Sometimes, it just takes too much effort to replace an embed code in the wild. Calling your developer doesn’t always need to happen though, with Wistia’s replace media tool!

There are two ways to replace media in Wistia — overwrite and swap. Overwriting media is intended for slight editing tweaks (caught that typo too late!) and quick fixes. Media that are overwritten will keep their analytics — so you won’t lose a second of data.

A swap makes it easy to place a completely different media in the wild without changing your embed code. When you swap media we’ll save the old version in the same folder with a new Hashed ID — that magical string of numbers and letters at the end of a Wistia URL that keeps everything neatly organized behind-the-scenes.

(So for this media https://support.wistia.com/medias/sqzcdxvf9p the Hashed ID would be sqzcdxvf9p.)

The Replace Media functionality is designed to cause the least disruption possible for your embedded media. So, while the replacement is uploading and processing, the old media will continue to play anywhere it is embedded. No analytics or comments will be affected, and the media will update immediately after its finished processing.

For both Swap and Overwrite all customizations will transfer (including the thumbnail) with the replacement. Captions, Lead Conversion Tools (Turnstile, CTA, and Annotation links), and any player customizations will remain the same.

Let’s dive in.

Swapping a media makes it easy to change an already embedded media without touching any code. If you’re looking to change your homepage media, but don’t have time or resources to change your embed code, then swap is for you!

To swap a media within a folder, navigate to the media in your folder you’d like to swap.

From your media page, select "Replace Media."

You’ll be given two options: Swap out media content, start new stats from scratch and Overwrite the original, build on top of its stats. The default is set to Swap out media content. Click Choose Replace Media and select which media you’d like to upload as your replacement.

Your media will begin uploading and processing. You’re almost there!

Once the media is done processing you’re good to go! Your new media will appear in the wild, and your old media (with all of its stats) will be safely saved in the same folder.

You can update the title of either media by choosing the Edit button next to the media name. Here’s a bit more about staying organized in your Wistia account.

Keep in mind, swap will change all instances of your media — including any links you’ve shared (something like: https://support.wistia.com/medias/sqzcdxvf9p). If you’re still not sure of the best move for you, give us a shout! We’ll be happy to help.

Overwriting is intended for quick fixes and last minute updates. Spell the CEO’s name wrong, or decide the logo should be a different color? Don’t sweat! We’ve got you covered.

First, navigate to the media you’d like to update and choose ’Replace Media.'

Select Overwrite the original content, build on top of its stats from the Replace Media modal and then click Choose Replace Media. Pick the media you’d like to update it with, and sit back!

Your media will begin uploading and processing.

Once it’s done, you’re all set! The media will update in the wild (with the exact same Hashed ID) and no new embed code is needed.