IGTV – A NEW PLATFORM ON INSTAGRAM

What is IGTV?

IGTV is Instagram’s way of disrupting the traditional TV experience and transitioning to a contemporary, mobile experience. YouTube has exploded in popularity in recent years, and due to mobile video material, the amount of time teenagers spend in front of TV screens has been reduced by 40%.

Everyone on Instagram can now open their own IGTV where they can share long videos. For now, videos can be 10 minutes long for most accounts, but 60 minutes for large accounts, and Instagram states that there will be no time limit after that.

IGTV churns out videos based on your interests and who you follow, and you can certainly search and watch brands and trends. Just like you can Instagram Story, you can also share IGTV video material with your friends via Instagram Direct.

There is no advertising material yet, as Instagram is focused on building a platform, but it is very likely that there will be.

3 Things You Need to Know About IGTV

#1 IGTV is only for vertical videos

As we said, IGTV is for vertical videos. Of course, you can technically upload a horizontal video to IGTV, but it’s not the best experience.

Vertical video makes it easier for everyone to feel how they can start creating, and instead of the pressure to create professional videos on the camera, vertical video of course encourages you to record with your phone.

#2 IGTV is like Youtube, not Netflix

While you can upload videos for up to an hour on IGTV, don’t expect to watch your favorite TV shows there anytime soon.

The goal of IGTV is to be more like YouTube and less like Netflix. IGTV is more for following your favorite brands or bloggers, rather than the Hollywood elite.

Instagram is trying to take a slice of YouTube’s and Snapchat’s pie by attracting to IGTV teens who are popular on these platforms.

#3 IGTV is a mobile touch experience

While you won’t see your favorite TV shows on IGTV, Instagram is trying to replace the mobile experience with traditional TV.

Just like when you turn on the TV and the show starts playing immediately, when you open the IGTV app, the video will automatically start playing.

There are currently 3 IGTV categories: “For you”, “Following” and “Popular”

“For you” is a collection of videos that Instagram thinks you’ll like, made up of the people you follow as well as those videos that Instagram’s algorithm has determined to be there.
“Following” is a collection of videos of all the Instagram profiles you already follow
“Popular” contains all the trending videos on IGTV.

Now that you understand more about how IGTV works, you’re ready to create your own channel and upload your first IGTV video!

IGTV can be a huge asset to your business, depending on what you’re doing.

If you want to build awareness of people and users of INSTAGRAM and other social media in the right way , contact us NOW.