Instagram Reels: The Basics

By Haley Martinsen

If you’re familiar with TikTok, Instagram reels are pretty similar.  Videos always perform better in feed according to Instagram’s algorithm, so taking advantage of reels might be a big hit for your business.  If you’re already on TikTok, it won’t add any different content to your page, but at least it will all be on one page!

Instagram Reels Image Logo from Forbes

Reels allows you to record short videos to songs for your followers.  You can also upload previously recorded videos and edit them (like I said, it reminds us all of TikTok).

To find Reels, click on the center icon on the bottom toolbar of Instagram.  This will open an explore page.  To create your own, select the top right icon.  This will open your camera and you’ll see a toolbar on the left with five different icons, shown below!

From the top to bottom, the icons represent the Length, Audio, Speed, Effects and TImer.  Here’s what they do:

Length

This icon (with the 15 in the circle) adjusts the time of the video from 15 to 30 seconds

Audio

This allows you to select a song (and preview them like Spotify).  It also allows you to scrub through the song to find the part you want to use

Speed

Speed has 6 features: .3x, .5x, 1x, 2x, 3x, 4x

Effects

You can use effects and filters created by others, which feels very ~Snapchat-esque~

Timer

Timer allows you to choose choose how long to record clips for and you can select how long the countdown is (luckily the max is 10s)

There aren’t too many editing capabilities, but you can adjust the sound to your recorded clips if it doesn’t match up as well as you’d like.  It’s mostly combining multiple small clips to one sound, or recording it all in one go if that’s more your speed.

After you make you Reel, you can still use all of the original Instagram features to draw on top of your post, write or add some stickers.  

When posting your Reel, you can choose who sees it.  You have options to post it publicly, upload it to your story or just send it to a few of your friends.  Once you post your first Reel, the Reels icon will appear on your profile with a Reels tab!  It definitely helps the aesthetic and gives your followers some more content to browse while they’re on your page.

For more information on how to use Reels or what they’re all about, check out Instagram’s original announcement from August following their launch!  You can find it here.

Instagram Reels Announcement via Instagram

Tag us @fylinyc and let us know how creating your Reels went!!