A Teacher Seller's Guide to Instagram Reels

Grow with Angie and April: A Podcast for Teacherpreneurs

In this episode, Angie and April speak with Katie and Chynell from Routine Your Reels to help teacher sellers navigate how to use Instagram Reels in their marketing. Join in on the conversation in the mastermind group at www.growwithusmastermind.com. We’re excited to have a couple guests on the podcast with us to dive into another one of those topics that push us out of our comfort zones—Instagram Reels. Chynell and Katie built the Routine Your Reels membership program. I was part of the beta group and am excited to share this resource with other TpTers. Katie Brockmeyer is a photographer and videographer for teacher sellers. Chynelle Moore is a marketing strategist and business coach for “teachers turned accidental entrepreneurs” at Routine Your Dream. The two met on Instagram and eventually created the membership program Routine Your Reels. As they were learning Reels, they knew they wanted to help make it easier for teacher sellers. The Basics of Instagram Reels Reels is the new kid on the Instagram block. Regular posts are the OG of Instagram and still work for engaging those in your audience that don’t enjoy video content. Stories are great for engaging and nurturing your existing followers. Reels have quickly become the new way of reaching new people on the platform and growing your audience. Unlike Instagram Video (formerly known as IGTV), Reels are designed to be super quick videos. The ideal length of a Reel is just 7-15 seconds. While they can be as long as 60 seconds, knowing the shorter ones perform bests is a great reason to remove some of the pressure from yourself by keeping it short. Katie and Chynell love them because you don’t have to dive into full production mode the way you do for YouTube videos. Instead, it’s short-form video marketing that is easy to produce. What Content Performs Best on Reels? You’re probably familiar with the dancing, finger-pointing type of Reel. While many of the Reels we see on the platform have more of an entertainment feel, they don’t have to be just for entertainment. You can also use them for marketing your products and building trust with your followers. Your Reels can be used to share your expertise on something. Or you can use it to share a quick tip or two on a problem your niche market faces. You can bust common misconceptions your niche audience has. It’s important to remember what information is helpful to your market. It doesn’t have to be dancing and pointing. You can also just turn on your camera and start talking. While you can use your Reels to showcase your products, Katie and Chynell have found the ones that perform best are the ones that show your face. Consumers don’t always want to see you marketing your products. Instead, they want to know who the person is behind the products. Showing your face on your Reels allows people to connect with you, so they’ll want to connect with your products. It helps build that trust factor. As a TpT seller, the goal is to reach the target market. Your goal isn’t to go viral and get two million views. So, it’s OK if you’re not going to do something crazy. Focus on who you’re trying to attract instead of worrying too much about what it takes to go viral. Can I Repurpose My TikTok or YouTube Videos? Yes and no. When Reels first came out, there were a lot of videos that even had the TikTok watermark on them, but things are changing. When it comes to your return on investment, you’re going to be better off creating videos specifically for Reels. The people who