About 17.5k companies have spent more than $4.7 billion on advertising, including spending on social media like Instagram. After all, the platform currently has more than 200 million business accounts. According to Hootsuite, the potential ad reach for Instagram Reels stands at over 675 million. But what do these stats mean? Simply put, businesses now view Instagram as a marketing tool and invest in the platform accordingly.
With video marketing yielding the best results, marketing professionals have turned to Instagram Reels as the ultimate tool. The best thing about this is that it also means you can now get the same reach for your business as most top brands. Below, you will find some actionable tips to structure your reels. These will help you hit the sweet spot for your audience and sustainably boost your Instagram engagement.
Stick to your niche
If you want to boost engagement on your Instagram Reels, you have to ensure your audience feels engaged. They need to feel like the video is talking to them, or at least about them. In other words, you must focus solely on your niche. First, design your content strategy and build your pillars around your brand niche. Next, check out what your competitors post and how their engagements vary from one content type to the other. Knowing and sticking to the demands of your niche go a long way.
The same applies to trends too. While hopping on bandwagons is great for reach, it will hurt your engagement if the content does not align with your niche. For example, a transition trend for fashion will not yield positive results for a tech-geared account. That said, trends are still significant for boosting engagement along with reach. For the same reason, Instagram also launched its first Trend Report in 2022 as a guide to rising trends. That implies the importance of trends, so you must figure out the most authentic way your brand can walk around it.
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Stand out from the crowd
Ask yourself why a viewer would want to engage with your Instagram Reel and not with that of your competitors. On Instagram, people are watching tons of reels every day. Think about one thing that would make your content stand out to them. Once you’re able to find your special sauce, incorporate it in all the reels you create.
Again, catching up with trends should never be your priority. Instead of doing what everyone is doing, be authentic and stand out from the crowd. Give the viewers a reason to follow and engage with your business. Always make sure your brand’s voice comes through. Instagram Reels are like mini-ads for your business, so treat them as such. If you know traditional video marketing techniques, don’t hesitate to apply them to your reels.
Use a strong hook
A strong hook incites your viewer to stick around and watch through the entire Instagram Reel. Use powerful words to design a strong hook. For example, if you are a life coach, “X Things That Will Change Your Life in X Weeks,” could make an excellent hook.
Also, don’t forget to change the cover image of your Instagram Reel and adjust it to the part that serves as the strongest hook. You can also add a new cover image altogether. That said, you can also edit the positioning of the cover image to suit the aesthetics of your grid by clicking on the “crop profile image” option.
Include a concise CTA
Include a call-to-action (CTA) statement in your reel and be modest with it. In the case of most businesses, CTA’s yield more results when added at the end. However, some users claim they get better engagement when CTA is incorporated mid-reel.
If you have an Instagram shop, you can tag shoppable products on your Reels as well. However, what works for sure in all cases is a clear and concise statement. Tell the audience exactly what to do next. Leaving space for too many options overwhelms the viewers which might lead to no action. All CTAs should direct them to only one thing.
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Use the right audio
Lastly, make sure your audio complements the content of your Instagram Reel. Use trending audio to get your content out in front of more people. However, make sure the trend works for your niche and your brand.
To add audio, click on the audio option when filming. Alternatively, add audio to an already filmed video by clicking on the audio icon. For example, during one trend, small business owners were using this audio, thanking everyone who purchased items from them and supported their small business. Now, if a well-established luxury brand used this audio, it would have been not blended well with its audience.
Genuinely show up
Healthy engagement levels result in good reach and vice versa. Safe to say, reach and engagement both go hand in hand. To boost your reach, reply to all comments and DMs you get. Start meaningful conversations in those and engage organically with your viewers for them to keep coming back. Reply to comments on your previous Instagram Reel right after you publish a new one. This way, the algorithm will push your new reel in front of these previous commenters. Use niche-specific hashtags, and write engaging captions with keywords for the algorithms and value for the audience.
Also, remember to stay genuine and avoid being a hard sell. Instead, try to genuinely help and educate your viewers before engaging them in your pitch.
Photo credit: The feature image is symbolic and has been done by Jakob Owens. The screenshots in the body of the article have been taken by the author for TechAcute.
Source: MediaRadar / Maryam Mohsin (Oberlo) / Claire Beveridge (Hootsuite)
