Instagram has launched a new app called IGTV. IGTV allows users to upload up to 1 hour long vertical video content. This week, we discuss the pros and cons of the app.

Key points to note:

You can access IGTV via the dedicated app, or through the IGTV icon at the top of your Instagram (Next to the DM function)

• The app will allow you to watch content from people you already follow, but it will also suggest tailored content for you and popular content that others have been watching.
• This tool again gives the power to the average user. Now you don’t need to have massive experience, just a creative eye and a good internet connection to upload your content for your followers.

Will it wipe out YouTube?

According to commenters online, this app is set to capitalise on vloggers, who have become disenchanted with YouTube. Having the capability to drive followers direct to their video content easily via the IGTV function is far easier than directing them to YouTube, so for vloggers, it is a very useful tool for digestible, short-lived weekly vlogs. It also provides a far more simplified tool for liking sharing and commenting on the video collateral. However, YouTube is still relevant for ever-green content as the hosting site provides you with links to share the video content to your other platforms such as LinkedIn, Facebook, presentations and more so we wouldn’t go jumping the YouTube ship just yet.

So what about the search function?

So far, it seems that videos stored on the IGTV app will only be searchable through the app. This effectively means that video content uploaded to the app won’t be ranked in Google.
Similarly, at the moment, videos on the app are only searchable by creator, not be genre or topic. However, one can expect that this will change if IGTV wants to survive as a separate app, akin to a vlogger driven Netflix.

What about ads?

Instagram has announced that ads will feature on IGTV, but they haven’t been rolled out yet.

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Post by Susie Horgan

Susie founded Springboard in 2011, and has developed the business into a leading, director-led communications agency. She has worked for over 20 years in senior marketing and public relations roles.