IGTV is the new service provided by Facebook-owned Instagram. IGTV is accessible through Instagram or the new standalone IGTV app.
Videos are currently limited to between 60 seconds and 10 minutes, but plans are in place to remove the limit. IGTV is made of portrait videos, targeting a younger audience that relies heavily on smartphones. This is something that YouTube currently doesn’t offer, instead opting for the traditional landscape videos. These require the user to turn the phone on its side.
This is working well for self-branding on Instagram with the availability of lengthy videos, meaning you can connect to audiences in a new or different way.
Instagram already mimicked Snapchat (with Instagram’s parent company, Facebook, doing the same) and now it has also strategically decided to mimic Google’s company YouTube. This will not only mean that they are able to reach YouTube’s generation but also have the qualities of Snapchat, YouTube and Instagram all on one platform rather than a range of them.
How well is it going?
Well. Instagram reached one billion active members shortly after the release of IGTV. This now gives Instagram the opportunity to reach a larger audience of young adults/teens. This is the audience that Facebook struggles to reach as effectively as the likes of Instagram.
YouTube currently has 1.8 billion users and Instagram has grown by 200 million users in the last nine months. This means Instagram could potentially provide strong competition to YouTube.
A silver lining to every cloud? Facebook will now also be able to offer an increased variety of advertising space. This will benefit companies and brands throughout the social media platform.
For more Instagram statistics go to: https://www.statista.com/statistics/253577/number-of-monthly-active-instagram-users/
If you’d like to know more about how Instagram can be an integral part of your social media strategy, please get in touch today.