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New Integration With Storekit

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Creating more video content for social media will be a big focus for many brands this year. However, with different platforms come different video formats to choose from, all with a slightly different purpose. Let’s take Instagram as an example. What is the difference between Reels and Stories? 



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-css-opacity"/>



Is one maybe better than the other to grow your account and increase engagement? Should you use both or just opt for one?



 We’ve compared the main differences between Instagram Stories and Reels in the table below.



<figure class="wp-block-table is-style-stripes"><table class="has-background has-fixed-layout" style="background-color:#ffe8ec"><thead><tr><th class="has-text-align-right" data-align="right"></th><th>STORIES</th><th>REELS</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td class="has-text-align-right" data-align="right">Format</td><td>Video, image, posts from your feed</td><td>Video only</td></tr><tr><td class="has-text-align-right" data-align="right">Length</td><td>Up to 15 seconds</td><td>Up to 30 seconds</td></tr><tr><td class="has-text-align-right" data-align="right">Lifespan</td><td>24 hours</td><td>Unlimited</td></tr><tr><td class="has-text-align-right" data-align="right">Caption</td><td>No</td><td>Full captions available</td></tr><tr><td class="has-text-align-right" data-align="right">Placement</td><td>Shared to followers</td><td>Explore tabs, own Reels and as Story</td></tr><tr><td class="has-text-align-right" data-align="right">Audience &amp; reach</td><td>Engage with followers</td><td>Reach out to new customers and engage with followers</td></tr><tr><td class="has-text-align-right" data-align="right">Marketing objective</td><td>Engagement &amp; sales</td><td>Awareness &amp; growth</td></tr><tr><td class="has-text-align-right" data-align="right">User can save?</td><td>No</td><td>Yes</td></tr><tr><td class="has-text-align-right" data-align="right">Re-share</td><td>Only via private message</td><td>Via own story or private message</td></tr></tbody></table></figure>



To make the best use of Instagram Reels and Stories, here are 30 ideas to help you increase engagement and grow your audience.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">15 Instagram Reel Ideas For Hospitality</h4>



Reels are great to widen your reach and attract new customers. Use them as a medium to introduce people to your business and to give them an idea of what they can expect.



Introduce your business Reels ideas:



<ol class="wp-block-list">
<li>Venue tour</li>



<li>Tell your brand story</li>



<li>Staff intro</li>



<li>Showcase your bestsellers</li>



<li>Highlights of a recent event</li>



<li>Customer spotlight/testimonial</li>



<li>Product spotlight &#8211; merchandise</li>



<li>Seasonal event promotions</li>
</ol>



Reels are meant to be fun to watch and engaging and therefore often also have the potential to go viral.



Go viral Reels ideas:



<ol class="wp-block-list">
<li>How to … prepare a dish/drink</li>



<li>Chef hacks &#8211; cooking tutorials</li>



<li>Before and after &#8211; kitchen before and after service&nbsp;</li>



<li>Your twist on a current (food) trend</li>



<li>Making of &#8211; new dish creation …&nbsp;</li>



<li>Ingredient spotlight &#8211; 5 things you can do with …</li>



<li>Promote newsletter sign-ups &#8211; receive exclusive offers</li>
</ol>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-15-instagram-stories-ideas-for-hospitality">15 Instagram Stories Ideas For Hospitality</h4>



Engaging and trust-building content is what your should aim for in your Stories. Also, as customers are already familiar with your brand, any promotional content will perform particularly well here.&nbsp;



<ol class="wp-block-list">
<li>Daily/weekly specials</li>



<li>Last-minute offers or free tables due to cancellations</li>



<li>Upcoming events &#8211; countdown and reminder on the day</li>



<li>Employee spotlight</li>



<li>Supplier spotlight</li>



<li>Showcase your new menu items</li>



<li>Go behind the scenes&nbsp;</li>



<li>A day in the life of …</li>



<li>This or that? Your favourite dish on our menu</li>



<li>Poll &#8211; new menu item, re-introduce popular dish, name for new dish …</li>



<li>Promote e-commerce products &#8211; gift cards, meal kits …</li>



<li>Re-share customer content</li>



<li>Share customer feedback</li>



<li>Sneak peek &#8211; teaser, coming up</li>



<li>Celebrate internal events &#8211; birthdays, anniversaries …&nbsp;</li>
</ol>



If your social channels are already running on autopilot, take the time to explore other, more profitable marketing channels like Email and SMS. Check out our <a href="https://stampede.ai/how-it-works/marketing/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Marketing tool</a> or <a href="https://stampede.ai/company/#contact" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">get in touch</a> with our team to find out more.

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Instagram Stories vs. Reels. Here’s how and when to use them