10 Great Instagram Reel Ideas for Businesses

Instagram reels are a type of content that you can create and post within the Instagram platform. 

A reel is a video up to 90 seconds long, similar to a Tik Tok style video, that is usually overlaid with music or audio. 

Instagram offers various editing tools for reels giving users the chance to speed up footage, slow clips down, and add music, special effects, and filters. 

Reels sit within the main feed of your Instagram account and, unlike Instagram stories that only last for 24 hours, will be available to view forever… unless you delete them of course. 

There are an array of benefits to including Instagram reels as part of your wider Instagram content calendar, not least that they give you the chance to connect with your audience on a more personal level. 

Instagram is one of the fastest-growing social media platforms, with over 200 million users visiting at least one Instagram business profile every day. 

Video content proves to be incredibly popular on the platform – in fact, Instagram themselves have made it clear that they intend to push video content out more than static imagery, meaning there’s never been a better time to start making reels. 

With nine out of 10 Instagram users watching Instagram videos every week, Instagram reels have the potential to open up your brand and your content to a vast audience. 

Reels and videos are also much more shareable than traditional posts and are more likely to appear on Instagram’s Explore page. 

Creating an Instagram reel is simple. We’ve listed the basic steps below to help you out:

1. Enter reels mode. To do this head to your Instagram account, select the new post icon, and choose reels from the options at the bottom of the screen.
2. Select the settings you want to use for your reel. Here you can choose how long you want your reel to be (either 15, 30, 60, or 90 seconds), if you want to speed up or slow down your footage, and any filters or effects you want to add to your reel.
3. Record your reel like you would any Instagram video – just hold down on the record circle. There will be a red progress bar at the top of the screen to help you keep to your time limit. You can record multiple clips for your reel and add them together. You can also add clips from your media gallery too.
4. Edit your reel. Once you’ve finished filming you can select the preview button. Here you’ll be able to preview your reel as well as edit things such as the audio and add music and text. 
5. Publish your reel. If you’re happy with your editing you can select the share to button in the bottom right of your screen and publish your reel. At this point, you’ll also be able to add a caption and hashtags to your post. 

There we have it, how to create an Instagram reel in five easy steps! 

To help you get started we’ve put together 10 Instagram reel ideas for business accounts like yours!

#1. Get Personal [Introduce Yourself]

A great first Instagram reel idea is to introduce yourself. Create a simple video that introduces your brand. You can personalize it even further by introducing your audience to you/the brand’s founder and explaining the story behind the brand. 

Personal content like this helps audiences to connect with your business and your brand’s values. 

#2. Show Off Your Work

Instagram reels are a great way to show off your work. This can be anything from the individual products you create, the process behind them, or even any charitable work your brand does in the community. 

Product showcases work particularly well for reels. Why not create a reel with someone demoing your product, giving your audience a real-world example of the product in action?

#3. Explain Your Process

Showing the process of how your products are created is super interesting for users, especially if you use a unique method. 

In a world that’s becoming increasingly eco-conscious, try to explain how the creation of your products is sustainable too. 

Customers will love to see you create and prepare their orders and this kind of Instagram reel is a great way to build a relationship with your audience. 

#4. Give Tips & Advice

Tips and advice make great Instagram reel content. If you have relevant tips to share with your audience, make them into quick and engaging reel videos.

The tips you include can be anything from the best ways to use your products to relevant nuggets of information. For example, if you’re a skincare brand you could create a reel sharing the three best ways to look after your skin in the summer.

#5. Make Long-Form Content Bite-Size

You don’t always need to create brand-new content for Instagram reels. In fact, if you have an on-site blog then you can use your blog posts. 

Cutting down long-form content into bite-size chunks is a great way of repurposing existing content plus you can direct users to your blog for them to read the longer article too. 

#6. Day In The Life

We all love getting an insight into other people’s lives and filming a “day in the life” reel can help your audience to form a deeper connection with your brand. 

Why not ask the founder of your brand or one of the team members to film snippets of their day, giving your audience an insight into what it’s really like to work at your company? 

#7. Behind the Scenes

Just like the day-in-the-life reels, behind-the-scenes reels allow your audience to feel like they are gaining access to secret content. 

You can film a reel behind the scenes on a product shoot or at design meetings, providing a glimpse of everything that goes into creating the final product. 

#8. Use Fun Filters 

Instagram is full of fun filters for you to use as part of your reels. From adding a sepia, vintage tone to your clips to totally changing how people look and sound, there are all sorts of options. 

Adding filters to your videos is a great way of including some personality in your content and helping users to see the fun side of your brand. 

#9. Offer Teasers 

Instagram reels are a great way of sharing teasers with your audience. Whether it’s teasing a new product launch or an upcoming sale, sharing short teaser clips in the run-up to a big event is a great way to get your audience engaged and interested in your brand’s news and events. 

#10. Partner With Creators 

Creators and influencers are huge on Instagram. Accounts with large, engaged followings create content based around their chosen niche with influencers on Instagram spanning everything from travel to food and cars. 

You can partner with a content creator to create some content for your Instagram reels, usually in return for a fee or products from your store. 

This is a great way of adding new and interesting content to your account without needing to create the content yourself. 

Check out our guide to working with micro-influencers on Instagram for more inspiration. 

Instagram reels can be a great way to grow on Instagram and connect with both a new and existing audience. 

Fast-paced, fun, and engaging is the name of the game when it comes to creating reels and the ideas in this article are a great place to start when planning your Instagram content for the months ahead. 

If you’re keen to utilize Instagram even further then be sure to check out our article on how to make money on Instagram that’s bursting with expert tips and tricks.