For Instagram’s separate IGTV application, Instagram has released a new update for it which will be aiming to emphasize more on top creators who have been important in maximizing engagement on the platform, according to Social Media Today.
The main change is the aesthetic of the homepage as the IGTV home screen will officially be featuring a popular creator at the top of the screen in a “showcase fame”, according to Social Media Today.
This highlighted creator will be based on a each person’s usage as the banner image is fairly prominent and is meant to encourage more viewers to watch top creator content.
Over time many video platforms have found out the hard way, if they can’t keep top creators around they won’t last for long. For example, Vine died out after its big content creators began migrating to YouTube and Instagram and now TikTok is working on incorporating more monetization options for their content creators, according to Social Media Today.
Now if Instagram can drive its traffic and revenue potential to creators vis IGTV, it could make the IGTV application more relevant, as well as the fact that Instagram launched IGTV monetization for its top creators just last month.
Instagram is adding a new Discover page to its IGTV application, in order to provide a specific way for users to navigate through the app. For up until now, IGTV search options have been fairly limited. With this new Explore option it would allow users to have more control over what they see, accoridng to Social Media Today.
“Tap the video icon on the top left corner to create and upload videos on IGTV instantly,” Instagram said referring to its hands-free recording mode.
Instagram will also be adding a crucial, cross-promotional update which means that when an IGTV creator posts a link to their video onto their Instagram story the first 15 seconds of their IGTV video will play. Along with a “swipe up” link for users to see the rest, rather than the current frozen frame from the IGTV clip, according to Social Media Today.
These changes work with Instagram’s shift towards the next stage for IGTV. The shift is found in terms of monetization, expansion and constant updates on the IGTV applications; however, it is difficult to say how useful these terms are due to the fact that Instagram has not reported how many people are using the IGTV application, according to Social Media Today.
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