Instagram is pushing hard to help Reels stay relevant; especially with the popularity of TikTok. A lot of updates and changes have been brought to the feature lately, and more are still coming.
Talking about new features and changes, Instagram is now reportedly testing the ability to search for popular Reels in the explore section. The test was uncovered by app researcher Alessandro Paluzzi.
The test will allow users to search for popular Reels uploaded by users, which will also encourage more visibility. Instagram’s Reels is not doing badly; though it still has a lot of work to do to compete with TikTok. That said, the feature has been one of the most popular ones on the platform lately.
In June, Meta announced that it will be adding Reels API, so brands can have more options when it comes to posting Reels to their accounts. The access enables platforms like Hootsuite and Sprout Social to offer cross-platform posting and analytics tools within a single dashboard.
The benefits of having all your social posts in a single place makes this a brilliant idea. It is an opportunity for both brands and Instagram to take advantage of the increasing popularity of the TikTok competitor—Reels.
“We are always looking to improve our content publishing and consumption experiences, whether people use Instagram natively, or via a third-party. After consistently hearing from our developer community that Reels is a top priority, we are excited to introduce Reels to a number of the endpoints that you may already be familiar with,” Meta wrote in a blog post.
The new Reels API will support content scheduling, insights, moderation, hashtag search and more within its element. So, why is Reels important to Meta?
At its Q1 2022 earnings call, Meta said Reels now makes up more than 20 percent of the time people spend on Instagram. According to the social media giant, Reels are performing well on Facebook as well.
Still early days for Reels you might say, but the feature seems to be doing well considering the fact that TikTok has the edge. Adding an API makes it even better, especially when you consider TikTok’s popularity.
Reels enthusiasts will now be able to upload up to 90-seconds long Reels on the Meta-owned app. This is an upgrade on the ability to upload videos that last up to 60 seconds.
