Reeling In Your Audience on Instagram

3 Reel ideas for government and public sector comms?

Reels are capturing the attention of Instagram users and that’s no accident. Meta has redesigned the app and reconfigured the Instagram algorithm to give prominence to Reels content as it competes against the phenomenal rise of TikTok.?

So, in this second edition of 3 Social Media Wins, I’m sharing three Reels formats that will work perfectly for government and public sector communications.?I also include examples.

What are Instagram Reels, Joanne?

Instagram Reels are short-form videos up to 1-minute long that combines movement, sound, effects, and text overlay. They live on your profile indefinitely, unlike Stories that delete after 24 hours (unless you highlight them).

OK, so here are my three tips for this week. I promise I won't recommend dancing. ??

#1 Education With Trending Hashtag?

Using trending hashtags in your TikTok strategy provides you with a double win.

The first win is that searching trending hashtags can provide inspiration for a TikTok video. Remember when using trending hashtags as inspiration, they must have some connection to your work. Do not hijack a trending hashtag that's out of context! ??

The second win is that your TikTok video is more likely to appear on the For You Page which will give your account an enormous boost as it will be shown in that day's main TikTok feed.

In this example, the United Nations use the trending hashtag #Misinformation and educate us on how to spot it online.

#2 Use Your Q&A Box

The question and answer feature give TikTok users and government and public sector creators new ways to connect. In videos, users will be able to designate their comments as Q&A questions, which are then labeled as questions in the comments section. This makes it easy for a creator to quickly identify and answer questions in their videos' comments.

Creators can then respond to questions with comment responses or video replies, just like they would for other video replies to comments, and add Q&A comments as stickers in responses. The new video will link back to the original, where the question was first asked.

A Q&A profile link will also be added to creators' Profile bios, which leads to a separate Q&A page where all questions and answers are aggregated. Users will be able to browse earlier questions and answers and submit new questions directly from the Q&A page.

Here's how it looks in practice and using this feature brilliantly is Visit New South Wales.

#3 Tutorials With Trending Sounds?

Trending Sounds, like trending Hashtags, allow you to work the algorithm in your favour.

In this example, NYPD brings us behind the scenes and shows us how Detective Matt Klein uses his drawings to help in missing person cases. A wonderful tutorial-type video that provides unique content but it's very appealing and in the public interest.

If you want to master Instagram Reels and other social media tactics, why not check out our Social Media Bootcamp. If you are looking for an accredited course, look at our Social Media Diploma.

If you enjoy my weekly LinkedIn newsletter, do share it with a public sector pro that you know. ??

Yours in digital,

Joanne. ??