How to Pin a Reel on Instagram

Instagram’s Reels feature is a powerful tool for boosting engagement and growing your following, but just posting a Reel isn’t enough. You need to think strategically about how to promote your Reel, and pinning it to your profile is an excellent starting point. This lets visitors to your profile see your pinned Reel right away, increasing its chances of going viral. In this guide, we’ll explain how to pin a Reel on Instagram, Instagram reel ideas, and why it’s so crucial to your social media strategy

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Why Pin Reels on Instagram

Filming Reel - How to Pin a Reel on Instagram

Pinning Reels on Instagram is a strategic feature that allows users to highlight specific content at the top of their profile grid. This functionality is beneficial for individuals, influencers, and businesses aiming to enhance their profile's appeal and engagement.

Key Benefits of Pinning Reels on Instagram

Enhanced Visibility

Pinned Reels are prominently displayed at the top of your profile, ensuring they are the first pieces of content visitors encounter. This prime positioning increases the likelihood of views and interactions, especially for high-performing or important Reels.

Improved Engagement

By showcasing your most engaging or relevant Reels, you can encourage more interactions from both new and existing followers. Highlighting content that resonates with your audience can lead to increased likes, comments, and shares.

Strategic Content Promotion

For businesses and creators, pinning Reels allows for the promotion of specific campaigns, products, or messages. This ensures that crucial content remains accessible and doesn't get lost in the chronological feed.

Curated Profile Aesthetic

Pinning allows for better control over the visual layout of your profile. By selecting Reels that align with your brand or personal aesthetic, you can create a cohesive and appealing profile grid.

Highlighting Important Updates

Whether it's announcing a new product, sharing significant news, or directing attention to a particular message, pinning ensures that this information remains at the forefront of your profile.

Pinning Reels to Your Instagram Feed: A Step-by-Step Guide

To highlight a reel on your profile, the process is identical to pinning photos and videos. Start by selecting the reel you wish to feature. Tap the three dots in the top-right corner to access the menu. From there, choose “Pin to Your Profile.”

Where Your Pinned Reels Will Show Up

Keep in mind that Instagram currently allows users to pin content exclusively to the main feed. This means that, aside from the primary grid, all tabs automatically arrange posts in chronological order. Consequently, you cannot choose specific reels to pin to the top of your Reels grid.

Unpinning Reels: The Process in Two Steps

To remove a reel from its highlighted position at the top of your feed, select the post and open the menu in the upper-right corner. Then, choose “Unpin From Profile.” As long as the reel remains on your profile grid, you can repin it to the top of your feed at any time.

Key Considerations for Pinned Reels

It’s crucial to recognize that you cannot pin reels that are not posted to your profile grid. For instance, if you’ve shared a reel solely to the Reels tab and opted not to feature it on your profile, the option to pin it will be unavailable. If you think you might want to highlight a reel on your profile grid, even for a short time, be sure to select the “Also Share to Feed” option when publishing your content. You cannot add reels to your Instagram feed retroactively.

Pro Tip: A Clever Hack for Pinned Reels

Once you pin a reel to the top of your feed, you can tap to remove it from your profile grid at any time. As long as it remains pinned, it will continue to appear at the top of your feed. When you replace it with another pinned post, it will disappear from your feed and show up on the Reels tab only.

How to Save Reels on Instagram to the Gallery

Man Using Phone - How to Pin a Reel on Instagram

How to Download Your Own Instagram Reels

If you want to keep a copy of a Reel you created, the process is straightforward. First, navigate to your profile and select the Reels tab. Find the Reel you wish to download and tap on it to open it in full-screen mode. Look for the three dots icon in the bottom right corner of the screen. Tapping this will bring up a menu where you can select "Save." Once you choose this option, the video will automatically download to your camera roll, allowing you easy access to it at any time.

How to Save Someone Else’s Instagram Reels

Downloading a Reel from instagram shared by other users is less cut-and-dry, as it depends on their privacy settings. To save a Reel created by someone else, you must first ensure that their account is public and that they have allowed downloads for their content. Once you confirm this, find the Reel you want to save and tap on the share icon. This icon is located at the bottom left of the screen, next to the comment button. If you have the video open in full-screen mode, the share icon will be in the bottom right corner. After you tap the share icon, a menu will pop up that includes the option to download. Once you select that, the Reel will automatically download to your device.

How to Download Instagram Reels on Android Devices

If you’re using an Android device, you can download Instagram Reels with a bit of help from third-party apps. Head to the Google Play Store and search for terms like “Reels Saver,” “Story Saver,” or “Video Downloader.” You’ll find numerous reliable options that can help you save Reels along with other types of posts. After you install your chosen app, return to Instagram and see the Reel you want to download. Tap on the share icon and select “Copy link” from the menu. Then, go back to the downloader app, paste the link, and follow the prompts to save the video to your device’s storage.

How to Download Instagram Reels on iOS Devices

For iPhone users, the process is similar but requires a trip to the App Store instead of the Play Store. Search for “Story Saver,” and you’ll find various options to choose from. If you want a specific app, consider using “InSaver” or “InstaDown.” Each of these applications has unique features, so you may want to pick one based on the video quality it provides. Once you download and install your preferred app, open it and return to Instagram to find the Reel you want to save. Tap the share icon, select “Copy link,” and then paste the URL into your chosen downloader app. The video will then download to your Photos app.

How to Save Instagram Reels by Screen Recording

If you prefer not to use third-party apps, you can still save Reels to your device using the screen recording feature that comes standard on most smartphones. On Android and iOS devices, you can find the screen recording option by swiping down from the top of your screen. If you have trouble finding it on an iPhone, check to see if it’s enabled by going to Settings, tapping Control Center, and looking under Included Controls. If it’s not there, add it.

Once you have the feature ready to use, head back to Instagram and find the Reel you want to save. Tap “Record” and play the video. After it finishes, you’ll find the recording in your camera roll or Photos app. Keep in mind that you may capture a few seconds of extra content at the beginning and end of the recording. You can easily trim those out using the editing tools on your phone or in an app like Crayo.

9 Tips to Create Instagram Reels

Insta App - How to Pin a Reel on Instagram

1. Use Crayo AI for High-Quality Shorts

Crayo AI is the fastest way to create short videos. Create unlimited short videos at once. Crayo even auto-generates captions, effects, background, and music for you. Take advantage of an opportunity of a lifetime and make easy money with the TikTok creator fund program. Go from ideas to short videos in seconds:

Write an outline/prompt.
Customize the style (select a background video, voice narrator, and music from Crayo’s free templates);
Finish and export! Go viral, make money, and make clips in seconds with Crayo.

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2. Keep Up with Latest Trends

Instagram Reels are now similar to TikTok. Users upload their videos in response to viral challenges, trends, or elements. You can use this to your advantage by creating content that is related to current trends and challenges. This will help you get more views and engagement on your Reels. To find out what’s trending on the internet recently, you can check the Explore page or use Google Trends.

3. Start with a Strong Punch

Instagram Reels are all about quick, short videos. That is why it is essential to keep your videos under 60 seconds. It means that there’s no such thing as "save the best for last". Longer videos tend to lose people's attention, especially if they're just scrolling through their feed. The first few seconds of your video are crucial in capturing your viewers' attention and keeping them engaged until the end. That is why you need to ensure that the first few seconds of your video can grab attention. One way to do this is by starting with a close-up shot. This could be a close-up of your product, or your face if you're the one in the video.

Another way to start strong is by using subtitles or text overlays at the beginning of your video. When you know who your target audience is, it becomes easier to come up with ideas for videos that will resonate with them. Remember, the goal is to create content that interests your target audience and encourages them to watch your Reels. The Instagram algorithm uses machine learning that takes into account the engagement your Reels get. This will help capture people's attention even if they're just scrolling through their feed with the sound off.

4. Consistency is Key

The key to success on any social media platform is consistency. This also applies to Instagram Reels. To grow your following and increase views on your videos, you need to be consistent. This means posting and scheduling Instagram Reels regularly and promoting them consistently. If you're unsure how often to post, start with one video per week. Then, you can gradually increase the frequency as you get more comfortable with creating Reels. Remember, quality is still more important than quantity. So, don't sacrifice the quality of your content just to post more often.

5. Target Specific Niche or Topic

There are a lot of people with different interests using Instagram– from those who can’t live without playing blockchain games or those who are addicted to makeup tutorial videos. The first step here is to target a specific niche or topic. This helps you focus your content and make sure that your Reels are relevant to your audience. The more people who watch and engage with your Reels, the higher it will be ranked on the Explore page and in search results. To find out what topics or niches are popular on Instagram Reels, you can use the search function. Look for trending hashtags and topics that are relevant to your business. For example, food-related hashtags are among the most popular, which is why Instagram restaurant marketing is such a powerful tool.

6. Use Popular Music or Sounds

Music is a great way to add energy and excitement to your Reels. It can also help you set the mood and tone of your video. That's why it's important to use popular music or sounds that your target audience will enjoy. You can also use sound effects to make your Reels more fun and engaging. Ensure that the sounds you use are relevant to your video and don't distract from the content.

7. Use Hashtags

Hashtags are a great way to get more people to watch your Reels. When you use relevant hashtags, it makes it easier for people to find your videos. To find the right hashtags, you can use the search function on Instagram. Look for popular hashtags that are relevant to your video. For example, if you are selling landline phone service to seniors, use hashtag tools like Hashtagify and RiteTag to help you find the right hashtags for your Reels.

8. Make Them the Right Size

Instagram Reels are meant to be watched on a mobile device. This means that you need to make them with a vertical format and the right size so that they can be viewed properly on a small screen. The ideal aspect ratio for Instagram Reels is 16:09. The perfect resolution is 1080x1920 pixels. And the ideal length is between 15 and 30 seconds.

Additionally, using a video stitching app can help seamlessly combine multiple clips, which is perfect if you're working with shorter segments or different scenes. This type of app enables you to easily adjust the format and create a cohesive, professional-looking video. Several video editing apps for Reels can help you optimize your vertical videos with the right size and format.

9. Keep an Eye on Your Competitors

Marketing experts of Bookatrekking, a travel company that organizes hiking trips along such famous hiking routes as Peter Habeler Runde and others, claim that to stay ahead of the game, you need to keep an eye on your competitors. See what they're doing and try to improve upon it. You can do this by following them on Instagram and watching their Reels. Take note of the strategies they're using and see how you can make yours better.

You can also use tools like ReelRank and Insights to track your competitors' Instagram Reels. This will help you see how well their videos are performing and what strategies they're using. You can investigate your competitors from a broader promotional and marketing perspective to understand the Instagram tactics they use, whether they utilize referral or affiliate programs, how they engage their audience, and which cross-marketing channels they use. It'll open up a bigger picture for you to experiment.

Create Viral Shorts In Seconds With Crayo

Reels are short, entertaining videos on Instagram where you can add audio, effects, and new creative tools. They’re a great way to connect with your audience and reach new followers. You can create Reels in the Reels tab or by selecting the format when posting to your feed. Use the editing tools to customize your video, then share it with your followers or make it discoverable to the wider Instagram community.