A new part of the YouTube app should encourage you to edit and publish a video more often on Google’s video platform. Is YouTube Reels going to convince you?
YouTube Reels: the Instagram Stories of Youtube
In a blog post, YouTube explains what the new Reels feature will look like. This is hidden in the ‘Activity tab’ of the app, and will be added in a future update.
According to the video service, Reels is the answer to the popular Stories feature of apps like Snapchat, Instagram and Facebook. It should remove the barrier to upload videos, something that is still taking too much time.
Moreover, because people often have little on their YouTube channel, a video often stays on screen for a long time. As a result, short videos are more often shared on Instagram, while YouTube also wants to get a piece of this audience.
The big difference with the Stories of other apps is that the Reels of YouTube do not disappear automatically. They are, however, a lot more limited than a normal YouTube video: the maximum length is 30 seconds.
Fast and accessible
To make the YouTube Reels extra accessible, all the editing options you need are built right into the YouTube app. For example, you can place filters over the image, choose background music or paste texts and stickers on your creation.
This makes the Reels yet another new tool for YouTubers to engage with their viewers more often. Vloggers can quickly share an update with their audience, without having to edit a full video.
YouTube has been building new ways to get you back to the app more often and for longer. For example, a new tab recently appeared with the activity of the channels you follow. The Reels feature is currently under testing, but will be rolled out to all users soon.
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