By Tabasum Lutfi
Marketing Specialist, TriVision
Within the first 24 hours when Instagram announced its new video-sharing feature, over 5 million videos were uploaded.
Using 15 seconds of video, 13 custom filters and a “cinema mode” for stabilization, Facebook’s popular app, Instagram, has turned from being a simple photo-sharing app to an instant video-sharing experience.
Following Vine, a competing Android and iPhone app by Twitter that allows users to upload 6-second clips, it seems like Facebook is making sure not to be left behind in the game of video-sharing.
Although Instagram has been working on building the video feature for nearly two years, it wasn’t until last Thursday that the update became available. And unlike Vine, Instagram videos have added features like video filters and stabilization.
Currently, Facebook is the second most popular place to watch video on the web after Google’s YouTube, according to a survey taken by comScore.com. While Facebook may not be first in using social video, its position as the number one social network certainly helps it take video advertising to a new level.
The move over to video was inevitable for Instagram considering the increasing surge of video marketing. Video is a powerful tool for brands to express themselves and what better way to do that than by using a simple app with access to over 130 million users at a rate of one billion “likes” daily?
Video-sharing apps like Instagram will also change the way news is shared. For instance, during the Boston Marathon bombings, Doug Lorman uploaded a video on Vine showing the explosion in real time. Within seconds, the video was retweeted 55,000 times.
Not only will Instagram videos provide instant breaking news, especially if the audience is using real-time hashtags, but it also has the potential to open doors to huge advertising dollars for brands.