Brands are increasingly turning to short-form video formats such as Instagram Reels as they seek to bolster their presence on social media and engage with consumers, a new study by Emplifi has found.
Emplifi's Unleashing the Power of Video: Key Trends Driving Social Media Engagement report examined social media behaviour and trends in the second quarter of the year, and found that Instagram Reels outperformed all other content types on the social media app, generating 55% more interactions than single-image posts, and 29% more interactions than standard video posts.
Instagram Reels earned 75 median interactions per post in the second quarter, while Instagram Carousels (multi-image posts) earned 74 median post interactions, Emplifi said.
While just 11% of all Instagram posts by brands are Reels placements, some 87% of brands used Reels at least once in the quarter, representing a 26% increase year-on-year.
'Bang For Their Buck'
"Because the social media landscape is evolving and changing at such a rapid pace, it’s crucial marketers have access to insights that can help them earn the biggest bang for their marketing bucks," commented Zarnaz Arlia, chief marketing officer, Emplifi.
"A key insight from this report is that despite an ongoing decline in engagement on Instagram last quarter, the platform still delivers the highest engagement rates for brands compared to Facebook and Twitter."
Twitter Verification
Another notable takeaway from the report relates to Twitter verification, which since April has commanded a charge of $8, as part of Elon Musk's overhaul of the social media business.
Emplifi analysed more than 40,000 branded Twitter accounts, and discovered that on 11 April, a week before the platform began charging a subscription fee for Twitter Blue status, some 4% of accounts were verified. By 30 June, that had risen to 9%.
TikTok Continues To Soar
Elsewhere, Emplifi's report found that TikTok user growth continues to soar, with the average brand seeing a five-fold increase in TikTok followers in the second quarter of the year.
While TikTok is superior in terms of median engagement rates, Instagram Reels still outperforms the platform in terms of median reach, median interactions, and median video views, Emplifi said.
"It is time marketers fully embrace their video efforts, and that means everything from Instagram Reels and Facebook Live Video to TikTok content and even GIFs on Twitter," Arlia added. "Short-form video is exploding and the brands that lean into this trend will gain a major competitive edge."
