What are Instagram Reels?

If you consider yourself as someone who is ‘internet savvy’ chances are you’re familiar with an app called TikTok. Now whether that’s through personal use, news headlines, or some of the latest internet trends, that’s not our place to say. But, no one can deny the power this trending app has on American Gen Zers. And since Mr. Zuckerberg over at Facebook HQ wanted in on the action as well, we now have something called Instagram Reels.

But how closely do Instagram Reels and TikTok relate? And how should businesses leverage this new feature? 

So, What Are Instagram Reels? 

Clearly Reels are Instagram’s response to the explosiveness of the TikTok app. Since they are so new, it’s uncertain whether or not they’ll be as popular as TikTok is, but it’s still a good idea to educate yourself about the feature as early as possible so you can stay ahead of the curve. 

Reels are 15 second videos, and (along with TikToks) have gotten popular because of their ability to easily play off of what’s trending, their fun editing techniques that allow for some insanely creative content creation, and their ability to feature popular songs. 

Reels are easy to create, and can be accessed in the same location where you create Instagram Stories.

What Content?

Clearly, 15 seconds isn’t a lot of time, which in and of itself means you’ll have to get creative with what you post. But, what we’ve seen a lot of companies do already is show off a product or create a how-to video. 

Your creativity is your only limitation here. Many Reels will feature fast-paced how-to videos that do a great job of showing off exactly how a product or service could be used. 

However, one of the most efficient and perhaps creative ways to create an Instagram Reel would be to take splices of a video you already have, like an animated explainer, and create something totally new in an Instagram Reel.

Remember, don’t be afraid to get really creative!

Free Promotion!

Best of all, if you hop in on the Reels trend soon, you’ll get free, organic traffic to your video. Whenever Instagram comes out with something shiny and new, they like to put it in front of as many eyeballs as possible. That means that whenever someone hits the “explore” tab on their Instagram, the first thing they’ll see right now is a Reel. That’s because Instagram wants to get more people to use their new feature, but in your case, if your Reel is featured on the explore page, it’s free publicity for your product or service.

Final Decision

If you already have an Instagram for your business, we 100% suggest you start creating Reels. They are easy to make and fun to watch, and since they’re so featured on Instagram’s platform right now, the ROI will be incredible. 

However, if you don’t have an Instagram for your business, we’d say the new Reels feature isn’t worth you creating a presence on the platform, unless you know your target audience is on Instagram and would benefit from your content. If your target customer typically doesn’t spend their time scrolling through Instagram, don’t waste your time with it. 

If your company is super fresh and already advertises on TikTok, well you’ll definitely want to get in on the Reels trend early, as the future of TikTok in the US is quite shaky. 

What We Do

At Digital Brew, we’re masterful visual storytellers. We love staying on top of the latest video marketing trends and always make sure the videos we create for our clients not only make them money, but are also cutting-edge and look incredible. 

If you’re in the market for an animated explainer video, we’d love to help! You can hop on a call with us here!

Let’s Brew This!