What is a reel?
Short answer, it is a vertical video that you can post on Instagram.
Longer answer, according to Hootsuite, “Instagram Reels are full-screen vertical videos that can be up to 90 seconds long. They come with many unique editing tools and an extensive library of audio tracks (featuring everything from trending songs to snippets of other users’ viral content)”. Reels can be a great tool in social media marketing for insurance agents.
Why should you use them?
Reels are entertaining, immersive videos where you can creatively express your brand story, educate your audience, and get discovered by people who may love your business. People come to Reels to participate in cultural trends, collaborate with the community and discover new ideas, according to Instagram.
Reels are an excellent way for you to reach your ideal audience. Creating quick video content that they can relate to will keep them engaged in your profile.
Just like all social media efforts, there is no guarantee that one piece of content will convert a viewer into a client, but it can generate brand awareness and create a marketing flywheel instead of a funnel. After all, marketing to a lead should not just stop to once you converted them to a client, it should be a continuous circle to keep them engaged.
4 Important aspects of a Reel Explained:
1. The Sound:
You have three options for using sound for your reel:
a. Imported Audio: This is an original audio track that you created on your camera (a video of you talking or a video you took of someone else talking). Once it is imported and uploaded, it will be categorized as “original audio” and will be attached to your account if someone wanted to save and use it.
b. Music: This is a portion of a song that you can find on Instagram to lay under your video. There is a lot of music available including hit songs you would hear on the radio.
c. Original Audio/Saved sounds: These sounds range from TV and movie quotes to funny snippets people said. These sounds started as imported audio but once the reel with the sound was posted, it became available for all Instagram users to save and repurpose.
The sound you choose is important for your content. There are audio tracks that are trending which means that sound has a lot of engagement, so the algorithm is pushing content that is using those sounds.
TIP: An arrow next to a sound indicates it is trending. Later.com shares more details on trending sounds.
2. The Content & The Length:
Try to keep most of your reels concise. Reels between three to seven seconds tend to have a higher reach, but sometimes your content calls for more explanation which means a longer reel.
The goal is to create Reel content that adds value to your viewers, so condensing it as much as possible while still articulating your message accurately is key.
The Calls to action (CTAs):
What is the goal or action that you want your audience to take after watching your Reel?
Here are some options for CTAs (in order from most likely to least likely to happen):
- Like the video
- Read the caption
- Comment
- Follow your account
- Click a link in your bio / Download a PDF
- Watch Part 2 of the Reel
It is important to make sure your CTA is clear and actionable. We all want to say our CTA is to go to our website and fill out a form, but your content must justify that. Reels are not meant to be direct lead converters, so do not treat them that way. The last thing you want to do is be so promotional that you forget to show a personal side of yourself.
4. The Caption:
As you scroll through Reels yourself on your profile, you may notice that the length of captions varies by post and profile.
Do you have a captive audience that will read a caption that might take them one to two minutes, or would they rather see one to two sentences, like your post and scroll on?
Let’s make a reel, together:
Here is a Reel you can copy by saving the sound from our reel and replacing the CTAs with something that makes sense for your business.
Once you make the reel, don’t forget to tag Coterie Insurance in your post so we can see them and give you a nice big heart and comment!
If you need help making the reel, join our Facebook Group and ask your questions. Paige, Social Media Marketing Manager at Coterie, will be happy to answer them.
