I’m trying to improve my Instagram muscle, and I was curious how Reels can help me and how they work. I was also curious about how Stories should be used, when to use the Feed, and Direct posting. I did some digging and found some interesting things.
Instagram Reels are viewed by your followers and anyone the Instagram Algorithm thinks will enjoy your video.
Keep reading, and I’ll share more about how Reels work, when to use the Feed, Stories, and Direct. Plus, 6 ways to get more views and a way to pop out vertical content much easier and faster.
What are Instagram Reels?
In the old days of Instagram, everything was about the feed, and then TikTok came, and MANY platforms got scared and created something similar.
Instagram came out with Reels, which are short vertical videos of up to 90 seconds (this could change).
They are a GREAT way to find new followers on the platform. The video you create could show up in the feed.
They mostly show up on the Reels explore page. This means someone can find your video EVEN if they don’t follow you.
Instagram can show your video to someone if the “algorithm” thinks it’s a good match for them.
The million-dollar question is what determines if the algorithm thinks the video should show up on someone’s phone.
One way is based on hashtags. Using 3-5 VERY targeted hashtags does help. The second way is watch time, which is everything on Instagram. You want people to watch until the end of your Reel video.
I watched a video that went into detail on how the algorithm works. The expert also said that the TikTok watermark on Instagram isn’t good for the Algorithm.
What I recommend and (I do this) is to first create a TikTok video. Then download the video without the watermark and post the SAME video to Instagram and MANY more places.
In fact, I created a whole FREE guide on how to do exactly this, plus 50 tips on how to dominate with short videos HERE
When to Use Instagram Stories, Reels, Feed, and Direct?
You might be wondering why EVEN post Stories or to the Feed if you can produce Reels and get viewers who don’t follow me.
The cool thing about posting to Stories is that they can include a link in them, but only your followers will see your Story posts. Reels can’t include a link. With Reels, you could put a link in your bio and mention it in the video, and this is what I do a lot.
Stories are up to 15 seconds for a clip, but you can record 4 together, and that equals 60 seconds. Reels can be 90 seconds (may be extended in time).
Reels can be on the platform “in theory” forever. With Stories, Instagram deletes them in 24 hours.
Reels have more shareable abilities. You can share it to your feed, and others can share your reel to their followers. Plus, you can DM (Direct Message) the Reel to anyone.
With Stories, you can’t share them. Only if someone tags you in the Story can you share someone else’s Story.
The most important difference is who sees the video, and this is when Reels wins. Stories are only seen by people who follow you.
Anyone can see your Instagram Reels, which means you can have a larger audience. They also show up in someone’s feed.
Reels have better editing tools, and Stories have access to more add-ons and stickers. You could use Reels to attract more people (very important) and Stories to connect and show them more behind the scenes.
In fact, one idea is to have stories be about something different than your niche, like something more personal, so your followers can connect with you.
Plus, stories do have a link, so you can use them to drive traffic to other places (where you can earn money, if you want). You can even use polls and questions in the Story.
So I get it, you want to earn money with short videos, get traffic, but you don’t want to actually make the video.
Believe it or not, there is a way to do this.
In fact, there is a way to take a viral video and tweak it “a little” bit and then post it and profit from it. I know it sounds strange, but on TikTok, it’s called stitching. Yes, you can do it!
The cool thing is you can mix it with the content you’re already creating. Say you create 1 video a day. Now, with this method, you can easily do 2.
Or you can only use this tool. It’s your choice.
Plus, sometimes it’s nice not to be on camera.
Anyway, you can check this really cool tool out HERE, which lets you create videos without needing to record yourself.
Oh, and remember you can download the video and upload the same video to…
- -TikTok (5-7 hashtags)
- -Instagram (3-5 hashtags)
- -Youtube Shorts (3-5 hashtags)
- -Facebook Reels (3-5 hashtags) post to timeline.
- -X (1-2 ) hashtags
- -Threads (1-3) hashtags
- -Butchute (3) terms by a space.
- -Dailymotion
- -Rumble
- -https://profile.snapchat.com/ (3-5 hashtags)
- -Bluesky (1-3 hashtags)
- -Odysee
- -LinkedIn (3 – 5) hashtags
All those places allow a link in your profile (except for Snapchat). Snapchat can include a link, but it’s not clickable.
With TikTok, with a business account, you can have a link on day 1 in your profile and get paid.
Next is posting in the Feed. Anything that isn’t a Reel, Story, or Live is considered a post, and 75% of this type of content is pictures.
There are Carousels in the Feed post, which can be a nifty feature. Someone can use it to show multiple angles of a product or picture, for example.
I’m honestly not the best “at all” at using photos with Instagram, but there are ways to earn money from it, and I would “highly” recommend checking this out HERE if you want to know more.
Next is Direct, and this means only 1 person sees your content, and it’s WAY more personal. The last is a Live video, and this means it’s not recorded and gives your audience a new flavor of content.
| Stories | Reels | |
| Who Sees Your Video? | Only Your Followers | Anyone |
| Link? | Can Include a Link | Can’t have a link. (You could put a link in the bio of your account and mention it) |
| Editing Tools? | More Stickers | Better Editing tools |
| How Long They Live? | Auto Deletes in 24 Hours | Can Live Forever |
| Length of Video? | 15 Seconds a Clip, (Can Combine 4 for 60 Seconds) | 90 Seconds |
Why Vertical Content?
Honestly, from my own experience, vertical content is the best bang for your buck and where I would recommend starting.
Meaning you do the least amount of work and get the MOST reward.
Vertical content is the short videos on your phone that you can pump out faster than I can eat junk food (and I can eat junk food FAST). Plus, they can get a shit ton of views.
Many of my YouTube Shorts destroy my YouTube videos when it comes to views. Here are some of my last video views just on YouTube, NOT including TikTok or Instagram.
My last 4 videos on “just” my YouTube Shorts got 448 views compared to 268 views for my YouTube videos.
How to Leverage Vertical Content to Get More Views?
Hands down, the best way to get more views from vertical content is to create and post MORE vertical content.
The second way to get more views (which I recently started doing) is by putting text in your video. Many people who are on Instagram don’t have the sound on because they could be in public.
If your video doesn’t have text on it, then it’s more likely to get ignored, which can hurt the reach of your videos.
You might be thinking it’s a BIG pain in the ass to put text in a video. One thing you could do is create a TikTok video, and there is a button called “Captions” where it automatically takes your words and turns them into text.
After you upload the video to TikTok, you can upload the same video to Instagram or YouTube Shorts (if you want).
There is a way to put text in an Instagram video, and you first click on the sticker button at the top.
Next, you have to click on the captions button, and the words in the video will automatically be turned into text. You can also change the font of the words and even edit them, just like you can do in a TikTok video.
Another thing with Reels is that Likes, Comments don’t matter “a lot”. The MAIN thing is “watch time,” and this makes sense because ALL these platforms care about is people staying on the platform so the platform earns more money.
One way you can improve watch time is by adding a hook. A hook creates curiosity or makes it so someone wants to watch until the end.
Next is hashtags, and a maximum of 5 should be used.
A good thumbnail that creates curiosity can help. Lastly, there are times to post that are better than other times.
- 11:00 – 12:00 PM
- 3:00 – 5:00 PM
- 7:00 – 11:00 PM
Of course, mental health and NOT getting burned out is “everything,” so doing something is better than nothing “even” if my videos suck, I’ll still put them out there.
You might be wondering how the heck someone would even earn money from Instagram posts?
I created a post HERE, that shares 10 different ways to earn money JUST from Instagram.
Closing
I’m a big fan of not depending on 1 platform because then you are weak and vulnerable. EVEN if my vertical videos are doing VERY well, I still use tons of different traffic methods.
I got started in affiliate marketing 15 years ago, and it was all about building a list. The money is in the list. Nowadays, it’s STILL all about building a list.
The reason is you OWN the traffic. Instagram can change its algorithm tomorrow, and we are at its mercy.
Plus a list gives more benefits such as….
- Can promote multiple offers
- Can contact someone WAY in the future
- Promote your other content
- Do list swaps
- Easier to get accepted into affiliate programs
- MUCH higher conversion rate
- Great for launching products
- Get valuable feedback
- Protects you from algorithmic changes
- More personalized marketing
Plus, it’s free or almost free.
Even better, I have a whole system you can check out that walks you exactly how to build a list, landing pages, how to send emails, how to earn money from them, and more.
You can view this guide FREE HERE.
What do you have to lose? It’s FREE!
I hope this post on Instagram Reels has been somewhat helpful. Bye for now.