Instagram has added some new tools to help IGTV creators manage how their content appears when it’s listed in the main feed, and within the Discover tab.

Back in April, Instagram rolled out a set of new updates for IGTV, which included enabling creators to share the first 15 seconds of their IGTV video in Stories (with the rest available via ‘swipe-up’ link), while also improving the display options within the Discover tab.

Now, it’s also enabling creators to edit the preview image and thumbnail displayed for their IGTV clips.

As you can see in this screenshot, posted by Sumeet Rajpal (and shared by Matt Navarra), there are now more options to control how your IGTV video previews are displayed, with ‘profile cover’ relating to the thumbnail shown in Discover feeds.

The changes are relatively small, but with Instagram rolling out IGTV monetization, they could play an important role in enabling creators to maximize their content engagement, and build their presence within the app.

IGTV monetization is a major step, and while Instagram’s dedicated, longer-form video platform hasn’t taken off as yet, if more creators are able to generate significant income from their IGTV efforts, that will give them more reason to focus on posting, consistently, to the app. 

Which is why Instagram needs controls like these to help creators maximize their efforts. As you can also see in the above screenshot, Instagram now also enables IGTV creators to cross-post to Facebook Watch, boosting potential exposure for their uploads.

It remains to be seen whether IGTV or Facebook Watch will ever provide any real competition for YouTube, but engaging top creators – and subsequently, their fans – is a key element. 

This is another small step in that direction.