Creators have always been at the core of our community. Since the earliest days of Instagram, they have inspired people around the world with their talents, shared their lives and built their personal brands from the ground up.
We have always been committed to supporting creators as they turn their passion into livelihoods – because every creator is unique, that means providing a mix of monetization tools to help creators of all sizes, from the emerging to the more established.
Given the uncertain circumstances many are facing today, that commitment is more important than ever. Today we’re announcing new ways for creators to make money through Instagram Live and IGTV.
Introducing Badges in Live
During the COVID-19 crisis, we’ve seen people supporting their favorite creators in Live with comments, likes and donations. To give fans another way to participate and show their love, we’re introducing badges that viewers can purchase during a live video.
In recent months, we’ve seen creators embrace Live in new ways, leading to a 70% increase in views from February to March. From fitness instructors to dancers, artists to chefs, Live has helped creators and businesses stay connected to their followers and bring people together. With badges, creators can generate income from the content they’re already creating.
Badges will appear next to a person’s name throughout the live video. Fans who have purchased badges in Live will stand out in the comments and unlock additional features, including placement on a creator’s list of badge holders and access to a special heart.
“Badges in Instagram couldn’t have come at a better time for fitness creators like me. It’s an easy way to channel the love we already see in our Live feeds so we can continue building and creating for our fans.”
Badges will begin testing next month with a small group of creators and businesses. Over the coming months it will expand across the US, Brazil, UK, Germany, France, Italy, Turkey, Spain, and Mexico.
IGTV Ads
Starting next week, we are introducing ads in IGTV, our long-form video destination. We want to support creators’ investment in IGTV by sharing advertising revenue with them.
IGTV ads will initially appear when people click to watch IGTV videos from previews in their feed. The video ads will be built for mobile and up to 15 seconds long. We’ll test various experiences within IGTV ads throughout the year – such as the ability to skip an ad – to make sure the final result works well for people, creators and advertisers.
IGTV has become a powerful place for creators to connect more deeply with their fans, pilot new projects and share their lives and talents. With IGTV ads, they have another new way to earn money from the content they work so hard to produce.
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“IGTV has given me a place to show my fans more of my creativity and personality, which has helped grow my personal brand. Being able to earn money from the content I’m already creating gives me even more motivation to share more of myself with my followers on IGTV.”
“IGTV gives me room to create – with longer videos I can put my all into creating so that my supporters can see more of me and understand the depth of my content. For me, engaging with my audience and capturing their attention with my weekly IGTVs is very important for me.”
“IGTV allows fans to see who I really am so we can have face-to-face conversations. My IGTV videos are fun and quick snacks, and everyone likes snacks. Being able to monetize them will mean more frequent uploads and even deeper connections with my followers. I do this as a career so it’s important to me to weigh out my work and its benefits. This will make a big difference.”
We’ll begin testing IGTV ads with a small group of creators and advertisers in the US, and will expand slowly over time as we improve the experience.
Looking Ahead
In addition to badges in Live and IGTV ads, we’re also making it easier for creators to grow with shopping and branded content.
We recently announced Live Shopping, which will let creators and brands tag products during their live videos. And over the coming months we’ll expand shopping access to more creators who want to sell their own merchandise. We’re also expanding access to Brand Collabs Manager, which helps creators find potential brand partners.
These updates are a step forward in giving creators ways to earn money and grow their business. As we test and gather feedback, we’ll find more ways to support creators on Instagram.
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