Are you posting content on IGTV yet? Are you watching IGTV? Is IGTV important to your content strategy?
For answers to these and many other questions, we went to lifestyle personality, successful YouTube brand and video authority, Theodore Leaf.
Q: Should influencers be in a hurry to start posting on IGTV if they aren’t there yet?
A: I would recommend only posting content that makes sense versus just putting things up to “be there first”. People say all the time that they are “too late” to a specific social channel. But we’ve all seen newcomers from out of nowhere come in and amass a loyal following in a social instant.
Q: What’s the trick to thinking in a vertical format vs. horizontal?
A: Make sure the journey you take the viewer on is all about that “phone” perspective-—more casual. Vertical can be more rough around the edges, and that is part of what makes it work. Try a mix of “produced” content and more “on the fly” type things.
Q: Can we edit existing video content?
A: Editing existing content is a great idea, just make sure the edits are clean and the subject remains inside the vertical frame. I’ve been seeing some poorly repurposed content that leaves the viewer frustrated because things are missing or “off.”
Q: Can we repost content from our channel or IG Stories to IGTV?
A: You can certainly edit Stories content and post it to IGTV; however, I think the better move is more about true long form versus the jumpy short cuts we expect from Stories.
Q: Other than length, what’s the main difference between IG Stories and IGTV video?
A: The difference between Stories and IGTV is really more about watch time than anything else. With Stories you go in expecting to see several snippets that bring movement to the day, everything from behind the scenes to entire dinners being made. The IGTV platform gives you the opportunity to create longer content that has more of a service intention than simply entertainment. For example, as a viewer, would you really want to learn how to make a macaroon on IG Stories with so many cuts and back and forth? Or would you prefer one smooth 10-minute segment?
Q: How do we know how long our videos should be?
A: Time will tell how long viewers want IGTV content to be. My rule of thumb is keep a steady pace in your videos and don’t obsess over the length.
Q: How do you see IGTV changing the video landscape?
A: IGTV will change the video landscape by pushing creators who were not doing any video to finally jump in. YouTube as a platform is not the easiest to understand, so with Instagram creating this platform, it has broken down a lot of the barriers to entry for video.
Q: Any tips on how to lure our followers to our IGTV channel?
A: Promoting your IGTV channel via Stories is a great way to bring viewers over—think of Stories as a trailer to the feature that is housed on IGTV. Also something I am thinking about is creating regular series that the audience can count on seeing every week.
Q: Is it true that 78% of all mobile traffic will be video in less than 3 years?
A: I am unsure of the likelihood of those numbers being accurate but I can say that video in all of its forms is a highly engaging way to communicate your message, and has the potential to build you an incredibly loyal audience.
