Last week Instagram launched its new video hub, IGTV, allowing users to upload videos up to 60 minutes in length. IGTV will be featured with the popular Instagram Stories in the Instagram app and also in a standalone IGTV app.
Instagram is closing in on 1 billion users, and with IGTV, the social network is taking a shot at video giant, YouTube. Previously, videos in the Instagram feed maxed out at one minute and “Story” videos capped at 15 seconds. IGTV will offer brands a platform to show totally unique, long form content to a massive, growing audience.
IGTV will be mobile focused, using a full-screen, vertical video display at up to 4K quality. Videos will also include a swipe up function to drive traffic to your site, an important feature for brands.
Clearly video has taken over the marketing world. This new platform further proves the public at large is hungry for more quality video content.
Musicians can now show their audience full songs on Instagram. The top 5 highest viewed videos on YouTube are music videos. IGTV will certainly take a share of that number. Despacito anyone?
IGTV also looks like a great opportunity for interviews, documentaries, keynotes from seminars and conferences, and explainer videos. If your brand produces a podcast (which it certainly should) IGTV would make total sense for the corresponding video.
The IGTV launch also proves Premier’s “video bucket” theory.
When developing a video project, brands must determine which video bucket the project will fall under. The bucket will determine video budget. Budget will then determine video quality, time investment, and media distribution.
Want to create a Super Bowl ad seen by hundreds of millions? That’s one bucket. Spare no expense, hire the best, and spend months crafting the perfect ad. Want to show your web visitors how to imprint their company’s logo on a coffee mug? That’s a different bucket.
Video distribution should remove friction for the viewers. Creating video for multiple buckets gives brands the ability to reach their audience where they want to be reached, on whichever platform they prefer.