Content creators share their opinions on Instagram's 10-minute Reel feature and how the longer duration of reels will impact the community and their audience.
The craze of short video platforms has only been ascending ever since their introduction. The utter satisfaction that people receive from watching a 90-second video has only given people more opportunities to explore this online space. That’s exactly why Instagram’s decision to introduce a short video feature like Reels back in 2020 did not come as a surprise. The world was already hooked to short video platforms. Ever since its launch, people have been scrolling endlessly on the platform, enjoying everything that the flourishing community of creators has to offer.
The industry has been striving for the ability to engage people within a limited duration, which both creators and audiences have been enjoying thoroughly. The conversations around audience attention span being reduced to a couple of seconds have made creators and brands work even harder. However, it was reported that the social media platform is opting to experiment further by testing a 10-minute Reels format. Instagram is known to introduce features that get the audience hooked to the platform for a longer time frame, and Reels achieved that miraculously. But for a feature that was solely loved for its short time duration, would this new feature, which would allow people to create videos for up to 10 minutes, work? Though this is the second attempt for the platform to venture into long-form videos, will this shift make a tectonic shift in the audience's behavior? Who better to ask than our creators, who have their own following on Reels!
Before diving deep into their thoughts on the upcoming new feature, we wanted to know if everyone was aware of Instagram’s 10-minute Reel testing. Even though the feature is something that creators can benefit from, not everyone had a similar reaction to this news. Nischay Jain and Tarotales seemed excited to know more about the new feature and everything it has in store for the community. Yogita feels that it is an innovative idea that opens up new creative possibilities for both creators and their audiences. “It's a game-changer for creators, enabling them to craft more elaborate and versatile content, from longer skits to even short films, offering viewers a richer experience.”
One might wonder how the longer format would help content creators be able to hold their audience's attention who have gotten used to the short time frame on Instagram. Misha Agarwal thinks that it will always depend on the creator and the kind of content they have to share. She says, "For instance, Reels were 60 seconds then 90, but with a creator who is really into educating their audience, the 90 seconds might also feel less. Because they’ve to edit a lot of good parts from the video to fit into the time slot. With this new feature, they can add everything they need while grabbing the viewer's attention throughout the video.
Yes, my rants are usually much longer than any other comedy creator’s video, but my audience doesn’t get bored. Yet I cut a lot of my content to fit into the Reels time-frame. I think they will clearly like to watch my much longer videos."
Arun Nair was aware of the testing. His initial thoughts on the same were, "Yes, I'm aware of Instagram's 10-minute Reel testing, and my first thought is that it represents a significant shift in the platform's approach to short-form video content. Extending the time limit from 90 seconds to 10 minutes opens up new possibilities for creators to tell more in-depth stories and engage their audience in a more meaningful way.” Creators like The Vixens Crew and Aditya Sahu only got to know about it recently. The dance crew who has gained an immense following on the short-video platform wondered if the new feature would lead to Instagram losing its originality and essence. “As content creators on Instagram, we don’t understand how 10-minute reels would work, given that the point of reels is to keep it short and grab attention.”
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Aditya Sahu believes that it would be a challenge for Instagram to come through. He feels that there has been a clear difference between what kind of content works on Instagram and what works on YouTube 10, and it would be interesting to see how well this new feature works. “And even in the past, we had IGTV and other experiments by Instagram which didn't work out and do not exist anymore. I think it'll take a lot of mindset change for people to accept these 10-minute Reels because reels are something that when you watch you keep immediately scrolling. No one sticks on a Reel if it's not eye catchy and attractive in the 1st 3 seconds.”
The point of the new feature is that creators really care about whether they can use it to amplify their reach to the online audience. Arun Nair believes in the potential the new update holds to greatly benefit content creators. “Especially creators like me who love cinema and videography who would take advantage of this feature to try/experiment with more art and story-telling techniques.” While The Vixens Crew is unsure about it. “People’s attention span has reduced significantly so the engagement would definitely be lower. In fact, viewers are moving from YouTube to Instagram for content of lesser duration.” For Tarotales, it’s all about the matter of convenience. “As newbies on YouTube, we can upload vlogs and longer videos on Instagram as we already built a bigger audience. So it will be very helpful for us to upload vlogs directly on Instagram.”
When asked if they think there will be an added burden for creators to start creating vertical-long form content Aditya Sahu disagreed calling it a different opportunity. "It is something new and I think there are, there are new things and new strategies and every industry that people work in. So even though it's a challenge, it's OK. Everybody faces challenges and I think creators will learn how to make it work." According to Nishchay, it's all about the perspective that each creator has. "Initially, you could only make reels with a duration of 15 seconds now that has changed to 90 seconds and people are enjoying that. So according to me, it's all about trying new things and giving them a shot."
No matter what the idea of the new feature is, creators always find opportunities they can use for their own benefit. One thing that creators collectively agree on is that the future will always be bright for the community. Tarotales mentions, "There is so much of the audience live on digital media. If will excels in that section of Instagram will generate a new stream on Instagram for viewers as well." Whereas Dolly Shah believes that it won't impact it much. "Quick bites of Information/ entertainment will always be viewed more because of the lack of time most people have. While long 10-minute videos are watched out of intention of not wanting to get bored."
What are your thoughts on the new Instagram feature? Share them with us in the comments below.
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