Best Instagram Reels Strategies in 2024: Complete Guide

Are you struggling to get views on your Instagram Reels? Do they stop at 500 views? Growing your profile, even with Reels, is not taken for granted and simple. This tool has become a crucial element for social media managers, creators, influencers, and marketing agencies aiming to increase their online presence.

Instagram Reels will play a fundamental role in every user’s editorial strategies even in 2024. Let’s tackle a critical point: what are the best techniques to leverage Reels and dominate on Instagram? This guide will explore all aspects of Reels and provide you with practical advice to build a successful Instagram editorial plan.

What Are Instagram Reels?

Instagram Reels are effectively one of the most interesting features of Instagram, allowing users to create short videos to feed their profile and connect with their audience. Instagram Reels were introduced starting in 2020 to respond to the popularity of platforms like TikTok, which have based their success precisely on short video content.

One of the most interesting features of Instagram Reels lies in their ability to reach a vast audience. Users can interact with your videos through Instagram’s “Explore” section, where they will be proposed based on their interests.

How to Create an Instagram Reel?

Creating Reels on Instagram is a simple and immediate activity, which can also be perfected directly from the desktop. In any case, most of this type of content is created directly from the Instagram app. So, to create a Reel on Instagram, you will need to select the “+” and scroll to “Reel.”

Here, you can upload already recorded videos or images; or, you can start recording a video directly. As mentioned, there are a series of elements and features that will allow you to make your video really effective:

• Audio: as a user, you can add and select music on your Reel. You can choose trending tracks for greater visibility. Moreover, you can also record a voice-over that will accompany your content throughout its duration.
• Effects: on Reels, you will have access to a wide library of effects, including filters, backgrounds, and other elements that will allow you to customize your Reel as you prefer.
• Duration: currently, you can choose the length of the video between 15, 30, 60, 90 and soon up to 180 seconds!
• Speed: with this function, you can choose to speed up or slow down the video. This is a very useful tool, especially for recipe-themed videos.

In addition to the elements we have just mentioned, you can enrich your Instagram Reels through the use of stickers and other graphic effects. In any case, before publishing a Reel, it is important to consider other equally important factors:

• Cover Image: it’s the image that users will see in the Reel tab as a preview and if they visit your profile. Here you can choose a frame from the video or upload an external image.
• Caption: always remember to integrate your Reel with a catchy caption that leads users to comment on your content. The first 55 characters are fundamental to write what you want to communicate.
• Hashtags: don’t forget to integrate Hashtags, better if from 3 to 5, to allow an effective distribution of the content on Instagram.

Overview of Instagram Reels in 2024

Following the footsteps of TikTok, Reels have revolutionized the way users interact on Instagram. With the addition of new features and an ever-changing algorithm, this format has become one of the best ways to grow on Instagram in 2024, and the data speaks for itself.

Let’s see some:

• Popularity and Use: Instagram Reels has attracted billions of users since its launch, quickly becoming one of the most used features on the platform​​. According to official data, Reels get 140 billion plays a day between Facebook and Instagram.
• Dwell Time: Instagram users spend an average of about 30 minutes a day on the app, and a significant portion of this time is dedicated to viewing Reels​​.
• Engagement Rate: Accounts with less than 5,000 followers have the highest engagement rate on Reels, with an average of 3.81%​​.
• Video Views: 91% of active Instagram users say they watch videos on the platform at least once a week​​.
• Demographics: The majority of Instagram’s audience (31.5%) belongs to the age group between 25 and 34 years​​.
• Size and Aspect of Reels: Currently, Instagram allows uploading Reels up to 4GB in size, ideal for videos up to 90 seconds, with a format always of 9:16​​.
• Viewing Rate: Instagram Reels have an average video viewing rate of 2.54%, higher compared to regular Instagram videos​​.
• Gender: 53.9% of the audience for ads on Instagram Reels is male, while 46.1% is female​​.

Source

Understanding the Instagram Reels Algorithm

Has the Instagram algorithm really changed?

As you scroll through the Instagram feed, you might notice like-catching posts such as: “The Instagram algorithm has changed.” You should know that these changes actually follow our behaviors on social media. The algorithm adapts, it doesn’t act on its own. For example, today it counts more how long we spend on a post (or reel for that matter) rather than likes. This is because we tend to scroll through content quickly. So, Instagram now evaluates interest in a post based on how much time we dedicate to it, and with reels, this makes all the difference in the world.

Videos that capture the user’s attention in the first few seconds, but especially those that keep the user until the end or induce them to watch the content several times in a row, tend to perform better. Understanding these factors and adapting your content accordingly can exponentially increase your visibility.

How to Create Engaging Reels

The secret to a successful Reel lies in originality and engagement. Where engagement does not mean the number of likes, but the video viewing time! Here are some guidelines to get the most out of your creativity:

• Find the right topic: in the Instagram guide to Reels, the first step is to select the topic. The advice it gives us is these: 1) create a reel with the first three most frequently asked questions you receive from your customers or your community 2) preview five ways users can use your product or service you are about to launch 3) show the “before and after.”
• Focus on quality: dedicate time to editing and selecting music. Well-curated content always makes a difference.
• Establish a connection: speak directly to your audience. Reels offer the possibility to create a direct and personal relationship with your followers. Put yourself out there!
• Trending Audio: Using trending audio tracks can significantly increase the visibility of your Reels, attracting more engagement​​.
• Be consistent with your brand: every Reel should reflect the values and style that characterize your brand. Don’t chase the trend at all costs, but if you want to do it, here are some tips below.

Instagram Trends: How to Best Leverage Them

Staying updated on trends, especially on platforms like Instagram, requires an active and strategic approach. In short, you have to hustle. Here are some effective methods to keep up:

Follow trending pages: Instagram offers pages dedicated to trends, like the “Explore” section where popular Reels are highlighted. Regularly checking these sections can provide inspiration and insights into content that is gaining popularity.

Use analytics tools: There are various social media analytics tools and platforms that track trends in real-time, offering valuable insights into what is currently popular. Tools like Not Just Analytics can be particularly helpful: try now the Reels Analysis function to discover the best times to post and the ideal length your reels should have to get more plays or interactions.

Interact with the community: Joining groups or forums relevant to your industry can help stay informed on current trends. Active participation allows you to exchange ideas and observations on content that is finding success. Hey hey hey… We said groups where you talk about your industry, not like and comment exchange groups!

Monitor competitors and influencers: keep an eye on what competitors and influencers in your field are publishing. Often, they are the first to experiment with new trends, providing a benchmark for what might also work for you. Use NJL to keep an eye on their growth and find out which content has gained them more followers and the play rate of their reels, thus finding ideas to improve your content strategy.

Participate in webinars and workshops: digital marketing is always evolving, and attending educational events can provide insights into emerging trends and how to effectively leverage them.

Experiment and test: Sometimes, the best way to understand a trend is simply to try it. Creating content that incorporates new trends and monitoring its performance can offer valuable data and insights on what your target likes and what you do best. You might also find your winning format!

Subscribe to industry newsletters: specialized newsletters often share updates on trends, case studies, and successful strategies that can inspire and inform your content strategy. By the way, follow us because we are working on the Not Just Analytics newsletter!

Audience feedback: Listening to your audience is key. Comments, interactions, and user requests can offer valuable clues on the types of content they want to see. The easiest and fastest thing you can do is read the comments you’ve received under your posts, identify the most recurring themes, and try to set up content in response to those doubts or on those topics. And if you don’t receive many comments… read those of your competitors!

Optimization and Promotion of Reels

Optimizing Reels is essential to expand their reach:

• Use a few but targeted hashtags: do in-depth research to find the hashtags that can increase the exposure of your Reels. On Not Just Analytics, you can discover which hashtags work best specifically for your profile and which don’t.
• Leverage geotagging: you can do this to reach a local or specific audience (advice: don’t use it randomly).
• Interact: respond to comments and create dialogue. This type of interaction can significantly stimulate the algorithm.
• Make your reels shareable: create your videos with the goal that whoever watches it once seen will immediately want to share it in DM with a specific person or a small group of specific friends.
• Use a good hook to pique people’s curiosity: the first 3 seconds will determine whether your Reels will be successful or not.

Measure and Improve Performance

Numbers don’t lie. Here are some tips for tracking the effectiveness of your Reels:

• Study metrics: Instagram Insights offers valuable information on the performance of your content. Analyze them to understand what works and what can be improved. From insights, you can understand the distribution of your content and also see the comparison with the average of recent reels. You can discover the average viewing time and the total viewing time, as well as the number of plays. If you want to go a step further, NJL provides detailed data on the performance of your Reels, such as the comparison of interactions compared to other formats. Compare your results with the average of recent Reels to identify the strengths and weaknesses of your current strategy.

• Followers: also from insights, look at the Profile Activity, i.e., the number of actions people do when they visit your profile after interacting with your “reel” content. From here, you will see how many followers that content is bringing you: you will notice surprises, because content that gets a lot of views is not necessarily bringing more followers. Or, always with NJL, you can know which reels work best based on the goal you want to achieve (growth, visibility, shares, utility).

• A/B Testing: test different variables to understand what goes more with your audience. You can test, for example, the duration or the covers of your reels: once you have identified a format that works, you can also test a type of cover, with a title on top or without, more elaborate or without writing, with background music or original audio. You can also try using artificial intelligence to generate a voiceover for your content, if you don’t want to do it or can’t afford to pay someone to do it. As a tool, we recommend Elevenlabs. Always experiment!
• Use of Hashtags: Identify the most performing hashtags with NJL to maximize the coverage of your reels. Remember: few but good!
• Use Not Just Analytics: the functions concerning reels present on NJL, in addition to helping to understand in which phase of the algorithm you are, allow you to understand what has worked and what has not with advanced advice. Find out what is the ideal duration to use for your reels, the best time to post on Instagram and compare the performance of your reels to other posts.

Successful Case Studies with Reels

Let’s explore in more detail how three creators have transformed the use of Instagram Reels into their main growth tool:

• Prose: the brand of customized hair products, saw a 23% drop in acquisition costs when it integrated Reel-specific creativity into its Meta promotion strategy. This approach also led to a 43% decrease in cost per impression and increased coverage by 52%, with a 20% increase in impressions among the 18-34 age group. As the Prose case study shows, the use of Reel ads has given life to an engaging narrative that has significantly increased engagement and the acquisition of new customers.

 

• Norma’s Teaching: Norma, with her unique approach to teaching English, has revolutionized digital learning through Instagram Reels. Her strategy? Weekly mini-courses structured with different daily themes, pushing the community to interact and engage consistently. The introduction of live review sessions and interactive quizzes has created an engaging learning experience, leading to an exponential increase in followers, which testifies to the effectiveness of her method and the loyalty of her audience. Norma’s company today invoices more than 4 million Euros a year. This case underlines the importance of structured and interactive educational content in engaging and growing a community on platforms like Instagram.

 

• Accorciabro: Rudy, better known as Accorciabro in Italy, has struck the audience with his unique talent for condensing content, turning long videos into short and engaging versions. This approach not only saves users time but also demonstrates how brevity can be powerful on Instagram. His content goes straight to the point, and the format never changes. As seen from the analysis on NJL of accorciabro, he opened the profile on Instagram in February and in a few weeks grew by 250,000 followers. The format is not new and you can find other profiles like the American accorciabro and the French one that do exactly the same: save us time. A great example of how sometimes you don’t need to re-invent the wheel when you can take inspiration from what is already working in other countries!

Conclusions

The road to growing on Instagram requires a deep understanding of the platform’s dynamics, their change over time, and a well-outlined strategy. Start experimenting today, adapting the suggested strategies to your specific goals.

With the right tools and a data- and creativity-based approach, you can transform each Reel into an opportunity for growth and visibility.

Want to give your Reels that extra touch that makes a difference? Analyze, optimize, and make the most of each reel with Not Just Analytics!