New Features That Make Creating Instagram Reels Even Easier

clock iconJune 02, 2022

Let your imagination run wild with Reels, where there’s no right way to create — now it’s even easier to follow your curiosity and creativity wherever they take you on Instagram. Today, we’re rolling out new features that help you engage more with your audience and help you express your most authentic self on Reels.

It’s more than okay if your process is less than picture perfect. Experiment with Reels however, whenever and wherever you want to grow your community and shape your journey as a creator on your own terms. Whether you've been using Instagram forever or are just starting out, the opportunity to reach new viewers is yours to capitalize on. Over a 60-day period, public accounts with over 10K followers that posted at least 5 reels over 60 days gained over 2.5x as many followers as those within the same category who didn't post reels.

Not sure where to begin? Start creating right now with the new features below.

3 screenshots showing Reels features

Heighten the drama with fresh sound effects.

If you’ve ever watched a horror movie on mute, you know how valuable sound is to building suspense and getting viewers fired up. The same goes for Reels or any type of video content. From airhorns to crickets to drums and more, our refreshed collection of sound effects can help you inject humor into a reel or help your audience get in their emotions while watching one.

Import your own audio.

Now you can import your own audio directly within Instagram Reels—a game changer for creating truly one-of-a-kind Reels on the go. Use the Import Audio feature to add commentary or background noise from any video that’s at least 5 seconds long on your camera roll. Make sure you like how your voice sounds in the recording, because others might use it in their reels, too!

Connect with your audience using interactive stickers.

Many of the interactive stickers you know and love from Instagram Stories are now available on Reels, offering more opportunities to engage with your community. Try out these stickers in Reels now to help pull in new viewers who can become part of your storytelling:

  • Poll: Making a two-part reel? Poll your audience on what should happen in your next video so they can help shape the storyline themselves.
  • Quiz: Put your audience’s skills to the test (or teach them something new!) with this sticker.
  • Emoji Slider: Let your audience share how your content makes them feel with a sticker that makes the heart-eye emoji even more powerful.

Whatever you come up with, you’ll spark participation among your friends and fans, bringing your community closer together. Plus, their direct feedback can help inspire your future reels content.

Tell deeper stories with 90-second reels.

We’re giving you more time to play on Reels, by extending the length to up to 90 seconds. You’ll have more time to share more about yourself, film extra behind-the-scenes clips, dig deeper into the nuances of your content or whatever else you want to do with that extra time.

Get inspired by Templates.

See a reel you can’t get out of your head? We recently launched Templates, which allows you to easily create a reel using another one as a template. It pre-loads the audio and clip placeholders, so all you have to do is add and trim your unique clips.

We’ll continue to invest in building new ways for you to connect with your audience and entertain on Reels. We can’t wait to see what you come up with and the creative ways you use these new tools!