9 Instagram Reels Tips to Increase Followers, Engagement, and Awareness
Are you already using Instagram reels to market your business? If not, you may be missing out. And if so, are you doing everything you can to get them seen?
These short three-to-30 second clips are ultra-engaging and can be used to drive brand awareness, get more followers, and boost engagement. All it takes is a little creativity and know-how.
So, whether you’re just starting out or you want to make your Reels even more impactful, here are nine tips to maximize their success.
Focus on Creative Original Content
There’s no shortage of businesses creating Instagram Reels. So, how can you make sure yours stand out from the crowd?
By being yourself, conveying your brand clearly, and giving people what they’re looking for.
The best Reels are educational, entertaining, or personal. You could:
- Offer tips, tricks, and tutorials that are relevant to your audience
- Share thoughts and hot takes
- Conduct product demos and share key product info
- Launch new products or services
- Give a behind-the-scenes look at your business, team, or operations as a way to make your customers feel even more connected to you and your brand
The key to creating great videos is to base them on what you know your target audience will love. No need to guess at it.
Add Closed Captions
As a default, Instagram often mutes videos and Reels as people scroll through their feed. That’s why adding closed captions to your Reels is such an important step. It allows people to tune in, even if they can’t (or don’t want to) have the sound up.
Let the Videos Speak for Themselves
While there are many circumstances where long, informative captions are a great idea on Instagram, your Reels are not one of them.
Try to keep your captions short and punchy. Let the videos speak for themselves. Focus on making trends that are clever and descriptive so they entice people to watch, but don’t bother writing long captions that will simply distract people from your Reel.
Take Advantage of Trends ASAP
If you thought the traditional Instagram feed was a fast-paced platform, its Reels functionality moves at lightspeed, by comparison.
Much like TikTok, Reels churn out new trends on a seemingly weekly basis. And while it can be a lot to keep up with, it’s also a great opportunity to tap into the virality of the latest and greatest fan favorites.
The best way to keep up to speed with Instagram Reels? Tune into them for yourself and keep an eye out for things that would work for your brand.
Luckily, Instagram has added a Reels tab right into the app–it’s located at the bottom, in the center, right between Search and Shopping.
They’ve also added a “highlight-Reels” into your feed, so you’ll find algorithm-dictated relevant reels by simply scrolling down as usual.
Give It Some Production Value
Instagram Reels give you a ton of opportunities to increase their aesthetic appeal. This includes adding text, filters, graphics, and music.
The difference between a decent Reel and a great one comes down to what you do to make it stand out. So, take some time to explore all the extra features you can use and incorporate them as appropriate.
Share Reels on Your Feed
One of the best ways to boost views of your Reels is to share them on your feed, too.
Don’t worry, this isn’t complicated.
Before you go to publish your Reel, simply flip the “Also Share to Feed” switch and it’ll do it automatically.
Post Frequently
As with all social media tools, posting frequently is the key to building up an audience. If you publish Reels sporadically, people will lose interest. Dedicate the time and resources it takes to create high-quality content on a consistent basis and your results will be significantly better as a result.
As a best practice, posting between four and seven Reels per week is the optimal way to get the “attention” of Instagram’s algorithms so that the platform prioritizes your content and shares it with the right audience.
But understanding that this could be unrealistic, try to post at least twice per week.
Add Hashtags
Speaking of Instagram’s algorithms, using specific, strategic hashtags in the caption of your Reel is a great way to help those algorithms to “understand” what your content is all about and to put it in front of the right audiences in turn.
Assess What Works Best
As you create more and more Reels, make sure to keep an eye on the performance of each. Your goal should be to identify what performs best in terms of engagement and to create more of that type of content.
Once you’ve figured out what works best for you, you can use this to create a bit of a “niche” for your business and to create Reels that feel consistent and perform well, time and time again.
Instagram Reels are a powerful tool for increasing your followers, building awareness of your brand, and driving engagement on your channels. And best of all, it’s free.
All you need to do to reap the rewards is to get familiar with its functionality and exercise a little creativity.
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