Instagram Trial Reels: Reach More People Without Creating More Content

Listen on Apple | Spotify

This blog was proudly written by a human and not a robot

Instagram Trial Reels: Reach More People Without Creating More Content

If you're a small business owner using Instagram, you probably don't have the bandwidth to create more content. What you could do with though is getting more mileage out of the content you're already creating and that's where Instagram Trial Reels and the Edits app enter the chat.

In the first Growth Addicts podcast episode back after our summer break, I'm talking about how you can use Trial Reels to get your content in front of non-followers and a ridiculously easy way to use the Versions feature in Edits to test different variations of your existing Reels. No, like seriously ridiculously easy.

Listen Now

🎧 Hit play on the podcast player above to listen to the full episode.

What are Instagram Trial Reels?

Trial Reels allow you to publish a Reel without it appearing on your main profile and being shown to your existing followers in the usual way. Instead, they're designed to be shown to people who don't already follow you. Why would you want that? Well..

I always say that we want our Instagram content to do three things:

Attract new ideal clients

Nurture the people who already follow us

Convert those people into paying customers or clients

Trial Reels can be a brilliant form of attraction content because they're giving your business another opportunity to get in front of new people and importantly, we're not talking about attracting any old followers here. More followers isn't the goal for the sake of a bigger number. We are always aiming for more of the right people discovering your business i.e. your ideal client.

What is the Instagram Edits app?

Edits is Instagram's standalone editing app for creating content. If you're already comfortable making Reels inside Instagram, you should find Edits really straightforward to use I know both myself and members of The Small Business Community are raving about it's ease of use for sure!

There's one new Edits feature I defo want small business owners to know about:

Versions.

This is where Edits and Trial Reels = baby in the golden carriage (sorry if you're now singing that song)

How to use Edits Versions with Instagram Trial Reels

So, you've created a Reel for your business, you've chosen your video, audio and a banging text hook, you've published it to Instagram and it's sitting happily on your main feed.

Job done.

But then you start wondering...

Would that hook have worked better if I'd made it shorter?

Could I have made it more specific?

What if I'd changed that first sentence slightly?

You don't want to create another almost-identical Reel and publish that to your followers, instead, you can go back into your project in Edits, choose Manage Versions and create another version. Your original video, text and audio are still there, so you don't have to start from scratch, just make a small change, perhaps tweak your hook, shorten the wording or try different audio, and publish that version to Instagram as a Trial Reel. Boom!

Then you can create another variation and test that too.

Suddenly one piece of content has several opportunities to reach new people without your Instagram feed becoming Groundhog Day!

Listen Now

🎧 Hit play on the podcast player above to listen to the full episode.

What should you change when testing Trial Reels?

In this Growth Addicts Podcast episode, I share an example using one of my own POV Reels.

The original hook was:

"POV: You're a small business owner who finally found other business owners you can share this crazy ride with, all because you trusted this post"

Rather than creating an entirely new piece of content, I could create another Version and test something shorter such as:

"POV: You're a small business owner who wants to find other business owners you can share this crazy ride with"

Same idea. Same piece of content but now I can see whether changing the way I write that hook helps it connect with more people.

You can see how your Trial Reels perform

Another reason I like this strategy is that you're not just throwing content out there and hoping for the best blindly, you can look at the insights for your Trial Reels and see how the different versions perform.

A Small Business Community shout-out

I have to give a big shout-out to Helen from Fine Art by Helen for inspiring this episode. Helen is a member of The Small Business Community and we've been chatting about Trial Reels and Edits for months now. She's also brilliant at sharing what she's experimenting with and learning with the other members, which is exactly the kind of thing I love about our community!

Helen creates beautiful artwork, particularly wildlife and pet art, alongside some very clever creations using vintage music sheets.

Go find her on Instagram at @fineart.byhelen

Thanks for all the Trial Reel chats, Helen!

Wondering what The Small Business Community is? Wonder no more. It's the place where small busieness owners take their bra off (IYKYK) settle in, learn from experts and grow their business in the best way - together. Find out more and come join us here, kettles on and we're saving you a seat ☕

Are Instagram Trial Reels worth trying for a small business?

If you're already creating Reels for your business, I'd absolutely put experimenting with Trial Reels near the top of your list, start with something you've already created.

Open it in Edits

Create another Version

Change something

Publish it as a Trial Reel

Then let it do its thing and look at what happens.

Listen Now

🎧 Hit play on the podcast player above to listen to the full episode.

And if you've tried Trial Reels already, come and tell me how you're getting on over on Instagram at @growthaddictspodcast or @amandahughes.uk