The Reels feature is one of the newest additions to Instagram and it is here to stay! I have documented 11 tips that will help make your Reels go Viral on Instagram. If you are looking to grow your following and boost your engagement my advice would be to up your Reels game. I was able to gain 6,000 followers in under 2 months by creating reels 3-5 times per week.
Not every reel will go viral, even the ones you think are amazing! Remember that your growth will ebb and flow and to just stay committed. Hopefully you will be able to reach more followers and create a strong community for your instagram with the help of the below tips.
I personally have a Bookstagram account so these tips will be geared toward that niche, but they apply for all types of Instagram content creators.
Tips For Creating Viral Worthy Reels:
1. LOOK FOR TRENDING AUDIO
One of the most important aspects of your reel is the audio. It’s really important to try using audio that is currently “trending” if you want a better chance of reaching more followers. This isn’t to say that your reel will never go viral if you don’t use trending audio, mine have, but it is more likely Instagram will prioritize the reel if trending audio is used.
So how do you know what audio is trending? Look at the bottom left portion of someone’s reel. If you see a music note symbol where the audio is playing, that means it is NOT trending. If you see a little arrow, that means that the audio is currently trending. Make sure to check back in before posting! Even if you are hearing the audio EVERYWHERE on reels when you go to post it, it could be old reels that are still being promoted and it could no longer be trending.
2. PUT THE “HOOK” IN THE BEGINNING
A hook is something that will draw your audience in and keep them engaged for the entirety of your video! Place the hook within the first couple of seconds of the video and try to include the words “you” or “your”, or state that you are going to provide new, necessary information for them. People want to learn new things, they want you to relate information back to them and they want to be entertained.
The hook will immediately tell them that your reel will, hopefully, provide all of this for them. Examples of “hook” lines to use in your reel:
“This is how I did this…”
“This is the best kept secret…”
“No one is talking about…”
“The biggest lesson I’ve learned”
“You won’t believe what happened…”
“5 Tips you need…”
3. MAKE THEM GO TO YOUR COMMENTS AT THE END
At the end of your reel, unless you are looping your video which is another great tool to utilize, place text that will let your audience know that there is more vital information waiting to be read in your caption. You want your audience to engage with your video for as long as possible, and this is just one more way to ensure that they stay active on your reel for a longer amount of time. This new information could be what causes them to hit that Save button too!
4. POST CONSISTENTLY
Aside from trending audio, and maybe more so, this is one of the most important aspects of creating content on instagram! You must remain consistent! It can be very difficult to remain consistent when you are feeling discouraged by the algorithm, or if life gets in the way, or you just feel like you need a break from instagram…my advice would be to keep posting as long as it’s not affecting your well being.
Sometimes, you just need a break! I took a break from Instagram and it was necessary because I was burnt out. It’s ok. There is more to life than Insta! However, it did take a huge toll on my engagement and following. I took a complete 3 week break from instagram, tried to come back, got discouraged by the lack of engagement, and then continued to sporadically post for about 6 months.
During this time I lost a total of 2000 followers and my engagement went from 5K-10K likes per post to about 200 likes per post. It felt as if I would never get out of the hole I dug myself into, and I was unsure if I even wanted to try. However, I decided to come back because I missed it, and about 2 weeks into posting consistent audio trending reels, I started gaining followers and engagement back slowly. If I could go back, I would have taken the 3 weeks off that I needed for my mental health, and then ignored the lack of engagement when I came back.
This was the time to power through! My advice would be to take whatever time away you feel is necessary, and when you are ready to come back ignore your follower count and engagement for the first few weeks. Just be consistent and post value worthy content.
5. POST REELS TO YOUR FEED
When you upload your reel you have the option to post it to your feed or only post it to the Reels section of your page. I would suggest posting it to your feed to help your current followers see your reel. A lot of creators choose to take their reels out of their feed 24 hours after uploading, so it doesn’t interfere with the aesthetic look of your feed.
I prefer to leave my reels on my feed forever, but I would suggest at least leaving it up for a week. This will allow for the maximum number of views coming from your feed, and then your viewers can click over to your reels if they feel compelled to do so. Hopefully your content will pull them in enough to crave more.
6. NO TIKTOK WATERMARKS
Tiktok and Instagram are not exactly “friends”, so anything with a Tiktok watermark will not be given priority and will therefore make it more difficult for the post to become “viral”. Rather than sending your video directly from Tiktok to Instagram, try recording something separate for Instagram and uploading it directly from your video library or the Instagram app itself.
(One downfall of using the instagram app to record your videos is that it mirrors your video, so everything will be the opposite of what is actually being recorded. If you are holding books, or anything else with words it’s best to record outside of the Instagram app).
7. STORY VIEWS COUNT TOWARD YOUR REEL VIEWS
Send your reel to your story when you first post your reel! Reels are all about the number of views it receives, and the amount of time people are staying watching your reel, so adding another avenue to view your content is essential for boosting views.
8. FIND YOUR NICHE AND STAY ON BRAND
Sometimes I will find myself wanting to appeal to as large of an audience as possible, but this can pull away from the niche group of followers that I have. It is important to figure out exactly who you are trying to appeal to, and what you are trying to portray with your feed. What is your brand?
Personally, I pick three words that I want my feed to evoke and then I make sure that every post encompasses at least two of those words. I run a “Bookstagram” account, which means I post bookish related content most of the time…but my brand also deals with “fandom” content. Some Bookstagrammers choose to only post certain bookish content (only contemporary romance or only thrillers) but I prefer to keep my feed open to more than one genre.
Find what works for you and stick with it! Your ideal followers will hopefully find you!
9. USE HIGH QUALITY VIDEOS
If you can believe it, Instagram actually revealed that they are prioritizing videos with higher quality footage than those videos without. So try to make sure that your lighting is effective and the video isn’t blurry, etc…
There are editing apps that can go a long way to help you create reels that are higher quality as well.
10. TRY TO “LOOP” YOUR VIDEO
The loop is one of the most effective transitions for the beginning and ending of your reels, since it “tricks” the viewer into wondering when the video begins and when it ends. This way you are more likely to have your audience watch your reel 2-3 times. Plus, the loop is just aesthetically really pleasing.
Essentially you are simply beginning your video in the exact same way that you end it, and you link the two transitions together. An example would be: Flipping your head up (letting your hair fly up) in the beginning of your video, and then ending the video with flipping your head down. This way the video begins where it ended.
11. USE TRANSITIONS WISELY
People love interesting transitions and this can be used as a “hook” in and of itself. I would suggest using an eye catching transition within the first 4 seconds of your reel when possible. This will help to keep your audience entertained. Another tip with transitions is to pay attention to the timing. Your goal should be to create fast and efficient transitions.
**Relating this to Bookstagram since that is my “niche”: Try not to wait long periods of time before bringing up a new book recommendation (or any product) in your reels. The transition should be almost non-existent. If you are “flying” the book out of the frame at the top, and then bringing the next book into the frame on the bottom, make sure the second book comes in immediately after the first. People have short attention spans and generally don’t want to wait seconds in between each recommendation transition.
12. Jump on the Trend
Love it or hate it, trends are everywhere on Instagram. They often filter over from Tiktok, but one way or another you will wake up one day to everyone singing Celine Dion very dramatically with a broom mic and a leaf blower for added good measure. You may think “the trends don’t really fit into my niche” and it’s always good to really know your audience, but 9 times out of 10 there is a way to fit that viral worthy trend into your feed. Make it work!
There is a reason trends become trends! People are usually able to relate to them in some way, and you want your content to be relatable. Help yourself out by throwing a couple of newly viral trends into the mix! They are usually quite fun to create too.
