Instagram Reels: No gatekeeping. No illusions.

Recently, I had a reel hit over 750k views. For some, they might wonder: What’s the trick? The formula? What did I do that caused such a spike in views and better yet – was it something they, or even I, could replicate? Here’s what I know, and what I don’t.

I imagine Instagram success a little like a hurricane. The formula for a hurricane, at least that which we learned in our most Elementary studies, is rather straight forward. Hot air runs into low pressure air, and a cyclone forms. However, how do you manipulate a hurricane into either a tropical storm or, say, a category 5? Simple: You don’t. To me, the great mystery of the algorithm is terrifyingly similar. We can create the foundations of success, but whether or not it will be successful is down to the attention of our audience – much like the magnitude of a hurricane will be determined by impossible to alter factors.

But surely there is some method to the madness, correct?

I won ‘t claim to be the master of all things Instagram. I have not spoken with Meta / IG. I don’t have any inexplicable insight. And I can’t 100% guarantee any form of virality or almost virality. But I do think there are things you can do to better your chances. These are concepts I implement in my own video content making.

What You Need:
First, you don’t need anything high end.
I film all of my videos on my Iphone 14 Pro Max.
and I edit in a combination of: Lightroom Mobile, Capcut, and Premiere Rush.

Tip 1: Find the trending sounds. The easiest way to find them is via the Reels tab. As you’re scrolling, down by the sound name, you’ll notice one of two symbols: a diagonal arrow or a music note. Diagonal arrows denote a trending sound. Once you’ve found one you want to use, click it and see how many videos are currently listed under that sound. Generally speaking, I look for videos that have had between 1,000 and 5,000 reels created with that sound. The less reels, the less direct competition when those trending videos are pushed out.

Tip 2: Lead strong. A lot of creators will term this your hook. A visual or auditory means of capturing your audience and keeping them engaged long enough to watch your reel in full. To me, hooks are opening statements – and often largely overthought. A hook doesn’t necessarily have to be a question or blatant call to action. It does not have to be a “Read Caption” or “Click Below For More” (and yes, I have done this). A hook’s purpose in a reel just has to be enough to catch someone’s attention mid-monotonous scroll. A flurry of motion right up front. (I.E. one I’ve seen often among content creators who speak to the camera is putting on lipstick or chapstick as they start speaking. Next time you’re scrolling, see how often you clock this) A quote or text they relate to. A visual that draws the eye. Whatever it is, it’s intentional. I lean into a lot of POVs for mine – because I want people to want to see themselves in the moments I’ve crafted.

Tip 3: Color grading. You may also think of this as editing. For the record, un-edited videos are not inherently wrong or bad. Some may even lend better to their purpose when natural and left alone. However, by and large, videos will captivate more if they’re edited in a way that draws the eye. Any of the editing software I’ve listed above will work for this.

Tip 4: Hashtags and SEO. While Instagram isn’t necessarily as SEO focused as say – Pinterest – there is still benefit in crafting keywords into your posts as well as hashtags. Your hashtags should be content specific or, at large, feed specific. If you don’t post about coffee, don’t show coffee, don’t mention coffee anywhere … then don’t use the coffee hashtags. You want people to see your work who resonates with and relates to your work. As for keywords, I will be the first to own up to the fact that I keyword dump behind my hashtags. I think it’s equally as effective and less time costly. However, I only use 10-12 or so. I don’t just do a paragraph of different keywords or phrases.

Tip 5: Engagement. This is not people engaging with your work, it’s you engaging with theirs. Instagram craves community building. It wants to see connection – on your end, too. So do not post and ghost. Instead, spend a little time both before and after posting genuinely engaging with your desired audience. This can look like: commenting thought out comments on people you follows’ posts as well as posts from those in your niche. Respond to DMs. Share stories. Reply back to comments from previous reels or your current one if they’ve generated feedback early.