We asked, and Meta pulled through.

Meta really said, “2024 is for the creators.” As the holiday season approaches, we are seeing a ton of updates and additional features for creators on Instagram Reels and stories in the hopes of increased usage of these elements throughout the end of 2023.

The team over at Meta must be listening because some of these updates are long-awaited and have been highly requested by Instagram users. Let’s break down these new creative tools on Instagram Reels and stories.

Pro Tips:

• Before you go looking for these features, make sure you’ve visited the app store and updated the Instagram app.

• These features are being rolled out as we speak, so they might not be available on your account just yet! Conversely, if you manage multiple social media accounts, there’s a chance some might have these features before others.

New Creative Tools on Instagram Reels and Stories

New Fonts and Text Styles

Instagram hasn’t given its users new fonts since 2020, but the wait is over! The platform rolled out six new fonts that currently seem to only be available for use on Reels. The fonts you know and love haven’t gone anywhere, but these are sure to offer a bit more creative expression for users.

Instagram is also hopping on the TikTok bandwagon and has *finally* rolled out the use of outlined text on Reels. Previously, users could only edit text to have a black or white background. Outlined text will make the text on your content a bit less clunky and a bit more malleable. 

Text to Speech 

Meta totally took a note from their friends over at TikTok on this new feature, too. In select countries, new text-to-speech voices are available for use on video content. Having the ability to have video text read opens up a new door of inclusivity on the platform.

All you have to do is add text to your video and select “text-to-speech” in the Reels editor. From there, you can choose from a variety of voices to help get your message across.

Introducing Clip Hub

Memes are such a fun and trendy way to relate to your audience or ideal client. If your brand is very meme-centric, this new feature is going to be your best friend. In the new Clip Hub, you can create new memes using clips with audio from TV, movies, and beyond. 

Instagram is currently still testing users’ ability to take clips from the Clip Hub and add them + their audio to your Reels. At the moment, these clips can only be added to a series of clips and cannot be added to pre-existing clips.

Custom Stickers

If you’ve ever wanted to turn yourself into a sticker, now is your chance! You can now take your own images and video from your camera roll and create custom stickers to use on your Reels or on stories.

Any stickers you create will be housed in your sticker icon, so you don’t have to worry about losing anything you create.

Tip: Make sure the images or videos you choose to create stickers out of have a clear subject to tap and select. If the subject you’re trying to turn into a sticker is too small or has a visually confusing background, the sticker won’t come out clearly.

New Photo Filters

It feels like it’s been ages since Instagram updated its photo filters…and that’s because it has been forever. The new variety of photo filters and editing capabilities on pictures and videos feels fresh (and the content looks even better).

Backgrounds on Stories

Adding backgrounds to Instagram stories is one of the best ways to maintain brand cohesivity through that medium. Up until now, editing those backgrounds was a game of enlarging images, moving images around, and adding stickers just to get the right look.

Now, users can add two images, or a re-post and an image, to a story frame and layer the pieces of content! Simply hold down one of the pieces of content on the story frame and move your finger up or down to edit where the content piece gets layered.

Updates to Reel Analytics

Meta has added new Reel analytics to both Facebook and Instagram to help users get a better understanding of Reel performance. They have updated the definition of “Reel plays,” which will now encompass reel replays in addition to initial plays. This could result in an increase in your Reel plays.

Some accounts might also see a breakdown of audience retention. This will help you better understand if your audience is sticking around on your videos and when they are exiting your Reels.

Too much to keep up with? Pass it to the pros.

It’s refreshing to see Meta keeping up with the times and trends, but these updates might make some panic. Suppose you’re a creature of habit, and you’ve liked how Instagram has always been. In that case, it might be time to turn to a social media agency to help your brand seamlessly incorporate these elements into your content strategy. 

At Scott Social, it’s our goal (and really, our job) to stay on top of updates like these so you don’t have to. We work with brands in a variety of different niches, making sure that updated social media features get worked into their content in a way that matches their mission, vibe, and tone. 

If you’re ready to give these new elements a try with the guidance of a team of pros, our inbox is open! Contact us today to learn more about our packages and how we can get you scroll-stopping results from your Reels and stories.