INSTAGRAM 101 - PART 8/18

  

Is Instagram Guides For You: How To Choose The Right Kind of Post?

IGTV video.

Similar to Reels, IGTV videos can also be shared on your main feed, as well as having a space dedicated to them in the Explore Page. An IGTV video can run for up to 10 minutes, and up to an hour for larger accounts. When users get recommended an IGTV video in their feed, after a minute, they will be given a “keep watching” pop-up. If they click to continue, the screen shifts and the video continues to play. This means that the first minute of your video needs to be fantastic in order to gain their attention and encourage them to keep watching.

IGTV allows for both horizontal and vertical videos. The Instagram algorithm, like with Reels, curates a feed for you based on your interests and past views.

IGTV has tended to focus on series-based content; with audiences tuning in to their favorite creator’s videos on a semi-regular basis. Nevertheless, it is more of a “YouTube” than a “Netflix.”

Videos are some of the most popular content on all of the internet, and Instagram has integrated this seamlessly into their platform. These videos do not have to have a focus on production value, unlike Reels.

“Swipe Up” External link

External links are often shared as a “swipe up” function in an Instagram Story. This feature is only available for business accounts with more than ten thousand followers. Swipe-up links are a method of linking your audience to webpages or other content that they cannot access within the Instagram app itself.

In effect, Guides can render external links redundant (depending of course on what those links are). For the most part, however, you should post the external link in order to provide your audience with more information about something. Guides are a method of including that information on the platform, still utilizing that ease of access.

You also only get the space for one link in your bio. This can be limiting, but a simple “link in bio” comment in the caption of a post or Story will still direct your audience to it. Or, alternatively, creating a LinkTree (https://linktr.ee/) in your bio to assemble all the links that are relevant to your audience.