You’ve posted Instagram Reels, added trending audio, and polished your post transitions per “best practices.” But the only people engaging with your post are your coworkers and that one loyal intern.
Before you chalk it up to “Reels don’t work for B2B,” here’s the real issue:
Most B2B brands don’t use Reels in ways that actually drive visibility, engagement, or real audience growth. Instead, they repurpose stale content, follow post trends that don’t fit their voice, or treat Reels like just another checkbox on the content calendar.
In this article, we’ll share 10 creative Reels ideas to help B2B brands drive traction, connect with the right audience, and finally start seeing results with Instagram Reels and your brand’s presence on socials.
10 creative IG Reels ideas to try for your business
Here are 10 great ideas that will transform your IG Reels performance this year and help you reach maximum engagement.
1. Share a contrarian view
Why create this type of Reel: Contrarian views teach your audience something new by challenging popular assumptions. They hear it and go, “Wait, what?”
This makes it easier to capture and sustain the audience’s attention throughout the social media video. They are likely to watch till the end because they want to hear why you have an opposing viewpoint.
And because they learn something new, they will likely remember it in the future, making your content memorable. So, try this type of Reel if you want to increase audience engagement on your social media!
2. Ask a question tied to your audience’s aspirations
Why create this type of Reel: This type of Reel shows that you understand your audience deeply and know what they care about.
When they hear a question related to what they want to achieve, it stops the scroll and forces them to pay attention. They watch the rest of the video because there’s a subtle promise that you’ll share knowledge to bring them a step closer to their dream.
3. Jump on a trend
Why create this type of Reel: Trends (sounds, dance challenges, lip sync, etc.) are a relatively easy visibility hack on Instagram. They are already popular, and the algorithm knows people are interested in these types of videos. So, you can ride that wave and get your video in front of a larger audience.
The most important thing is to choose a trend relevant to your brand. That way, it doesn’t overshadow your message (and so it doesn’t turn people off from your brand for trying to be “cool”). Also, make sure your content blends in with the trend — so the final video feels like one, neatly-presented piece.
4. Share a quick tutorial
Why create this type of Reel: Not everyone has the time to watch a lengthy tutorial, especially when they’re scrolling through Instagram. Turning your Reel into a bite-sized learning resource makes it immediately beneficial to the audience. They get actionable information they can apply to a problem right away.
For better engagement results, pair this with product-led content, as The Leap does. Beyond explaining how to solve the problem, explain how your product does it. You can choose to post a product launch video and give a quick tutorial on how to use your newest product!
5. Share a milestone
Why create this type of Reel: This type of Reel helps you build a community. When you share your wins with your audience and acknowledge their role in it, it makes them feel like a part of your brand. They become emotionally invested in your success because your wins feel like theirs, too. Let them in on your journey!
6. Share a surprising fact or data
Why create this type of Reel: A surprising fact or data stops the scroll on Instagram because it shares relevant information that the audience hasn't heard before.
The viewer sees it and gets curious about how the number or statement came about. So they continue watching the video to find out.
This IG Reels style is best used when you're promoting a resource, such as an ebook or industry report. The surprising fact or data acts as a teaser and gets the audience curious enough to download the resource you've created.
7. Share a unique perspective about your product
Why create this type of Reel: This is a good way to promote your product and engage your community at the same time. Instead of simply talking about your features, put a creative spin on it — like asking your team or customers to share their favorite features and what they love about them.
This transforms the video from a bland product pitch to one that encourages conversation. Viewers can drop their own favorite features in the comments or ask follow-up questions based on what others shared.
9. Interview your customers
Why create this type of Reel: You can’t go wrong with customer interview videos. They demonstrate your product’s impact on real people’s lives and help to build a stronger brand image.
The trick here is to center the customer in their story, not your brand. Instead of talking about specific product features, let the customer share their story authentically. That way, they can naturally show where your brand fits in that narrative. This takes your product from an abstract concept to something that plays a role in someone’s life.
10. Host employee interviews
Why create this type of Reel: This is a great way to promote your employer brand and build trust.
Instead of just rehashing what makes your organization great, ask employees to share what their experience with your team has been like. Viewers are more likely to trust their point of view and perception of your brand than inauthentic corporate communications that do not show whether or not you live up to your brand values.
This type of Reel should be conversational and authentic. Don’t restrict the employee to corporate jargon in your brand book. Let them share their tips, thoughts, and experiences directly with viewers as if they were speaking to a friend.
How to create high-performing Instagram Reels
A high-performing Instagram Reel gets in front of the right audience, captures their attention, and gets them to take the desired action — whether that's checking out your website, buying a product, or even following your page.
Here are some ideas for how to create it.
1. Have a strong hook
A hook is the first 3-5 seconds (though it could be up to 15 seconds if you have a super strong start already) of your Reel, and it determines whether the viewer scrolls past or stays on to watch it. A strong hook makes the audience immediately curious by:
- Stating a problem or pain point they're struggling with. For example: Here's the easy-to-ignore reason why your customers keep churning.
- Asking a question about what they aspire to. Example: Do you want to become a seven-figure company?
- Sharing a contrarian view. For example, If you're still doing email marketing, your business might not be here in the next five years.
All of these examples make the viewer go, “Wait, what?” They get curious and keep watching the Reel to know why you said that.
Don't use hooks as clickbait. If you say something at the beginning of your video, make sure everything else shared after justifies it. For example, with the “Do you want to become a seven-figure company” hook, your Reel should share 1-2 tips to help them achieve this goal. That's how you build trust. There must be a pay off.
2. Keep it short and simple
The longer your Reel, the more challenging it is for people to watch it to the end. A study by Teleprompter found that if a reel is longer than 20 seconds, its audience retention rate drops by 20%.
Ensure that your Reel focuses on one idea and goes straight to the point immediately after your hook. Think about it this way: the hook sets the expectation, and the rest of the video justifies it.
So if your hook says, “You're doing email marketing wrong,” the rest of the video should explain the big mistake they're making with email marketing. It shouldn't ramble about the history of email marketing or try to share seven different email marketing mistakes. That sort of content works better as a long-form video.
3. Add a call-to-action
Your audience isn't mind readers. If you want them to do something after watching your video, you have to spell it out clearly. Otherwise, they'll just scroll to the next one and forget about you in seconds.
At the end of your Reel, tell the viewer what to do next. It should be a simple task that doesn't require completing multiple steps. For example, instead of asking them to fill out the webinar sign-up form on your website, ask them to drop a comment if they want a webinar invite. That way, they're more likely to complete the desired action.
4. Be engaging
An engaging video is memorable. It imprints on the mind of your audience, making it more likely that they will remember your brand.
For example, a video about the top five mistakes businesses make with content marketing might be easy to forget. But if you presented the same content using the #putafingerdown challenge, then it becomes more memorable because your audience easily associates it with what they already know.
The easiest way to make your Reel engaging is to tap into trends. Add trending sounds and viral challenges to your video to sustain the audience’s interest throughout. However, make sure the trend doesn't overshadow what you're communicating. You can do this by picking:
- A simple trend that doesn't require completing multiple activities. For example, choose a trending audio over a dance challenge.
- A quick and easy-to-complete challenge that you can do quickly before focusing on the core of your content.
- A trend related to your video's message and your brand image, so it fits in naturally. For example, the “Gen Z boss and a mini” challenge is better suited for a business with a young leadership team and employees.
Why do Reels perform well on Instagram?
Instagram Reels get 36% more reach than carousels, images, and other IG post types. Here are a few reasons for this.
1. Reels have two feeds
Unlike carousels and pictures that are primarily served in your personal feed, Reels appear in-feed and in a separate Reels feed on Instagram.
This makes it reach a wider audience. If viewers don't see the video in their feed, they may come across it while scrolling through videos in the special Reels feed.
2. The algorithm is different
The Reels algorithm prioritizes serving your content to non-followers who may be interested in it — based on their past interactions on the platform. This increases your video's reach because it gets promoted to people beyond your immediate audience — unlike what happens with carousels and images.
3. They tap into trends
Many times, Reels are based on viral content — like a dance challenge or trending audio. These trends are already popular, and the algorithm knows that people enjoy that type of content based on all the organic buzz it is generating.
So when you create a Reel that fits into the trend and use the right markers, usually a hashtag, the algorithm easily recognizes that your video is part of the “viral group.” It pushes your Reel to people who engaged with similar content in the past, which helps you to reach a wider audience.
Start creating engaging Reels with PlayPlay
You've learned what makes an Instagram Reel engaging. Now, it's time to put your knowledge to the test by creating your own Reel.
You might be thinking, “But I don't know how to create videos at all. Where do I start from?”
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You don't need any editing or coding skills to use PlayPlay. We also provide customizable templates for different types of video content and an AI assistant that lets you create video drafts from prompts and even existing blogs and PDFs, which makes your creation process so much simpler.
It's never been easier to go from newbie to a professional Reels creator. Ready to apply your knowledge to real life and start creating and editing great Instagram videos? Try PlayPlay for free for seven days.
