To grow your brand, you need to meet your customers where they are, whether on TikTok, YouTube Shorts, or Reels. With Instagram being one of the most popular social media platforms, it is essential to add it to your social media strategy. With over a billion active monthly users, you can rest assured that some of your customers are on the platform.

When creating an Instagram strategy, it's essential to have a plan for leveraging Reels to take your brand to the next level. In this article, we will explore how to utilize reels to enhance your brand strategy. Since video content generates the highest engagement, it is clear that it also fosters the highest levels of trust and connection. In this article, we will guide you on using reels to build your brand.

Why Should You Leverage Instagram Reels?

Instagram is one of the fastest-growing social media platforms, boasting over 1 billion monthly active users and more than 500 million daily users. That means it offers an excellent potential for brands looking to reach their target audience. According to a Hoositure report, every time they publish a reel, they see an increase in their engagement level. When creating a reel, you can edit with the app itself or use another video editing app.

Tips for Creating Reels to Grow Your Brand 

If you are wondering how to use reels for marketing and growing your brand, here are several ways to do so:

Leveraging Closed Captions and Music

Every reel with music is labelled with the song's title, which works similarly to hashtags, but can reach a larger audience. Since many users play videos with the sound off, consider taking your reels to the next level by adding closed captions.

Tagging a Relevant Account

Whether it's influencer marketing on Instagram or UGC, you can put your content in the eyes of a bigger audience by partnering with other creators. When doing that, you can have these other creators create a reel and tag your account, or vice versa. This can expose your brand to a larger audience.

Promoting Reels on Your Feeds

Reels are typically posted through the feature section, and appear under the "Reels" tab. However, you can also publish it on your feed to increase engagement among your followers. This will then be counted among your published Feed content, helping to grow your account. 

However, when doing that, remember that the recommended size of the reel differs from that of other posts. Therefore, the reel will automatically get cut. 

Recreating Old Posts and Stories into Reels

If you created a post in the past that proved to be extremely popular, you can repurpose it into a reel. For instance, if you created a recipe for baking a cake, you can now create a reel showing yourself baking the cake.

Have Titles in the Reel Cover Image

One way to increase engagement on your reels is by making it easier for people to find what they are searching for. To provide your Instagram followers with the kind of content you post, consider adding a title to your reel.

Provide Short Tips

When marketing a brand through reels, you need to avoid being overly salesy. Instead, focus on creating content that provides value to the user. For instance, you can give short tips or a preview of the upcoming longer videos. You can get ideas for the reel from the keywords you aim to target in your FAQs, blog posts, and other content.

Sharing Customer Success Stories and Testimonials

You can request that your loyal customers create a video ranging from 15 to 30 seconds, providing a review of your brand. This content will be well-received and help put your brand in a positive light. It is an excellent way to reuse UGC content and showcase the authentic side of your brand.

Create Love Bloopers

There is no doubt that love bloopers are among the most popular forms of content. This can be a great way to grow your brand. Therefore, consider a humorous approach to showcasing the light side of your brand's personality and enhancing your social media engagement. 

Create Employee-Generated Content

Reels can be a great option to help you leverage employee-generated content. You can create a schedule to feature an employee each week. The employee can share what they love about working for your brand or even provide professional tips. This strategy can help you humanize your brand and express its core values. 

Case Studies of Brands Successfully Using Reel Marketing

We have compiled ideas on how to utilize Instagram marketing effectively. However, if you are still unsure of how to do it, here are examples of brands you can learn from:

New York University

New York University uses reels to target three audiences. These are:

•  Students looking forward to studying at the university.
•  Current students.
•  Alumni who are willing to donate.

Creating content that resonates with the three different audiences can prove challenging. However, New York University has a social media marketing team that utilizes Instagram Reels to target these three unique selling points.  

AT &T

Reels can be a good choice for driving traffic to your site. An example of a brand that is doing that well is AT&T. The brand utilizes Instagram Reels to direct its audience to its landing pages. In one of their videos, they encourage trainers to take advantage of their teacher’s discount.

American Red Cross

Another effective way to capture your audience's attention is by tracking trending topics. One example of a brand that does this well is the American Red Cross. For instance, in 2021, the brand observed that approximately 9 million people in Texas received boil-water advisory notices. Realizing a spike in the search for the same, the American Red Cross reacted by creating a reel on how to treat tap water. 

Final Thoughts

Reels can be an excellent choice for marketing your brand and taking it to the next level. If you are wondering how to do that, you can use the ideas illustrated in this article. You can also learn from one of the above brands.