTok while you're on your morning commute. Or maybe it’s 10pm on a Saturday and you’re winding down the night with short curated videos. You keep skipping through trendy dances and comedy skits before eventually coming across a food review praising a local restaurant just around the corner from you. Is the review convincing enough for you to try it?

Do you believe in word of mouth? Even if you don't, word of mouth is still recognized as one of the most effective marketing methods. Over 80% of consumers are said to have purchased something based on an influencer’s recommendation (Moran). With the rise of social media influencing, one man in specific looms above all as a trustworthy source for all things food-related in Las Vegas, and that is Keith Lee.

Wait, Who’s Keith Lee?

Currently standing at 10.3 million followers on TikTok, Keith Lee is living multiple lives as a mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter and part-time food critic. The 26-year-old Las Vegas native found his start on TikTok in 2020 with family-related content, from documenting his wife’s pregnancy cravings to sharing the arrival of his newborn. In 2022, he began to lean on something new— conducting food reviews. From local businesses to foreign snacks, Lee started a new series of him rating various cuisines from 1-10, and it quickly became a hit.

With his most-seen food review standing at 50 million views, his newfound content has garnered a supportive fanbase who worships his every opinion. So, what’s his recipe for success?

Let's Rate It 1-10.

Trust is the biggest factor for longevity in social media influencing. When perceived as trustworthy, consumers may see influencers’ recommendations to be on par with family and friends’ recommendations, which is seen as more credible than traditional advertisements (Almahdi et al). And in order to create trust, one has to be seen as genuine.

When Lee’s MMA career came to a halt, he displayed vulnerability as he shared about his financial instability and setbacks. Despite his hardships, he never failed to remain grateful and always thanked his higher power for what he has. Even with his newfound success, he still maintains his humbleness and has not changed in attitude or interests. His authenticity has been recognized by the masses and is a major ingredient in his success story.

Keithification: His Contribution to Las Vegas' Food Scene

What began as a simple food review series resulted in life-changing ramifications for not only Keith, but also for the plethora of businesses that he has reviewed. Frankensons Pizzeria can attest to Lee’s impact. As reported by Inside Edition, Frankensons was a family-owned restaurant that was struggling to pay rent. An employee had submitted a request for Keith to review the restaurant’s food, and the rest was history. Within 3 to 4 hours of posting his review, Keith’s video garnered over 10 million views on TikTok. By the 24 hour mark, Frankensons’ social media platforms skyrocketed by 3400% in followers. The owner Frank stated they worked nonstop from 9AM to 5PM the following day, which is a drastic shift from the normal 4-5 orders a day.

Frankensons Pizzeria is just one of the many local businesses that Lee’s reviews have positively impacted. While he never imagined his influence being this extensive, Keith recognizes his voice can be a marketing vessel for businesses who are scrambling to get by. Keith has made his mission clear of wanting to continually highlight mom-and-pop shops and to help create lasting changes in his community. 

One of his most recent initiatives to give back to a local business was through his collaboration with MrBeast, a YouTube star and philanthropist (Glaze). As a challenge, Keith reviewed 10 businesses in Las Vegas and fans voted for the best restaurant to win. The winner, a Las Vegas fusion restaurant named Aloha Mamacita, was then rewarded $10,000 from MrBeast. This challenge stuck with Lee’s goal of “un-struggling” a local business and working with known philanthropist MrBeast also accumulated a great deal of attention and hype for all the participating businesses.

Are You Convinced Yet?

With Keith Lee’s success, we are witnessing the sheer power that social media has in our daily lives. A single man’s review can resuscitate struggling businesses and flip people’s livelihood around within hours. Word-of-mouth has been and always will be one of the most effective marketing methods around. Especially with people’s skepticism around the press and traditional forms of marketing, social media influencers offer the human authenticity a television ad can’t replicate. You are also allowed to make personal judgments about their character based on their content. This is what made Keith Lee so successful as he has proven his genuinity and unbiasedness.

Now that you have learned about the world of food reviews and social media influencing, will you go try a local restaurant based on a video praising it on TikTok? Let me know. 

 

Works Cited

Almahdi, Maryam & Alsayed, Noor & Alabbas, Amani. (2022). In Influencers We Trust? A Model of Trust Transfer in Social Media Influencer Marketing. 10.1007/978-3-030-99000-8_9. 

Glaze, Virginia. “MrBeast Gives $10,000 to Struggling Restaurant for Keith Lee Viral Challenge.” Dexerto, Dexerto, 1 Feb. 2023, https://www.dexerto.com/entertainment/mrbeast-gives-10000-to-struggling-restaurant-for-keith-lee-viral-challenge-2050022/. 

“How Tiktok Food Critic Keith Lee Resuscitated a Struggling Restauranthttps://Www.insideedition.com/Media/Videos/How-a-Tiktok-Food-Critic-Resuscitated-a-Struggling-Las-Vegas-Restaurant-79045.” Inside Edition, Inside Edition, 10 Jan. 2023, https://www.insideedition.com/media/videos/how-a-tiktok-food-critic-resuscitated-a-struggling-las-vegas-restaurant-79045. 

Moran, Matt. “29+ Significant Influencer Marketing Statistics (2023).” Startup Bonsai, Startup Bonsai, 10 Oct. 2022, https://startupbonsai.com/influencer-marketing-statistics/.