UPDATE December 17, 2018 — Instagram has over 1 billion active users with over 400 million on Stories alone. Video on the platform is available in four forms: video posts, Stories, livestreaming, and IGTV. Video posts were introduced in June 2013, and remain permanent unless deleted by the user. Stories came next in August 2016, and disappear 24 hours after publication.
At the success of Stories, Stories Highlights were released in December 2017, which allowed users to increase the longevity of their favorite Stories with a supplemental profile feature. Livestreaming, launched in January 2017, allows users to share video content in the moment and either exists only while streaming, or for 24 hours following. In June 2018, IGTV was released as a solution for mobile-optimized video, with long-form and vertical video capabilities. That same month, Instagram direct video chat launched, allowing users to video chat through messages with either one person or a group.
Instagram video, in all its forms, presents a new medium for advertising that gives brands and influencers another way to communicate with users. Stories in particular, has taken the platform by storm.
Here are 10 Instagram video statistics for marketers and advertisers:
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Over the course of a year, the feature has cemented itself as an effective tool for marketers and brands to reach users in real time and connect more authentically with audiences. We took a look at the most notable Instagram video statistics to get a better sense of video’s history, growth, and future on the platform.
In an August interview, Kevin Systrom said that Stories had become “almost just as important” as Instagram’s main feed. Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg recently reported that 400 million users utilize Instagram Stories every day. Instagram Stories debuted to the public on August 2, 2016. The feature gained 100 million daily users in the first two months and has continued to grow at a rapid pace in the months since.
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There are now twice as many Instagram Stories users than there are total Snapchat users. The public is showing a considerable preference for Instagram Stories over Snapchat Stories. According to Google Trends, as of December 2018, search popularity for Instagram Stories is 9X higher than search popularity for Snapchat Stories.
With the introduction of Stories, Instagram continues to challenge Snapchat as the platform of choice for influencers. Over a period of 30 days, 12 top social media influencers posted on average 6.6 Instagram Stories each day, and only 5.3 Snapchat Stories. With more than 90 million accounts clicking tagged shopping links on Instagram every month, its no surprise that more than 1 in 3 daily active Instagrammers said they have become more interested in a brand or product after seeing it on Instagram Stories.
An astonishing number of videos were published following the launch of the Instagram video post feature in 2013. According to Adweek, it would take one year to watch every video that was published within 8 hours of the feature’s release. Similarly, the launch of IGTV shows the transforming power of video, with 80% of Gen Z users turning to YouTube to consume long-form content.
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Businesses across many industries have quickly adopted Instagram’s Stories feature and are seeing increased consumer engagement as a result. According to Instagram, 50% of the 25 million business accounts on Instagram posted an Instagram Story in July 2017, and 20% of organic Stories posted by businesses receive a direct message.
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One-third of the most-viewed Stories come from businesses, and 80% of Instagram users follow a business on the platform. The view count on sponsored Instagram videos is comparable to other video-enabled platforms. An L2 report examined 293 branded video campaigns and found that on average a brand received 5.2 million views on an Instagram video, 14.8 million views on a YouTube video, and 18.8 million views on a Facebook video.
Instagram has yet to announce the accounts with the highest viewed Stories of this year, but currently, @jbalvin, @thefatjewish, @lelepons are the leaders of Instagram Stories. In total, the three influencers boast 46.7 million followers. Selena Gomez still maintains the most followers on the platform, demonstrating that more followers don’t always result in more Story views.
Sponsored videos receive significantly more comments than sponsored photos. Mediakix examined 150 sponsored Instagram photos and video and found that a sponsored Instagram photo receives approximately 1 comment per 1,000 followers. A sponsored Instagram video, on the other hand, receives around 3 comments per 1,000 followers.
Publications are using Instagram videos to connect with followers and in a single year have drastically increased video production. According to NewsWhip, Time Magazine posted 7 videos during May of 2016. In May of 2017, the publication posted 68 videos.
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Instagram Stories presents brands a unique opportunity to connect with consumers and drive sales through “swipe up” links, a feature Snapchat lacks. Many brands are switching from Snapchat Stories to Instagram Stories, and this popular Instagram Stories feature may be a contributing factor. In July, a group of 89 brands posted 1,347 Instagram Stories compared to just 614 Snapchat Stories, indicating an overwhelming preference for Instagram.
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