Article by Emma Gosper – Digital Business Advisor, Western Sydney Business Centre
Last week saw the launch of Instagram’s newest feature – Instagram TV (IGTV).
IGTV is a new space on Instagram to be creative and engage your audience with longer video’s for up to an hour long, rather than the traditional 60 second clip.
Focused on creators, it allows Instagram users to create their own channel and upload long videos to their IGTV channel to drive subscribers and views, as well as add descriptions to their videos with outbound links.
It’s different to posting a normal Instagram video, because your video usually posts to your account feed, just like your images. IGTV is a separate space, accessible by clicking on the tv icon which appears next to your direct messages button in the top right corner. If your Instagram doesn’t have this icon, download the IGTV app, create your own channel and link it to your regular Instagram account.
Viewers can swipe through to access a variety of long form videos recommended to you or available through those you already follow, or you can use the search or browse button to find videos you want to see. You can also like, comment or send directly to friends, just like a normal post or video. IGTV is designed to use and to watch on mobile devices so it’s very easily accessible by all users whether you are a creator or user/subscriber.
The introduction of this new function creates a new opportunity for businesses who use video’s in their marketing strategy or to showcase their services that would traditionally use additional video only platforms such as YouTube.
IGTV is currently ad free, for now. Ads will more than likely be introduced later which opens the door for even more social media advertising and opportunities.
With all the functions currently available on Instagram, it appears it will soon become a social media platform that offers the whole package – video’s, images, stories, promotion & advertising, business profiles, shopping links and more. They are constantly introducing new features, proving they are the platform to beat – so now’s time to consider utilising (and investing in) Instagram as your primary social platform.
