To be honest, I was bored of Instagram there for a minute. But the past months, I’ve seen some creative formats that spark interactivity and are just straight up fun.
1. Carousel reveal
I started seeing this one a few months ago, but with the holiday season coming up, I think we’re going to see a lot more of it. These carousel posts turn into an interactive experience with each card revealing a bit more. Good to up your completion rate, swipe-through rate and ultimately score higher in the algorithm.
2. Catcher game
I love gamification on Instagram, but I haven’t always found it easy to implement. Well, this post just proved me wrong. With a simple emoji slider and items falling from above, designer @sandracreatess made a retro catcher game and I’m all for it. Easy to make it your own, just use branded items and an emoji that fits the vibe better and you’re good to go. In terms of metrics, this is a great way to increase the (average) watch time on your Reels.3. Move your thumb to the beat
I’m pretty sure this format is a brainchild from a millennial that loved playing Guitar Hero or Beat Saber, cause it literally has the same vibe. This type of Reel prompts you to tap your thumbs to the beat, with each beat triggering a visual change.4. Zoom in to see
I must admit, I am the type of person that uses their phone as a mirror. 🙈 But I’m pretty sure I’m not the only one and this format proves it. It’s a simple image post combining a black shape with a prompt that asks you to zoom in on the shape to see … who wants a donut, who looks extra pretty today, who deserves a matcha latte. You get the gist of it. Easy, fun and effective for brands in terms of dwell time.5. And finally, a format I want to see blow up: shake to reveal
Back when Instagram was just playing around with the shake to reveal sticker, I was thinking to myself: this has a lot of potential. But I must say, I haven’t seen a lot of brands taking advantage of it. I recently created some trial posts for the Italian food bar Ciccio and it was a no-brainer to include an Instagram Story using that sticker where users had to shake the matcha latte. I can also see a brand that specialises in curly hair products using it as a reveal from straight to curly hair. Or from ingredients to a fully prepped cocktail. Like I said, there’s a lot of potential in that sticker. And in terms of metrics, this again will increase your engagement, as people will be triggered to shake and reveal.
Unlike that 5120×1080 trend I ranted about a while ago, these formats actually make the most of user experience. And that’s the difference between a gimmick and a format worth exploring. 😉
