Unless you’ve been living under a rock, chances are that by now you’ve heard of IGTV. IGTV is one of the latest features on our favourite social platform, but while we’re very familiar with Instagram itself and Insta Stories, this feature seems to have an air of mystery surrounding it in terms of its functionality and purpose. We were curious to find out more about this new feature, which is why today’s post is going to be focused on debunking the IGTV enigma and talk about what it is and how to use it.
What is it?
IGTV is, in short, an extension of Instagram Stories. However, whereas Stories limits users to uploading content that is only up to a minute long, IGTV gives users the freedom to upload videos from 15 seconds up ten minutes long – and counting. Rumour has it that some users are able to upload videos that are up to 60 minutes (!!) long, but only if you’re a certified account or have a significant amount of followers.
While any Instagram user has surely noticed the presence of the IGTV feature in the native IG app, it’s suggested to download the IGTV app for continuous, uninterrupted viewing of your favorite accounts’ IGTV content.
What are the requirements?
The IGTV feature is best experienced through vertical footage captured in 1080 x 1920 format. While horizontal videos can be uploaded to IGTV, the horizontal 16:9 ratio doesn’t make for a comfortable viewing experience. Anyone with an active Instagram account is able and encouraged to test out this feature – just remember to shoot your content vertically!
What’s the best content to upload to IGTV?
Good things take time, and IGTV is still very new – meaning that the experts haven’t been able to weigh in on which kind of content is best to upload yet. However, because this feature is so brand new, now is the time to get creative. Test out a few different styles of video (tutorial, critique, candid, etc.) and analyze your stats! By keeping track of the success of your own IGTV videos, you’ll be able to know which content your audience engages with the most and how to best #KEEPSOCIAL with them!
How to get started
There’s a significant difference between adding to your Insta Stories compared to creating content for IGTV. For one, the generous 10 minute-cap on IGTV can seem a little intimidating. How do you even come up with a 10 minute spiel that promises to keep followers engaged?
The best way is to plan. Come up with a brief script; even just jotting down bullet points to jog your memory when you find yourself in the middle of your filming can prove to be incredibly helpful. You don’t have to have every word you intend to say written down, but having structure is always a good call and proves for a more stable narrative.
Next, make sure that you have access to ample editing software. Unlike Insta Stories’ ability to be candid and engaging, a 10 minute-long candid IGTV video is probably not going to keep your followers engaged for long. Unfortunately, iMovie isn’t compatible with vertical video, so make sure that you have either Adobe Premiere or Final Cut Pro installed on your computer to edit and split your clips!
Thanks for reading, lovelies! Want to learn more about IGTV? Check out WISTIA’s article here.
Catch you next week, but until then, don’t forget to #KEEPSOCIAL! 🍒
Michelle ✨
@serotinamedia
#KEEPSOCIAL
