Back in 2021, I forced myself to start doing Instagram Reels when I really, really did not want to. But I eventually got used to doing them (and dare I say, enjoyed doing them), and since then, I’ve usually done a yearly state of Reels in my newsletter, where I tell you what’s going on with Reels right now and try to convince you to start doing them or start doing them MORE. (You will be happy to know that there is way less dancing these days!) Here’s where we are at the end of 2024.
Overall, yes, Reels is still an important part of your social media marketing strategy for your romance books if you’re on Instagram, and yes, you should be doing them. They are still the kind of post that gets the most reach on IG, though that reach is not going nearly far enough these days. But even though there’s less reach because there’s more Reels inventory now, it means now is the best time to start doing Reels, because it’s only going to get harder! (And it'll help you prepare for whatever social media platform is the next big thing so you can jump on that one early, because like it or not, I don't think we're getting away from short-form video anytime soon.)
IG has been notoriously cagey on giving hard recommendations on how many Reels people should be posting, but they actually just recently said that TEN Reels a month is a good number (it’s in their “best practices” advice in your professional dashboard).
So how do you manage ten a month?
1) Jump on trending sounds
This is still one of the best ways to gain visibility on IG, by lip-syncing or just having the sound play over your video or underneath your voice. It shows that you’re aware of what’s going on in the social media world and how clever you are in applying it to your own work!
2) Talking head
Videos where you're just talking to the camera can do very well IF you are able to capture and sustain the viewer’s attention. A initial visual punch—either by actions (an unexpected introduction, e.g.) or by words that you put on the screen—will capture the viewer, but to keep them, whatever you’re saying has to be relevant to them and show them what they’re going to get out of sticking around to watch the whole thing.
These are actually my favourite kind of Reel to do these days, and I do talking heads almost every Thursday! My most recent one was on Taylor Swift, but this one is my best performing one lately.
3) Faceless
I do think it’s better if you can show your face on Reels, just because it gets people familiar with you and more invested in your success when they see a real person behind the account, but there are TONS of faceless accounts out there that are killing it on Reels. So if you want to stay anonymous in your author life, faceless Reels can work for you. Use B-roll footage of yourself or your life (for an everyday slice-of-life feel), or you can use stock photos or videos (a pro Canva account gets you access to a ton of these). The CapCut app also has lots of templates for videos and current memes to get you inspired and creating.
Faceless is a little harder, I feel, because it lacks the personal connection, so you really need to have attention-grabbing visual hooks and usually very short/looping videos that will keep the viewer there the whole time (if not multiple times to increase the number of views) and to make an impact on them.
The next best thing
If you are absolutely just like, “Sarah, I do NOT want to do Reels, no way, no how, never,” okay, I can’t force you. The next best thing is doing carousel posts on IG, because they keep the viewer swiping through (and therefore staying on the platform longer, which IG likes, which means they will push them out to more people) and it’s a great way to impart a lot of information or do a more personal post. And now, if you use music on them, they will be seen in the Reels tab as well, which has the potential to increase their reach.
I do carousel posts every Tuesday—here’s a recent one. And this is an easy one that you can do today that’s trending right now: your Top 5.