Instagram Reels Strategy: How The Ranking Algorithm Works Aug 2021

In case you missed it, Instagram’s @Creators account just released the details behind exactly how their reels algorithm works! 

As you’ve probably noticed by now, reels are one of the most effective ways that you can get your content in front of new audiences. Short-form, viral video content is what’s popular right now and Instagram is really promoting its use by giving creators that utilize this feature more organic reach.

Reels have been around for a little over a year now and Instagram just gave us some updated insights via an Instagram post about exactly how to take advantage of this function to explode your growth.

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Here’s what they said:

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Instagram’s @Creators (@creators)

In order to determine which reels to show you, we consider how likely you are to:

• Watch a reel all the way through
  • This means that watch time is incredibly important. While your reel doesn’t necessarily need to be short, it does mean that your content should be snippy, concise, and engaging enough to keep peoples’ attention until the very end
• Like It
  • Straight forward. They want people to create content that is likeable.
• Say it was entertaining or funny
  • Instagram has really been pushing entertaining and funny short-form content in order to start viral trends but before you jump on this, take a moment to reflect on how you might adapt this to your niche and your audience.
  • The last thing that you want happening is to gain an entirely new audience that is interested in content outside of what your business is about.
  • Note: educational content probably fits here as well (if that’s what your audience likes)
• Go to the audio page and make your OWN reel
  • Instagram really values trends and wants people to continue to create within their platform.

The most important signals roughly in order of importance are:

• Your activity: we look at things like which reels you’ve liked, commented on, and engaged with recently
  • This means that Instagram will show your content to individuals who have liked similar reels in the past. THis is great because if you are creating content that aligns with what your business is about, then your reels will be pushed to a highly targeted audience.
• Your history of interacting with the person who posted it
  • Instagram is a social media platform and community is still one of its core values. Viewer history and engagement are important when it comes to reel visibility. This is even more proof that you should be including call-to-actions (CTAs) with all your Instagram content (regardless of whether or not it is a reel).
• Information about the reel: such as the audio track, video understanding based on pixels and whole frames, as well as popularity
  • Audio track: again, as previously mentioned, Instagram wants to promote viral content so content with trending music is going to perform better than content without trending music
  • Pixels & whole frames: make sure that your footage and video content is high quality
  • Popularity: this ties in with audience engagement and relevance. Reels that resonate will perform better with the algorithm than reels that don’t.
• Information about the person who posted and how others interacted with them
  • This has to do with your Instagram trust score. If your account has a history of being flagged or shadowbanned, your content will continue to perform poorly until you get on Instagram’s good side.
  • If you consistently post content that abides by community guidelines and nurture your audience, the algorithm will reward you with a higher trust score and push your content out to larger audiences.

We also avoid recommending reels for reasons like:

• Low-resolution or watermarked reels
  • Again, make sure that you are posting high quality videos. Iphone quality videos will suffice–just make sure that your lighting is decent!
  • If you’re repurposing content from a different platform (ie TikTok), remove the watermark first. This isn’t to say that watermarked reels aren’t going to be showcased in Instagram, but if there is the option to post an unwatermarked video vs a watermarked video, opt for the unwatermarked one.
• Reels that focuses on political issues
  • Don’t talk about politics. This one is straightforward. We’re not sure if it extends to other controversial topics, but to be safe, avoid those as well.
• Reels that are made by political figures, parties, or government officials or on their behalf
  • It seems that Instagram is trying to remain as apolitical as possible!

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Although this doesn’t pertain specifically to Instagram Reels, you should always keep in mind that Instagram frequently suppresses content that shares unproven health claims, swearing, nudity, and violence. Double-check with the general Instagram guidelines to make sure that your content is clean and advertiser-friendly for the platform.

Was there anything that caught you off guard about this algorithm update? What’s one thing that you’re going to change about your Instagram Reels strategy? Share with us in the comments below!