Wouldn't it be great to share one of your most popular YouTube videos with your Instagram followers (without re-directing them from platform to platform)? In this article, we will explain how to post a YouTube video to Instagram.
Okay, but isn't the Instagram app just for pictures?
Sure, Instagram was originally designed as a pictures-only platform. But it's not so slowly shifting gears into a video-favoring platform.
In 2021, Instagram is estimated to have 1.074 billion users worldwide (you read that right – billion!). And out of these billions, Instagram users spend 53 minutes per day
on Instagram. Plus, 500 million of them use Instagram stories daily.
What about YouTube? Well, they’re still untouchable as a video platform. And it’s predicted that the number of viewers will reach 1.86 billion by this year (2021),
which is up from 1.47 billion in 2017.
With that in mind, why wouldn’t you post video content to your Instagram account?
Video Content on Instagram
Instagram has grown exponentially since they first launched the use of video onto their platform. You might be surprised to learn that video content on Instagram is actually what engages audiences the most.
Before we get ahead of ourselves, we should note their video content has basic guidelines:
- Make sure you only post your own pictures and videos.
- Instagram users should treat each other with respect.
- Avoid spamming people or posting nudity.
So, as we were saying…
Since it’s now becoming a more video-dominated platform, they’ve not only
introduced reels and stories, but also Instagram TV or IGTV.
- IGTV launched in 2018 but has already seen rapid growth during this short time.
- Insta videos used to have a hard stop at the 1-minute mark. But now you can post up to 60 minute long videos when uploading from the web (and 15 from your device).
- The IGTV feature not only supports vertical videos (9:16) but has evolved to support horizontal as well (16:9).
- There’s a separate IGTV tab on your profile plus a 15-second preview teaser on your IG feed.
These are all fantastic things, but the question still remains: why would you post YouTube videos to Instagram – especially when you could just upload a fresh new
video to the platform?
Why Post YouTube Videos to Instagram?
If you want to dabble in Instagram videos but aren’t completely sure if it’s the right space for you, then we’re guessing you likely don’t want to spend too much time or energy crafting new content. Especially if there’s a risk that it will, well, flop, right?
That’s why posting your YouTube videos to Instagram is a great way to test
the waters.
So if you already have a pretty successful YouTube channel (or consistent YouTube content), instead of starting from scratch, here’s where repurposing your content
really comes into play.
You can create a sneak peek for your YouTube channel, like a mini trailer, or create short “concept videos”. Keeping track of the analytics will help you see if it is worthwhile to expand into this platform.
And you’ll not only get engagement on Instagram but it will also drum up some interest
for your YouTube channel as well. You’re killing two birds with one stone by
leveraging using your Instagram feed, Instagram Stories, and IGTV.
How to Post YouTube Videos to Instagram
Now, this brings us to answering the question of how.
Without knowing where to start, posting YouTube videos to Instagram might seem
near impossible. But once you discover how to do it, it’s actually pretty easy.
The first step is to search the App Store on your mobile device (the Apple Store for iPhones or Google Play for Androids) and type in ‘YouTube video downloading or downloader’ – you’ll get plenty of options to choose from.
How to Post a Youtube Video on Instagram Using Video Get
Since Video Get is a great (and common) app choice for iPhone users, we’ll cover the basic steps to download YouTube videos using this app.
You’ll find the conversion process of Video Get to be very similar to comparable apps. Of course, the step-by-step process will be different for whatever app you choose to download, so just be sure to follow the specific instructions for the one you’re using.
Before we start, if you’re worried because you have a video uploaded onto YouTube but don't have the original video footage, don't worry. Using this process, you don’t need the original footage.
*NOTE* If you’re downloading a YouTube video that you don’t own, always double-check that you have permission to download a video. This way, you don't become a victim of an avoidable copyright lawsuit.
Step by Step Directions:
1. Open the Video Get app and click on File in the bottom left corner.
2. Select Download Browser from the pop-up.
3. Go to the browser bar at the bottom of the screen and type https://youtube.com in it. Or if you know the YouTube link (video URL), you can also search for that video directly.
4. A pop-up window will appear when you click on the video file you want to download. Click Download and that’s it.
If you need to make adjustments, Video Get has a built-in editor for video editing. But if you don't need to make any edits to your video, just save it to your camera roll.
To do so, click to watch your video
Then click play and tap the share icon in the bottom-right corner of your video to save it.
Finally, click Save.
What can you do if you’re not able to save it in the MP4 format? There are a lot of
sites out there that offer the option to convert a video to MP4 files by simply copying
and pasting the video URL. But if you already use your own software to edit videos
(like Final Cut or Adobe Premiere Pro) feel free to use that to make the conversion.
Upload Your YouTube Videos to Instagram as Normal
1. Go to Instagram.
2. In the upper right menu, click the + sign.
3. Select the video you want to share on Instagram from your media library and click Next.
4. If you've already cropped and edited your video, you only need to apply filters (if you want to) and choose a cover photo. Click Next.
5. If the video is longer than one minute, you can choose to share it as a short video or long video.
6. To post the full-length video, select the Long video to share with IGTV. You can give your video a title and a description that is fully optimized with hashtags.
7. Otherwise, select a short video and crop the sections you want to share.
That’s all there is to it!
Take your video production to the next level with Levitate Media. Contact us today to bring your brand story to life with high-quality, customer-focused videos.
