IGTV, Instagram’s video-sharing platform, is becoming one of the go-to social media channels for businesses. Video content is increasingly popular on the internet, YouTube is now the second biggest search engine in the world. In 2020, 96% of users increased their online video consumption, and 9 out of 10 viewers said that they would like to see more videos from brands and businesses. In 2021, the average person is predicted to spend 100 minutes per day watching online videos.
So it’s too important a medium to ignore if you want to grow your business. If you already use Instagram to promote your business, posting videos on IGTV is an easy way to boost your followers and engage with them more effectively. If you are already posting videos to YouTube, then it makes sense to post them to IGTV too.
Here we explore how you can start a video marketing strategy on IGTV to grow your business.
What is IGTV for business?
Instagram TV, or IGTV, is different from the short video clips that Instagram users share in their feeds or Stories. It’s a separate part of Instagram, created to allow users to share longer videos, which can be viewed either in Instagram or on the separate IGTV app.
As Instagram defines it:
“IGTV is long-form, immersive video. It isn’t limited to one minute, and takes over your entire screen.”
Videos are shown vertically to suit mobile screens and can be up to an hour long for verified accounts, or 10 minutes for unverified accounts. That doesn’t mean you should leap in and post an hour long video. Experiment with lengths to see what gets the most engagement, but 5 or 6 minutes is probably a good starting point.
Some of the features of IGTV which are useful for businesses:
- Series – With Series you can create weekly episodes of video content to keep people coming back for more. The aim of this is that users will schedule it into their diaries, much like TV shows.
- Feed Preview – This enables you to share the first 59 seconds of the video in the newsfeed, with a ‘continue watching’ button. Helpful to hook more watchers in.
- Vertical Presentation – IGTV video should be 1080 x 1920 pixels, or the same size and orientation as your Instagram stories. You don’t need to use fancy equipment, a smart phone will suffice.
- Likes, comments, shares – similar to other Instagram content, viewers can like,
comment and share your videos.
- IGTV Shopping – this new feature allows users to shop directly on the app for products featured in videos. Businesses can tag products so that users can click on them.
Is IGTV worth it for a small business?
There are only so many hours in a day, and fitting in filming videos with everything else involved in running a business can be hard. So is it worth it? Longer video content can foster greater engagement if you can get people to watch it and hold their interest. You may also reach new customers who are browsing Instagram. Longer videos also allow you to build stronger connections with your audience than the short 15 second videos in stories.
Koreti, a small web design company, plan to upload videos to IGTV giving web design tutorials. Another small business, Quadrant2Design, an exhibition contractor, shares videos of the trade shows they attend.
If you are already creating video content for your website or Youtube then it makes sense to upload it to IGTV too. This requires very little effort or expense. If you are new to video creation all you need is a smartphone so it’s worth trying it out to see if it works for you.
The problem with IGTV is that unless you already have a decent number of followers on Instagram, your videos are unlikely to be found and viewed by many. So it’s better to view IGTV as an extension of your Instagram strategy rather than a standalone video platform like YouTube.
IGTV video ideas to try
1. Tutorials
Teach your audience how to do something. This could be related to the products you sell, the industry you are in, or just something viewers will find useful. Tutorials are one of the most popular video formats on social media but try not to be too promotional, the video is there to educate viewers, not sell to them.
2. Educational
Talk about a subject you know a lot about or are passionate about. Again, this could be related to your business, or something else.
3. Host a Q&A session
Invite followers to submit questions to you and answer them. You could include any FAQs on your website.
4. Workplace tour
Give a behind-the-scenes view of your workplace, show how your products are made, and the people who work for you.
5. Share customer stories
You could share success stories or customer reviews with viewers. You can address specific points they had and what worked for them.
6. Demonstrate a new product
If you are launching a new product post a video to demonstrate how it works. Show how it will be useful to customers and what it can do for them.
7. Share insider knowledge
If you have any tips you have learned from running your business you could share them with viewers, these are always popular videos.
8. Host a competition
Run a competition to win your products or services. Include the prizes, how to enter and how winners will be chosen. Make sure you use hashtags so people can find them.
9. Interview someone from your company or industry
Make sure they have good knowledge around the questions that you will ask and will be interesting for viewers to watch. They should be an expert in their field.
10. Share an article
If you, or someone in your company, has written an interesting article or blog, read it out on camera, or have it as a voiceover to images or film.
IGTV tips for small businesses
- Make the title of the video attention-grabbing
- Use hashtags to enable as many people as possible to find it
- Create a good cover image
- Always compress the video before uploading it
- Include subtitles so that it can be viewed silently
- Post regularly
- Share original content
- Post a preview in Stories
In summary, IGTV offers the opportunity to engage with your Instagram followers in a more effective way. To this end, if used properly, it should enable you to sell more products and grow your business. Video content is increasingly popular and is a great way to communicate with your audience, therefore, it should be embraced as part of your overall marketing strategy.
