Your social media presence is essential when engaging with customers, creating, and upholding your brand. Last year, Instagram launched a new feature called Reels. Similar to the social media platform TikTok, reels are short video clips you create and share with your followers. Staying up to date with new platform features and incorporating them into your feed is paramount for success. Why? It demonstrates to your audience that you are tech-savvy, thoughtful about the content you publish, and engaging. It also allows your audience to see an extra layer of your brand’s personality. That being said, sometimes hopping on new trends can be intimidating, which is totally normal!
Let’s cover some ways to start incorporating reels into your marketing strategy and help grow your brand while you optimize your audience outreach:
Do Some Research
To start, you must learn how to compose a reel! Fortunately, Instagram released a breakdown of how to create and share reels. In the written tutorial, you’ll get a general description of what a reel is, how it works, how to create one, and how to share it with your followers.
Once you understand the basics, it’s helpful to explore how others have included reels within their feeds. Start by looking at other businesses in your field. Check out their Instagram page and watch some of their reels. Reflect on what you see: What works? What doesn’t work? Was the information useful? Did the reel seem genuine? By seeing how others use reels, you can consider using them and match them to your brand goals.
Outline Your Reels
Like anything you post, your reels should be planned and structured. A reel is more engaging because you can showcase your personality to your followers. What you say and how you say it is important. Start with focusing on your message; write out some talking points and practice saying them before hitting record. Be engaging, show enthusiasm and genuine interest in your topic. Be sure to watch your reels before posting them to make sure you are delivering content you are proud of and satisfied with!
Use Content To Grow Your Brand
There are several types of reels you can use to grow your brand.
The first is educational reels. These focus on instruction, hacks, or resources. What insider knowledge do you have that could benefit your audience? By using an educational reel your content becomes engaging and helpful. This will draw people to you as a subject matter expert and help you gain traction and grow your brand.
The second category is inspirational reels. Your followers crave inspiration! They admire your success and are interested in learning more about you and what drives you. Show them! Use reels to deliver an uplifting message focusing on how you can help them.
The third type you can use is demonstrational reels. These types of reels focus on your specific product. Demonstrate how to use your product and its benefits. This type of reel uses a ‘show don’t tell’ angle.
Finally, there are community reels. These reels look at who you have helped in your career, community, or industry. Think about what client you can feature or a testimonial you can use. Community reels create a more personal and authentic atmosphere for your audience.
