- One of the biggest things holding businesses back
from utilizing reels in their strategy
is that it just takes too much time.
So I'm gonna be sharing a process
for creating strategic reels
that's gonna take less than 10 minutes.
(lively music)
This video, I'm gonna be sharing the five step process
for creating your Instagram reels,
starting with your ideas
and then publishing them on Instagram.
And be sure to stick around to the end
where I'm gonna sharing my favorite formula
for creating reels.
The first step you wanna do is figure out
what your content idea is going to be for your reel.
The first part of this
is figuring out the style of your video.
So I'm gonna break down what those three styles are.
But if you wanna learn more about the categories of reels
that you can be creating,
be sure to check out the video
in the description where I break down entertaining,
educating and inspiring reels.
Music and trends are the very easy style
that you can implement
because there's already a built-out outline
in that type of audio that you can utilize for your brand.
And another style video you can utilize
is using your voice over or by talking to camera.
And the last style of video
is actually demonstrating something or filming something,
using a bunch of different clips or B-roll.
When it comes to generating content ideas
for your Instagram reels,
there is really two ways that I like to do it.
The first is tapping into what are my current customers
and clients wanting to know more about?
What type of questions and ideas
do my Instagram followers really have
in the comments sections?
I also am really wanting to stay on top of any trends
that are happening on the Reels platform.
When you're scrolling through the Reels channel
or you see a creator using music that you wanna use,
just tap the music or the original audio
and then you'll be able to either save it for later
or you can use the audio right in the moment.
And in your Reels editor
when you tap the audio or music button,
you'll actually see a saved button
that's gonna have all of your saved sounds ready for you.
Step number two is the most important step
in your reels creation process.
And this is where you're going to be outlining
or scripting your videos.
This is really going to help you know
what to say and what to film versus thinking on the spot.
You really wanna consider the medium of Instagram Reels.
They're really short-form looping videos
and you wanna grab their attention.
So make sure that you have a very strong hook.
You really wanna give people
a reason why they should continue watching.
So I'm gonna do that for you right now.
So I'm gonna say I'm giving three tips on using Reels.
And then I wanna break down
what are the main points
that I'm gonna be covering in my video.
And this could be text that's showing up.
This could be different clips that I'm shooting.
This could even be a screen share that I'm filming.
So I'm gonna break down, tip one, tip two
and then tip three,
so I really know exactly what I'm saying in my outline.
Now that I have the main part of my video outlined,
I also wanna think of,
are there any props that I want?
Am I doing any transitions?
Or do I need to get any specific clips
or screen shares when creating my video?
This is also a really great place to outline
what style of video that you're doing.
So if I know that I'm using a specific audio,
I'm gonna reference that here.
Or if I know that it's gonna be a voice-over
or a talking video,
I really let myself know,
so when I'm filming, I know where to go.
This might seem super simple
but it's really gonna be helpful,
especially when you're batching videos
or filming more than one video at a time.
After you figured out the style
you want your content ideas to be in,
you then wanna figure out
how you're actually going to film your content.
And I'm gonna be showing you
how to use the native Reels Editor,
but another option is actually
just filming the clips on your phone
and editing in a third-party app.
InShot is one of my favorites.
So I wanna give you some tips
for helping your video quality just a little bit,
even if you're just filming on your phone.
So the first thing is lighting.
You wanna have really great lighting
and of course you can use a ring light,
but I often find that a window
with really great natural light is perfect
for just creating reels.
And for that lighting source,
make sure that you're being front lit
and that the light source isn't coming from the back of you.
You're just gonna look like a shadow that way.
Then you wanna figure out what type of tool you wanna use
to prop up your phone.
I personally love to use this phone stand
or you can also use a tripod or a gimbal,
especially if you're getting moving clips.
One important thing you wanna consider
when filming your videos,
is that you wanna make sure your subject
or your most important information
is in the center of your reel.
This is gonna ensure that whether it's shared in the feed
or on the Reels channel,
that none of the important information is cut off.
Have your phone handy
because I'm gonna be showing you
literally the process I use for creating all of my reels.
So to create a new reel, press the plus sign
and then go to reel.
And this is gonna open up the native editor,
so you can start to film your clips.
So there's two ways that you can film.
The first is by selecting the timer option.
And so you can set a three or 10-second countdown.
This is really great for hands-free filming.
Another option is just by pressing the actual center button,
holding it down, just like you would on Instagram Stories,
and as you can see from this little progress bar,
I am now filming my Instagram reel.
So now let's film that reel that we just outlined.
So first of all, I'm going to set a three-second timer.
I'm gonna drag it so this reel is only 15 seconds,
so I can make sure and just give all the value.
Set the timer, set back.
And because I'm doing a voice-over,
I'm just going to fill me mentioning
where I know the text is going to be.
So I'm going to press that back button
and that's where I'm gonna be able
to see the clip that I filmed.
And of course, I could delete it if I wanna refilm it
or I can press the scissors icon.
So I'm gonna drag the beginning here,
so it starts when I mentioned the title
and then I'm gonna trim off the back
where I'm stopping the video.
I'm gonna press trim to finalize the video and then done.
And if I wanted to grab any clips from my camera roll,
I would just tap the bottom camera roll option.
And then I'm going to see my camera roll clips
that I can just easily add into my video
and trim just the same way I would
any clips that I'm filming internally in the app.
And then I can just tap, add,
and I've instantly added it to my video.
So if I go to that back button,
I can actually see both of my clips
and I can easily delete this one
if I don't wanna use it for this video.
Another feature that you can utilize
is by pressing that number,
you're actually gonna see how you can speed up
or slow down your video clips.
And then by pressing the sparkly icon right here,
that's where you're going to see all of your AR filters,
which are filters you can add to your videos
just like on Instagram Stories.
So by tapping one, I then can add it to my video
and then film each clip with it
and utilize all the AR filters just like normal.
So now let's get into the editing phase,
which we're gonna hop right back into Reels to do.
So now I'm gonna tap preview,
and this is where I'm gonna get
into the final stages of editing my reel.
So the main options you're gonna wanna use
is the mixing functionality.
So this is if you wanna change how loud the volume is
for your own audio
or if you happen to add on music
or original audios that you've saved.
So I'm gonna add in a song
and by dragging the bottom,
you can actually change
what part of the song you want to show.
And I'm just gonna press done.
And as you can now see,
I can now mix both tracks.
So if I want my audio to be really quiet
and I want the music to be louder,
this is exactly how you do that.
Now you're gonna tap the microphone,
which is where you're going to film a voice-over.
So let's actually record this voice-over.
Tips for Instagram Reels,
add text to your videos,
have a strong hook and outline your videos.
So now I'm gonna add text to this video
and I'm actually going to reference my outline
and just copy the text from there.
And I'm gonna paste it in for each section of text.
And just like on Instagram Stories,
you can change the color up
and add a background to the texts that you're adding.
And I add them in all at the same time
and then I changed the duration later.
You're gonna do this by dragging
the front and back ends of each text section
to then change when it's starting and stopping.
I like to reference where I'm pointing on the video,
so I know when I want my text to start
or when I want it to stop or disappear.
And then you're gonna tap share to,
which is gonna take you to the final page.
So by tapping the cover option,
this is where you're gonna be able to choose a screen grab
from the actual video
or to upload your own graphic or photo
that you wanna utilize as you're cover.
And once you've decided which cover you want,
you'll actually have the option to crop
how it's gonna be viewed on your feed.
This is where you're gonna be able
to adjust the grid preview
to ensure that it matches your grid
and nothing important is being cropped.
Then you're gonna wanna write your caption
and toggle also share to feed
because this is how you're going to get more reach
and make sure it's on the feed and your grid.
And then you're going to have the option
to publish it in the moment
or save your draft for later.
Warning, do not rely on the reels drafts
because if your phone updates or if you re-install the app,
all of your drafts would disappear.
That's why I personally like to film on my phone.
This will make sure that I have it saved on my phone
and I don't have to worry
about my reels drafts disappearing.
Now we're gonna get into the final stage,
which is optimizing your reel for posting.
I'm gonna be diving into actually
how to write that caption
and make sure you're choosing
a strategic cover photo for your grid.
One of my best tips for writing your caption
is actually to reference that outline again
and use some of the main points when writing out your copy.
So I found that there's two main types of captions
and there's not a right or wrong way.
It might depend on your brand voice
or it might just depend on the video that you're posting.
Short captions really work well with a video
that you kind of get the full picture just by watching it.
This is really great for those more entertaining,
snappy and off the cusp type of reels.
Longer captions are really good for adding even more value
to videos that might just grab the viewer's attention,
but the caption is really where you're serving them well.
And if you feel like you couldn't fit everything
into your reel,
captions are a really great place
for putting any information
you couldn't fit into the actual video.
Now let's choose your cover photo.
And you can absolutely choose a screen grab
just like what I showed you in the tutorial,
but it's really great to consider
what your grid really looks like
and how you can choose a cover photo
that's going to match it very well.
So I'm gonna give you three main options
and it really just depends on your brand
and what you're already doing on Instagram.
The first option is to actually take a self-timer photo
while you're filming to edit it using any filters
or presets that you're already using for your photo content.
And just add in a quick title,
it has that kind of imperfect look
that's really performing well on Instagram right now
but it is just a little bit more polished
than just choosing a screen grab.
And then you also have the option of creating a graphic
that you can add text to, use your brand colors
and really make it branded and curated,
especially if you tend to use graphics
in your Instagram content strategy.
And the last option is choosing a photo.
And this is really great if you're already using
high quality professional photos on your grid
and you feel like going the graphic route
just isn't gonna blend in well.
Whatever type of cover photo option that you choose,
you wanna focus on a title
because this is gonna help people discover
which reel they need to see
depending on the questions that they have
when they're discovering your content.
When figuring out what you want that title to be,
I love to use my really strong hook for my video
or referencing that first line
that you kind of mapped out with your outline.
And if you're batching your videos,
you wanna be sure that you're drafting
or storing them properly,
because we're not storing them inside Instagram Reels.
So I like to create folders
where I'm keeping all of my reels drafts
that are ready to post,
or you can go the route
of using a third-party scheduling app
and have a push notification.
This isn't a formal way of scheduling reels
but it's a really great option
if you're already automating your content.
The final step is publishing your reels,
doing a little happy dance
and make sure that you share it to Instagram Stories
to get more views and engagement on your reel.
Now onto the bonus
where I'm gonna be sharing my formula of threes.
And this is a process for outlining your videos
and filming your videos in a really streamlined way
that's gonna make them easy to digest
but also easier to film.
Essentially what the formula of threes is,
is structuring your video in three main parts
or by offering three main takeaways.
This is perfect for short-form video
because they can get a lot of value
but you're not overstuffing the content.
So you can do this in two ways.
It can be by structuring your video into three main parts,
an introduction, a middle and a conclusion,
or giving three tips, three hacks, three poses,
literally anything in threes.
This is a great prompt to use
when outlining any real topic that you might have,
and this really works for any brand.
Instagram Reels are just one part
of your entire Instagram content strategy.
So if you wanna learn more
about how to use Instagram holistically
and use the other types of videos,
be sure to watch it in this playlist
or check out this video that you'll also really like.