How to make reels and stay sane? Keep it simple, create with your bigger vision in mind, and repurpose!
Why do we say this?
If you’re like us when we started out, you’re making every piece of content one at a time and hoping for the best. You’re writing your captions in the app on the fly. You’re trying to remember if you have all the pieces and parts. You’re searching for an audio, hoping it’ll be trending, and maybe that it’ll get a lot of views.
And then it doesn’t.
And then you do it all again tomorrow.
Exhausting.
There’s a whole lot we have to say about getting you out of this. So let’s get to it.
First, let’s shift your mindset about your content and how you’re creating it
#1 – Slow the heck down
One post is not going to make or break you and your business. The way you connect with people and create relationships is going to come from you overall and over time. So don’t over think it!
#2 – Think about your big vision aka your overall content strategy
Which brings us to number two. That big vision you help your clients get in touch with? Let’s imagine it for YOU and for your online presence.
How do you want to feel when you see your own content – whether that’s on social media, on your website, on a flyer or business card that you had out, or in a course you create. How do you want others to feel when they see your content? What’s your overall mission and purpose for what you’re creating in your business? Does your content relate back to that?
#3 – Imagine that with each piece of content, you’re making an investment and building something bigger
Get out of the habit of viewing content creation and posting on social media as a chore. Whether you’re creating it yourself or investing in help with this, you’re still the person behind your personal brand and you need your energy to be right for people to resonate with it! Imagine that you’re creating, now a singular piece of content, but one part of your overall body of work.
#4 – Don’t make a reel (or any piece of content) from start to finish each time
This is asking for trouble. You’re constantly context switching when you have to think of a story, a caption, a hook, a caption teaser, a call to action, which video to use for b roll or whether to talk to the camera, not to mention other design elements like a reel cover. No wonder you’re exhausted.
#5 – Write in a stable place, NOT in the app as a caption
Remember, this is an investment and we’re building your personal brand, brick by brick, with each post. So write like it! As we build a bank of content, you’re going to have stories that you share over and over. It’s going to be *so much easier* if you keep them in a place that’s easy to return to.
#6 – Now, write and write and write
Write what you want to say in the way you’d explain it to your friend. Whether you’re telling a story or educating about something in your niche, first get the idea out of your head and into writing. Then organize it accordingly.
#7 – Remember that your idea can be shared in multiple ways
This time it might be as a short reel with a really captivating hook, and the whole story in the caption. Next time you might use your caption as a script and tell your story, face to camera. And the time after that you might transform it into a carousel. You might also treat it like an experiment and switch up the hooks, video, or the call to action.
Second, a simple analogy and a simple formula for repurposing
We truly want to help you make the most of what you post! So when you see each piece of content as contributing to your bigger vision and overall body of work, now we can do that!
So here’s the analogy…
You can mix and match like putting together an outfit… 👗💎👢👡 👛👜
The STAPLE PIECE you can use over and over:
👗The juicy caption! You know, all that “value.”
And side note, your stories are valuable. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that “value” is just free education, tips, and tricks. Value can be sharing your vulnerabilities and making someone realize they’re not going thru xyz alone. It can also be simply relating to a common struggle or theme.
Other ideas:
- Create a mini guide, an action plan, a step by step explanation
- Help your audience solve a specific problem through sharing your knowledge or your story
Things to note:
Break up the text with spacing, emojis, bullet points, or numbers
The ACCESSORIES you can change up:
💎 Trending audios
Look for audios with usage of less than 10K, and the fewer uses the better. If you can find one that’s under 1K, that’s optimal. Take a look at how other people are using it and consider not using it if the way most people use it doesn’t match or feels off for your purpose. Also, it’s worth noting that we’ve had content perform well with or without these, so don’t worry too much about it.
💎 B roll footage
This can be as simple as you working, walking, or making coffee. It can also be videos of nature, or really anything depending on the story you’re telling or info you’re sharing.
💎 A hook that gives context and tells your audience what you’re helping them with
Experiment with these and make them fun!
- ex) Struggling with ()? Try ()!
- ex) Our best tip for ()!
- ex) Mistakes I made when ()!
- ex) A gentle reminder that…
- ex) I used to believe () was true until I discovered it was actually ()
💎 Use a call to action to let them know that the answer is in the caption!
- ex) read the caption with an emoji or arrow pointing down
- ex) this caption is for you!
And don’t forget!
✔️ The easiest way to get started with reels is to keep it short! We’re talking about 5-7 seconds, which yes is very short. You can use one video clip with one hook and the call to action to read the caption.
When you repurpose, then you can experiment with longer formats that require being on camera and more editing, or creating carousels.
✔️Make sure the text is readable
- If you use white text you can slightly filter the video
- Use a different color text with that contrasts the background
- Use a color block with with your text
Want more help?
We go into *a lot* more detail inside our social media coaching programs where we teach you all the ins and outs, step by step!! Either 1:1 or with a small group. Book a call with us to see which is a fit for you!
Two heart-centered creatives who are doing creativity differently. In our book, storytelling is magic and storytelling is medicine. As nurses and board-certified nurse coaches, our passion is helping nurse coaches and entrepreneurs tell their stories in a way that reflects the extraordinary that was always inside, they just didn’t know it yet.
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