IGTV or Story: What's the difference on Instagram?

Why use IGTV instagram videos? What to choose between IGTV and sharing a story? How do you make an ig tv and what are the benefits of this feature? How to put an igtv video on instagram

It's no surprise that everyone loves Instagram. Even if this app can get you down in its own way, the platform is highly addictive. And to reinforce that addiction, IGTV was launched in June 2018. To go from posting photos, to sharing 60-minute videos in vertical format, the social network with hundreds of millions of users has come a long way.

In a way, IGTV (Instagram TV) is a direct competitor to YouTube. You could say it's Instagram's version of YouTube, which is currently the number one platform for online video content. Combined with the use of a instagram bot, the regular IGTV post, can prove a key element of your social media strategy and success on the social network.

IGTV is the conclusion that YouTube and Stories had a baby. It has many similarities with Stories, but is very different from them. Curious to know the differences? Let's find out together in this article where you'll learn how to use IGTV to support your social media strategy and what the differences are between IGTV and instagram Stories.

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Sharing an instagram story is sharing something ephemeral

Instagram Stories have a short lifespan. They disappear from public view after twenty-four hours, unless you add them to the front page. For personal use, they remain in your archives. This is notably used a lot by influencers to offer additional information about their profile to their community (quiz, promo code, past trip...).

You can also schedule your Instagram stories to make sure you post them at the right time according to your community's connection times.

IGTV content is like normal videos, which remain forever in your channel until you manually delete them.

The duration of an IGTV video is...

As a social network, Instagram is a paradise for people who love sharing photos or visual content. Although Stories and normal posts allow you to publish video content, they are very short-lived. In Stories, you can only publish clips of 15 seconds and for normal publications, their length can go up to a minute.

That's where IGTV helps. Longer videos are limited to one hour.

The IGTV app is on its own

When Instagram launched this new concept, they also announced an igtv app. There's no significant difference in usage between the native IGTV functionality in the Insta app and the separate app. You can enjoy content on both platforms comfortably, even though the igtv app has been adapted to better present content and watch videos. If you haven't already, download the app.

On the other hand, Stories is uniquely integrated with the social network. There's no special app for it.

How to make an igtv on instagram?

Familiar with YouTube channels? Now Instagram has them too, and you need an igtv channel to share videos with your followers. Basically, the IGTV platform is divided into channels, one for each user. You can add multiple pieces of content to a single channel. However, if you want to create a second channel, you'll need a second Insta account.

To post your content, simply go to the IGTV app, click on the little "+" in the top right-hand corner and import your video. Once you've named your video and written your description, you'll be able to post it. Your video will then be published on Instagram and the IGTV app.

As far as stories are concerned, you don't need a channel. You can share whatever you like directly.

How igtv and stories work?

Stories and IGTV have a similar user interface where gestures play an important role. When you swipe left, you'll see the next video or image (in the case of Stories), this gesture is common to Stories and IG TV. And when you swipe right, you can see previous content.

You'll find the Story section at the top of the home screen, where you can see stories from all users. You can tap on any story to automatically start reading all subsequent stories, or you can tap on the user whose story you want to watch.

In the case of IGTV, you need to access the TV section by tapping on the dedicated button at the top. Alternatively, you can go to users' profiles where you'll find their channel.

Once you've opened IGTV, video playback starts automatically. On the home screen, you'll find videos from the users you follow. If you slide your finger upwards, you'll get tabs such as Follow, Popular and Continue Watching. There's also a search tool once you've made the swipe gesture.

IGTV is special and different from stories when you get the appropriate navigation commands. This was necessary, as you can have videos of up to an hour'in length. Imagine tapping repeatedly to continue a video...

Interacting with igtv videos and stories

You can like and comment on IGTV videos just like you do on normal posts. You can share them on Instagram via DMs. If you want to share them via another app, you can also do so using "Copy Link".

How to boost your engagement on Instagram?

Although you can't like or comment on stories, you can react and reply to them. You can also share them via DMs. And if you want to share them externally, you'll need to share their highlights.

IGTV or stories, a vertical video format

The feature that sets IG TV apart from YouTube is support for vertical videos. These days, most content is viewed on smartphones, so it makes sense to optimize their content for display on the phone. In other words, vertical videos. Apparently, rotating your phone or enabling automatic rotation is too complicated. How to produce vertical videos?

Similarly, Stories are also focused on full-screen and vertical mode.

Which to choose between sharing a story and creating an IGTV video?

Obviously, there are striking differences between Instagram's two features, IGTV and Stories. If you're more into short videos and enjoy this type of content, Stories is the best place to show off your talent. However, if you prefer longer videos and don't want to create a YouTube channel, IGTV won't disappoint.