Instagram rolled out a new feature that allows creators to link their own Reels to each other, allowing them to organically build a longer story and organize their content on the platform.
This new feature aims to keep audiences engaged with a creator’s content and potentially spend more time with them before scrolling to the next random video. Once Reels have been posted, users can easily link them to one another and the organized folder will be displayed on their profile.
The new linking feature imitates one that TikTok and YouTube shorts have had in place for some time. YouTube allows creators to put their content in playlists, so audiences can easily watch content that relates to other videos in the creator’s catalogue. TikTok also has a similar organization feature that makes it simple for creators to group similar kinds of content, whether that’s cooking videos, crazy “storytime” videos or helpful how-to’s.
Multi-part series are a useful tool for increasing engagement for creators. By hooking an audience with an interesting premise and making them stick around for several parts before giving them what really came to see, creators are nudging audiences to binge their content. More watch time and increased engagement are not only beneficial for the creator but also Instagram and parent Meta.
The feature has been highly requested by its user base, according to Instagram. The platform seems to be leaning into episodic short-form content and increased fan retention.
The “Link a Reel” feature also makes it easier for fans to find the Part 2 of videos in a series rather than scrolling through a creator’s profile or attempting to search for it.
Instagram reported nearly 1.5 billion monthly users by the end of May. By contrast, TikTok has 1.16 billion active users, according to Sensor Tower. TikTok’s algorithm, however, has been more effective and getting users to scroll for longer stretches than Instagram.
