The Ultimate Guide to Instagram Reels: Shopping, Algorithm Hacks, Post Ideas…

Instagram's Reels feature is very popular and many people find it an easy way to create, edit, and post short videos. Others, however, are still experiencing difficulties with how to use Reels for things like marketing and promoting their products.

In this guide, you’ll find many helpful tips on how to create engaging reels and set up a shop, which is essential for increasing your sales and digital footprint. You'll discover more ways to leverage Instagram Reels:

How do I make reels on Instagram?

As we've mentioned before, Instagram Reels is a new feature that allows you to make, edit, and do a lot more on the mobile app. You can also see Reels from other accounts you don't follow. This feature also permits the use of previously recorded videos from the phone, so there’s no need to create new videos.

Follow this guide if you’d like to create these short videos:

• Turn on the Reels camera

  When you’re prepped and ready to record your clips, use the camera icon at the bottom of your Instagram screen.

• Set the playback speed

  When making video reels, it's important to consider how quickly you're able to get the message across. This is easy - just click the circle to the left side of the screen and choose a speed for your video—.3x, .5x, 1x, 2x, 3x, or 4x.

• Make use of filters

  Below the playback speed button, you will find a smiley face to apply filters. Click on the icon to select from pre-loaded filters or you can scroll down to browse the entire library.

  And if you want to add a filter during your recording, please do so before pressing record.

• Decide on the video length

  After recording the video, you might want to consider reducing the length of your reel to make it short and sweet for your brand’s audience.

  Click the back arrow and select the desired reel you want to work on. A 'cut' icon and 'delete' icon will appear. If you want to shorten or lengthen a video, click the scissors icon; if you want to delete a video, click the trash icon.

• Get creative with stickers

  Once you’ve finished recording, one of the last things you can do with your video is to add stickers. Just click on the Draw and Text Tool and select which sticker you want to add. Voila!

• Add some music

  Look at the left side of the Reels editor screen and tap on the first icon - the Music icon. Once you click it, you’ll see a long list of options that includes songs, artistes, and categories. Now you can just search and choose what style of track fits best.

  Remember to save any good-sounding Reels you find and use the music or audio in your clips by clicking on the scrolling bar at the bottom of your screen.

How do I remix an Instagram reel?

There are many features available on Instagram Reels, such as the Remix tool that allows collaboration among users.

For instance, if you see a video that you like, you can create a new one as a reaction to the original clip. The remixed video will appear beside the original and Instagram will give credit to the original creator.

Creating a remix of an Instagram Reel is easy - below is a step-by-step guide on how you can do it now.

• Enable Remix: You can't use this feature unless it's enabled. Click 'Settings' on your profile, go to Privacy then Reels, and choose whether you want to enable or disable it.

• Choose the video: Remixing on Instagram is similar to editing an existing video. Simply choose the video you want to remix and click the 3 dots, then you can start editing it however you want.

• Record and upload: After selecting the video you want to work on, you will then record the new idea and explore all the effects and tools. Again, the new clip will appear beside the old clip.

• Share the clips: You can add it to your Story, the Explore tab, send it as a direct message, etc. Just make sure you always give credit to the person who created the original video.

How can I include music in an Instagram reel?

Your creativity has a lot to do with how they make videos on Instagram Reels. It's not just about filming video clips, you can also add music, record sound, and do other things to enrich your experience.

Again, when you want to do this, tap on the music icon then choose the particular audio you wish to include.

Besides what has already been explained, users can also join in on any trending topic by searching for any of the thousands of audio clips that have been uploaded. And try not to panic if the audio feature does not work on your app; there are other ways you can get it to work.

If the music feature isn't working on your mobile app, you have two options: You can either record some new audio and upload it or filter any old clips and upload that.

How do I gain insight into the performance of an Instagram reel?

Perhaps you're wondering if your clips on Instagram will be accepted or popular? Seeing the statistics of individual clips, such as the number of comments, likes, and views, is typically addressed with Insight on Instagram Reels.

The first thing you should do is log in to your account and go to the Reels tab. This will give you access to every clip you have on Instagram. To get more detail about a particular video, click on it, scroll swiftly down your screen, and then select 'Insight'.

How do I hack the Instagram Reels algorithm?

There's a common misconception that the Reels algorithm on Instagram is complicated and will take lots of effort to understand. But there are plenty of ways to familiarize yourself with the algorithm, and here are a few:

• Make it entertaining

  Make sure that any video you make is engaging, fun, and will make people laugh! If it's not, the short clip won't be as popular with viewers.

• Be creative

  There are lots of different tools on Instagram Reels that can help unleash your creativity. Explore them all and try to come up with something interesting.

• Be unique

  The best advice for designing Instagram reels is to create something new, original, and fresh so that you can differentiate yourself from the competition. Don’t just copy or reproduce what other users have done before you - be original!

• Avoid duplicate content

  Be sure to avoid duplicating content from other platforms, such as TikTok, in your Instagram Reels. (On that note, you may find this piece on TikTok vs. Instagram Reels interesting.)

• Follow the guidelines

  To make sure your content is safe to post and does not violate any of the guidelines, be sure to check the platform’s rules out.

  Note: We don’t recommend uploading videos with poor video or sound quality. In addition, texts should not obscure the major aspects of the clip and there should be no border in the video.

How do I leverage Instagram Reels for business?

Want to promote your business or product on Instagram? Well, no matter what you're selling, there’s no limit to how you can use Reels since it’s a great way to get your message out there and increase awareness for what you do.

Instagram has opened up a new space for people to promote their brands and organizations, and this guide will provide you with strategies that could help you sell using Reels on Instagram.

• Max out on uniqueness, originality, and creativity

  Advertising can be a very creative process, and originality is one of the most important factors in revealing a product or service to potential customers.

  If you create content that’s both unique and high-quality, it will have a higher chance of being found by people in need of your services. And as more people find and interact with your content, you'll be able to connect with a greater number of potential customers.

• Showcase the brand and products

  You have the opportunity to make an Instagram Reel video of your business or product, so come up with a great idea, make your video recording, then upload it on Instagram.

  Users now have the freedom to choose between three options when they encounter your product. They can either purchase the product right away, view the product to see if it is what they are looking for or save the product to be considered for purchase at a later date if they are interested.

What are some post ideas for Instagram Reels?

It can be frustrating to be short of ideas or feel stuck when trying to create a short social media clip. But there's good news! We'll show you some clever ways to get your creative juices flowing and create a unique reel that brings in success.

• Make an introduction video

  It's important to introduce yourself and your product before posting promotional and business-related Reels. A well-crafted introduction will grab an audience's attention and keep them watching to the end.

  You have two options to record an introduction; either you can create a new video where you directly speak to the camera, or you can add text to your previously recorded video.

• Research the competition

  If you're struggling to come up with new, creative ways to promote your products and business on Instagram, one idea would be to look at what other companies are doing.

  One way to do this is by visiting the Explore page, studying the techniques from other people, and then creating a personalized idea from what you have studied. You might want to start a hashtag trend or dance challenge based on your new idea.

• Show the process

  Don't just tell your viewers what the final product is. Show them your progress with pictures, videos, and stories that reveal the work you put in before you arrived at the final product. This arouses interest, indicates transparency, and will make consumers want to see even more of what you do and trust that you know what you're talking about.

  Pro-Tip: Thanks to the fierce competition found on Instagram, it is now more important than ever to create unique content. You want to share your clips with a personal touch so people can tell which products are yours. You can also add a signature caption to your clips to make them consistently distinctive.

Conclusion

Instagram is populated by many users in different fields and professions, and everyone is there for different reasons.

By exploring the site's variety of features to achieve your desired outcome, you can appeal to lots of users and grow a loyal following that can buy from you directly or indirectly.

Instagram Reels is the hit feature these days, so don’t miss out—start hacking it for your business growth today.