Does Turning Tales Into Reels Really Work?

Very similar to Gretchen desperately tried to get “Fetch” getting in Imply Women, Instagram is obsessed with making an attempt to make Reels occur.

Instagram has rewarded Reels customers with an algorithm enhance, prioritized Reels on feeds and the discover web page, and now, the platform has began what is actually a recycling program, permitting customers to simply repurpose Instagram Tales highlights into Reels with just some faucets.

However as we’ve discovered from all kinds of shiny new social media options through the years (ahem, Twitter Fleets): Simply since you can do one thing doesn’t at all times imply you ought to.

We’re actually not satisfied that reposting previous Tales as Reels will do us any good. However right here at Hootsuite Experiments, we let the information resolve.

And so, as soon as once more, I’m donning my exhausting hat and am descending into the social media analytics mines to dig up some solid-gold proof about whether or not or not bending to Instagram’s will is price it.

Does repurposing your Tales highlights to Reels truly work? Let’s discover out.

Certain, Instagram has made it extremely simple to repurpose your previous Instagram Tales as new Reels — it simply takes just a few faucets to show an previous Story into ‘new’ content material.

Nonetheless, our principle is that model new, unique Reels will most likely carry out higher and earn extra engagement.

In spite of everything, Instagram’s purpose is finally to create an entertaining, participating content material hub. (It’s what drives every little thing about the Instagram algorithm.) Rewarding customers for recycling or rehashing previous content material doesn’t actually appear in step with the platform’s grand imaginative and prescient.

However, hey, we’re blissful to be confirmed incorrect! It makes us really feel alive! So I’m going to search out out firsthand if repurposing your Tales as Reels is one of the best factor to do for Instagram engagement.

Methodology

I made a decision to submit some “contemporary” Reels and a few repurposed Tales and examine their attain and engagement.

To make my new Reels, I pulled some movies and pictures from my digicam roll, layered on a musical clip and a few results, and hit Publish. (New to Reels? Listed here are step-by-step directions for tips on how to make your personal!)

For my repurposed Tales, I adopted the directions outlined on this Hootsuite Labs video. That meant wanting again via my archived Tales and including those I wished to a brand new Spotlight.

For this venture, I created 5 totally different new Highlights. I opened every Spotlight, tapped the three dots on the underside proper nook, and tapped Convert to Reel.

This then opened the Reels editor, the place I used to be in a position to change the music or add any extra filters or stickers. I additionally had the choice to delete scenes at this level.

I made my edits, added a fast caption to every, after which despatched my infants out into the world.

In whole, I printed 5 new Reels and 5 repurposed-from-Tales Reels. Then, I waited just a few days to see how they did.

Outcomes

TL;DR: My repurposed Reels did barely worse than my unique Reels by way of attain. However total, Reels that featured private, genuine content material made the most important influence.

Bear in mind, I posted 5 Reels from Highlights and 5 unique Reels. Right here’s how the attain and engagement for every model labored out:

My hottest Reels from this batch of experiments had been ones that had been genuine and private: One among me having one of the best day of my life at a mascot competition, one other of me performing comedy, and a reveal of my current renovation.

The Reels with the worst success price had been impersonal journey movies I had thrown collectively. I assume it’s flattering to know folks care about me greater than they care about endangered elephants or stunning seashores?

Total, there didn’t appear to be a definite profit to publishing Reels out of your Tales Highlights. It was the content material that mattered, not the tactic I used to construct the Reel.

What do the outcomes imply?

Am I humiliated that nobody cared in any respect about my chill beach-scape Reel? In fact. However from the ache of this experiment got here some vital classes and reflections.

Authenticity is the last word algorithm hack

Whereas Instagram typically rewards customers for taking an opportunity on a brand new characteristic with an algorithmic enhance, it finally comes again to this: Nice content material is the not-so-secret secret to success.

Content material your followers discover compelling will earn engagement greater than any algorithmic enhance ever might. So give attention to creating participating, value-driven posts, Tales and Reels to get essentially the most out of Instagram.

You’ll be able to’t get Insights from Highlights… however you can get Insights from Reels

Whilst you can see the variety of views and likes of a person Instagram Story, it’s presently not attainable to see what number of views your Highlights get.

Meaning there’s one profit of making a Reel out of Highlights: You’ll be able to truly measure how a lot attain or engagement that individual mixture of Tales get.

Highlights could be a useful compilation software

Utilizing your Highlights to collect content material over an extended time frame might truly be useful as nicely.

For example, I spent 22 lengthy weeks engaged on my residence renovation final 12 months and was including all of my reno-related posts to 1 Spotlight. As a substitute of digging round in my digicam roll to make a dramatic Reel in regards to the expertise, I might simply convert all that candy drywall-encrusted content material into one neat-and-tidy Reel with just a few faucets. (Research have proven that setting your development trauma to music can soften the ache.)

All proper, that’s sufficient out of me! It’s time to cease on the lookout for shortcuts to Instagram success and begin making superb Reels that mirror your model voice and delight your viewers. Dig into our tutorial for making successful Reels, and chances are you’ll by no means really feel tempted to hack the system ever once more.

Simply schedule and handle Reels alongside all of your different content material from Hootsuite’s tremendous easy dashboard. Schedule Reels to go reside whilst you’re OOO, submit at the absolute best time (even when you’re quick asleep), and monitor your attain, likes, shares, and extra.

Get Began

Save time and stress much less with simple Reels scheduling and efficiency monitoring from Hootsuite. Belief us, it’s reely simple.