Recently, Instagram rolled out the Reels feature, and it seems that the company is now looking for new ways to maximize the usage of its TikTok-cloned feature. On September 4, the company launched a dedicated tab for the Reels feature in India after the TikTok app was banned in India. It is noteworthy that TikTok had nearly 200 million users in India at the time it was banned in the country. Now, Instagram has started adding a display of ‘Suggested Reels’ in the main feed for some people to boost Reels exposure.
Lindsey Gamble shared a screenshot on Twitter (with SMT) displaying that the new recommended Reels display appears between feed posts, and it highlights the most relevant Reels for users. The company has been promoting this display for some users for a couple of weeks now, and if the social media platform was to introduce the dedicated Reels tab in more markets, that would make more users aware of the new feature.
Many people have said that the Reels feature is just not as good as the TikTok app. Furthermore, most feedback suggests that the majority of Reels videos are re-purposed from the TikTok app, which makes the Reels feature an indirect advertisement for the TikTok app.
The company could address this issue by promoting the best exclusive Reels videos to maximize exposure, and the company is looking to do it via the monthly Reels Trend Report. This report will take a deeper look at the most popular Reels trend every month, and the first monthly Reels Trend Report looks at ‘infotainment.’ TikTok also provides a monthly trends report which indicates that Instagram is leaving no stone left unturned to replicate TikTok.
Last month, Alessandro Paluzzi posted a screenshot on Twitter displaying that Instagram is developing a ‘Recommended as Featured’ option for Instagram Reels which seems similar to the #ForYou featured page of the TikTok app. TikTok highlights the best content for each TikToker in the #ForYou page.
Although almost every TikToker adds the #ForYou hashtag to get featured, the short-video-sharing platform says that adding this hashtag will not do much for users to boost their chances of being featured. It will be interesting to watch if Instagram’s attempt to copy each element of the TikTok app works or not. Although Instagram did not provide any official stats, it has said that the Reels feature is taking off in India.
Read next: New Survey Reveals which App Among TikTok, Instagram's Reels and Triller took the lead in August!
Lindsey Gamble shared a screenshot on Twitter (with SMT) displaying that the new recommended Reels display appears between feed posts, and it highlights the most relevant Reels for users. The company has been promoting this display for some users for a couple of weeks now, and if the social media platform was to introduce the dedicated Reels tab in more markets, that would make more users aware of the new feature.
Many people have said that the Reels feature is just not as good as the TikTok app. Furthermore, most feedback suggests that the majority of Reels videos are re-purposed from the TikTok app, which makes the Reels feature an indirect advertisement for the TikTok app.
The company could address this issue by promoting the best exclusive Reels videos to maximize exposure, and the company is looking to do it via the monthly Reels Trend Report. This report will take a deeper look at the most popular Reels trend every month, and the first monthly Reels Trend Report looks at ‘infotainment.’ TikTok also provides a monthly trends report which indicates that Instagram is leaving no stone left unturned to replicate TikTok.
Last month, Alessandro Paluzzi posted a screenshot on Twitter displaying that Instagram is developing a ‘Recommended as Featured’ option for Instagram Reels which seems similar to the #ForYou featured page of the TikTok app. TikTok highlights the best content for each TikToker in the #ForYou page.
Although almost every TikToker adds the #ForYou hashtag to get featured, the short-video-sharing platform says that adding this hashtag will not do much for users to boost their chances of being featured. It will be interesting to watch if Instagram’s attempt to copy each element of the TikTok app works or not. Although Instagram did not provide any official stats, it has said that the Reels feature is taking off in India.
Read next: New Survey Reveals which App Among TikTok, Instagram's Reels and Triller took the lead in August!
