One thing my son, Brock, and I are always doing is testing the Instagram algorithm. What’s working today may not work tomorrow. And we’ve recently discovered that the shorter your Reel is the better it performs.
The Shorter Your Instagram Reel The Better
Let’s cut to the chase.
In our latest research, we have found that one to two-second long videos are proving to be effective on Reels at this time.
Now, before you close this blog, allow me to explain.
Posting shorter Instagram Reels is effective because Reels play on a loop.
When your Reel comes up on someone’s feed, it plays two times. Start to finish — twice.
And Instagram will reward you for the number of times that somebody watches your Reel. From Instagram’s point of view, that person is spending more time on Instagram — watching and engaging — because of YOUR Reel.
I mean, in general, people are more likely to watch something repeatedly the shorter it is, right?
How many times have you finished a movie and then immediately been like,
“Alright, let’s start over and watch it again!”
????
I didn’t think so. Unless, perhaps, you’re a thirteen year old girl watching Titanic for the first time.
However, with the advent of Reels and TikToks and short videos online all-around… re-watching happens all day long. We’ve seriously grown accustomed to replaying things over and over again!
Hence, the shorter the Reel the better because the more likely it is to be replayed. And then, of course, get rewarded with more reach by Instagram.
Reel Hack to Get Even More Plays
Recently on Instagram, we have found that text posts and carousels are just not getting the traction they used to. This is because Reels are the best performing feature right now (which I know you know because I repeat this often on the blog).
Hack, step one: Create your image — the thing that you would normally use as your text post. Maybe it’s an infographic, screenshot of a tweet, quote you designed in Canva, etc.
Hack, step two: Read it out loud. Keep it at a normal speaking volume and normal pace. And record approximately how long it takes for you to read it out loud.
But why is it crucial to know how long it takes to speak the words on your graphic? And how can you best utilize this particular information to crush your next shorter Reel?
For THAT, additional steps (you need to know) to this hack and more… make sure you listen to this episode of Build Your Tribe:
And don’t forget to subscribe to BYT for weekly episodes dedicated to your social media growth and dominance!
