(Editor’s Note: Many of the below best practices were shared during an hour-long webinar titled “Creating Travel Reels that Tell a Story About a Destination with Jeanine Romo” and hosted by Wanderful, a lifestyle brand and community of women travelers. The article was originally published on October 26, 2022, but was updated on July 17, 2023, with updated trends and tips.)
If you’re using Instagram, you’ve no doubt seen the platform’s switch from an almost exclusively photo-sharing platform to one that favors “reels” (aka short-form videos that last up to 90 seconds) over the last cuople of years.
These quick-paced, easily sharable clips first debuted on the platform in August 2020 following the popularity of TikTok, and quickly gained popularity for their ability to rack up hundreds of thousands of likes in a short amount of time.
Reels also give their creators — including travel advisors and travel brands —a new way to leverage and grow their audience quickly.
Los Angeles-based travel blogger Jeanine Romo is one such creator; known as @LeWildExplorer on Instagram, Romo’s Instagram grid is almost exclusively made up of reels. She says she grew her audience from just a few thousand users to nearly 20,000 followers in about six months, largely due to the consistent posting of reels instead of photos and carousels.(As of July 2023, she’s accumulated about 46,100 followers.)
But what goes into creating a high-quality travel reel that will resonate with a large audience of Instagram users? Here are some top tips for creating engaging reels that give value to an audience who is interested in travel.
Tip 1: Focus on Planning Content That Is Both “Shareable” and “Savable"
When planning the content of your reels, Romo says it’s important to consider what’s “shareable” vs. what’s “savable,” as Instagram generously promotes content that it believes to fall into either of these categories.
According to Romo, sharable content has a high-entertainment value (Think: travel memes, a “behind the scenes” look at a vacation or quick snippets of a journey paired with silly audio) that a user may be compelled to send to someone else, such as a travel companion.
RELATED: Travel Advisors Say Social Media Is More Important Post-Pandemic
Savable content, on the other hand, tends to be more informational. These reels provide value in the form of a mini-vlog (video blog) that shares the history of a place, a list (i.e. The Top Must-Visit Beaches in Lake Tahoe) or top travel resources. These reels are more likely to be saved by a user, especially if they are planning their next big trip and are planning to return to the video as an informational resource.
It's important to note that creating shareable and savable content is not mutually exclusive, Romo said. Some, such as this reel about waterfalls in California, fit both categories.
Tip 2: Use Your Reel to Tell a Story
The best reels are used to tell a story, according to Romo, who says hers tend to fall into one of three categories: Showcasing a hidden gem that might be unknown to tourists of that area (ex: “Did you know there’s a free observation deck at LA City Hall?”); sharing a travel tip (ex: “Send an email to request an advance reservation Here”); or creating a quick travel guide (ex: Here are 3 must-visit places in Mendocino” or “Add these spots to your Yosemite bucket list”).
Whatever the angle the creator chooses, Romo advises that the content should share something new, fun and exciting about the destination. If the creator is promoting a travel business, it’s important to also highlight the company’s services, or to showcase what the experience would be like for the customer.
“You could sell trips on reels,” she said. “What can people expect on your trips? … Why should they book with you vs. doing it themselves? Add information [on services], on whatever your selling point is. Give an insider’s glimpse of what that vacation could look like and what you could offer."
Tip 3: When Filming, Forget the Fancy Equipment— But Be Sure to Focus on the Angles
When creating video content, it’s all about the angles, Romo says. Overused shooting techniques that should be avoided include panning over scenery (from left to right, or right to left) or setting up your camera to record a still shot (with the only movement taking place right in front of the lens).
Another pro tip? If using an iPhone, switch the setting to Cinematic mode.
“You don’t need the newest camera or iPhone [to create reels] — you just need engaging video,” Romo said, noting that she uses an iPhone in addition to a drone and a 360-degree camera. “Think beyond panning … We don’t want every clip to do that. [Ask yourself:] ‘What stops the scroll for you? What captures your eyes?’"
Tip 4: Finesse the Videos by Using Third-Party Editing Apps Such As CapCut, InShot or Splice
After shooting video footage, Romo suggests uploading the clips, trimming them and adjusting their speed using a third-party video editor that can be downloaded as an app straight to your phone (she uses InShot, but also recommends CapCut or Splice; all are free to download from the App Store or Google Play).
Some users find the third-party apps easier to use than Instagram’s own editing software (also available in Instagram by swiping right on the user’s home feed and clicking “Reel” at the bottom of the screen). If creating a reel in one of these apps, the finished product can then be downloaded and re-uploaded straight to the platform.
Tip 5: Add Voiceovers and Text Overlay
In addition to uploading video clips, Romo suggests that creators add voiceovers or text overlays (which can be done through Instagram’s software, or through the third-party editing apps mentioned above).
“Besides using video, we can [use] a voiceover that literally tells the story,” she said. “But not everybody is going to be listening, so text overlay is also important. It keeps the eye moving.”
RELATED: Trade Secrets Podcast: Bonus Episode: How Do I Actually Use TikTok and Instagram Reels for My Travel Agency? (Sponsored Content)
Tip 6: Treat Your Caption Like a Mini Blog Post
Rather than stuffing a dense amount of information on a particular destination, attraction or travel site in a video clip, use the reel’s caption to inform your audience, Romo suggests.
These captions can be long and should include keywords that will help other users find your profile and posts. Romo says her captions either act like a mini blog post; provide information that can be used for a future visit; or give honest feedback about an attraction or service.
“Give helpful information that people will want to save,” Romo said. “And [be honest] about what experiences [a place] didn’t include on the website. For example, ‘You must arrive before scheduled departure time. They’re very strict about this, and you can expect a wait when checking in, so arrive early.’ Treat it like Yelp. It’s a disservice not to give honest feedback.”
Treat it like Yelp. It’s a disservice not to give honest feedback.
She also includes about 10 location-specific hashtags per reel, but tends to stray away from the most popular hashtags in favor of ones that are not as overused (bypassing “#travel” for “#VisitLasVegas,” for example), and focuses on using hashtags to describe exactly what her reel is about.
“I’ve turned my focus more to keywords (or words that appear in the caption), though” she said. “What would people type in to search for these reels in Instagram? I try to use at least 10 in each caption.”
Tip 7: Always Include a Call to Action
No reel should be published to Instagram without a call to action (CTA) in the caption and, in most cases, in the reel itself.
A CTA can take many forms, but it always requests that the viewer do something to further engage with the reel’s creator (ex: text overlay in the video that asks the viewer, “Have you been here?” or “Would you go?”).
For travel advisors, a CTA may be “Book this vacation by clicking the link in my bio;” for those looking to grow their audience, it might be “Follow my page for more national park travel.”
Tip 8: Follow the Trends (Shorter Video, Trending Audio)
Instagram has its own dashboard to help users find exactly what their peers are responding to on the platform: the “Reels Trends” feature, a centralized location found via Instagram’s mobile app, was designed to help professional users discover trending content.
To access Reels Trends on a creator Instagram account, select the Professional Dashboard button on a profile and select “Reels Trends.” Users can also tap the hamburger icon on their profile and select Reels Trends from there.
Once there, users can see the top trending audio for reels, along with popular hashtags.
When users begin posting reels, it’s important to “test things out” as Instagram’s algorithm continues to change, Romo said. Right now, she believes that shorter reels (7-11 seconds) are trending more than longer videos (up to 90 seconds), and users who pair their reels with audio that is already trending on Instagram (found via the “Reels Explore” page and distinguished with an upward arrow next to the song title) will make their reels more discoverable to others.
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“[Instagram] also shows how many videos have been uploaded with that audio,” Romo said. “I use audio that’s been used on less than 10,000 videos— it’s not overly used yet. You can do it beyond that, but I like to catch it when it’s early.”
Tip 9: Post Consistently at Times Where Your Audience Is Most Engaged
For Romo, who is based in the West Coast of the U.S., the best time for audience engagement falls between 9 a.m. and 6 p.m. Pacific time, with most posts created around 10-11 a.m. to catch users at the start of their day within the peak period.
But the most important thing to keep in mind is to be consistent with that timing, she said. One of the best ways to figure out a schedule is to use Instagram Account Insights (available for professional Instagram accounts), which provides user and engagement data.
“Analytics are your friend,” Romo said. “Keep track and make notes such as: ‘I posted this reel, it was 11 seconds, I used trending audio and I posted at 9 a.m.’ Make notes [about how it performed]. I know this sounds like a lot of work, and it is. But that’s how you get to know what’s working, and what’s not.”
For more formal analytics, head to Instagram’s Reel Insights page, a feature that’s only available on Instagram’s mobile app. To view insights, click on a posted reel, select the “…” icon on the lower right-hand corner, and then tap “Insights.” This will bring up a slew of helpful information regarding that specific reel, including the number of plays, likes, comments, shares and saves it has received. It also measures the number of accounts reached (and how many of these accounts were already followers, vs. non-followers), the total amount of time the reel was played and the average watch time.
Tip 10: Create a “Cover” for Your Reel
When publishing a reel, a user will be prompted to create a “Reels Cover” that can either be a screenshot from the video, or a photo from the creator’s phone camera roll. This “cover” will show up on the creator’s profile grid; if compelling enough, it will entice the user to view the reel directly from the creator’s page.
Romo’s advice? The cover should always relate to the video, and overlay text gives the audience additional context to what the reel is about.
Tip 11: Share Your Reel With Others via a Personal QR Code
Users can also share individual reels with friends, family or other users via a QR generator, which can be found by selecting an already-uploaded reel, hitting the “…” symbol in the lower right-hand corner and selecting “QR code.”
When others scan the code with their smartphone’s camera, it will take them directly to the selected reel on Instagram.
The QR code can also be saved to a phone’s camera roll for easy access.
Tip 12: Turn Your Instagram Stories into Reels Automatically, or Use Pre-Created Reel Templates
When scrolling the Discover Reels page, users may come across a prompt from Instagram asking if they would like to turn already-created Instagram stories into a Reel.
This option is perfect for those who may be intimidated by Instagram’s in-app editing software. Instagram does much of the leg work here, pairing clips from past Instagram stories with suggested audio. The user can preview the reel ahead of posting in addition to editing the clips, reordering them, adding more or altering the text or sticker overlay.
Another option for easy creation is to use an already-existing Reel template. When scrolling through reels on the Discover Reels page, viewers may encounter a “Use Template” option on another creator’s reel. By clicking this, the audio and pacing of the reel will be automatically loaded into the editing software; users only need to replace the clips with their own.
Jeanine Romo and Wanderful
FollowJeanine Romo at @LeWildExplorer on Instagram.You can also become a member of the Wanderful community by signing up for membership on the organization's website.
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