Instagram is more than just a place to post pretty product photos. Stories and Reels offer powerful, low-pressure ways to build trust, connect with your audience, and keep your shop top-of-mind without feeling overly salesy.
Unlike static posts, these formats are fast, dynamic, and designed for discovery. Whether you’re showing how a product is made or resharing customer feedback, Stories and Reels can give your brand personality—and encourage engagement that leads to sales.
Before we dive into how to use these tools effectively, let’s break down the difference between Reels and Stories so that you can choose the right format for each type of content.
Reels vs. Stories: What’s the Difference?
Not sure whether to post to Reels or Stories? While both are short-form video formats, they serve different purposes and reach different audiences. Here’s how they compare.
Instagram Reels
- Length: 15 seconds to 3 minutes
- Visibility: Public by default and shown in the Explore tab, Reels feed, and hashtag searches
- Lifespan: Permanent unless deleted. Can appear on your profile grid and be watched again later
- Best for: Reaching new audiences, going viral, showcasing product demos, tutorials, or entertaining content
- Bonus: Reels can be boosted for advertising and often get higher organic reach compared to posts
Instagram Stories
- Length: 15 seconds per clip but can stitch multiple clips together
- Visibility: Visible only to your followers and featured at the top of the app for 24 hours
- Lifespan: Disappears after 24 hours unless you add it to a Story Highlight
- Best for: Real-time updates, behind-the-scenes moments, polls, product countdowns, and limited-time offers
- Bonus: Great for building relationships and encouraging engagement with interactive stickers, polls, and Q&A
Which should you use? Ideally—both! Use Reels to grow your audience and attract new potential customers and use Stories to nurture your current followers, build loyalty, and share quick updates.
Now that you know the differences between Reels and Stories, let’s look at some creative ways to bring your products to life using each format. From behind-the-scenes peeks to engaging product demos, these ideas will help you connect with your audience in fresh, authentic ways.
Show What Happens Behind the Scenes
People love seeing the “real” side of small businesses. Behind-the-scenes content makes your brand more human and relatable—and helps build a connection that sets you apart from big-box retailers.
Use Reels to show:
- Your creative process, from sketching to packing
- How you select materials or prep orders
- A time-lapse of your workspace or a production day
Use Stories for:
- Quick daily check-ins (“Here’s what I’m working on today…”)
- Polls or “this or that” options for upcoming products
- Sneak peeks of new listings before they go live
By letting followers in on the process, you’re inviting them to be part of your journey—and that builds brand loyalty.
Share Product Demos That Solve Problems
Reels are the perfect place to demonstrate how your product works or fits into your customer’s life. Rather than hard selling, focus on showing value.
Examples:
- If you sell handmade scrunchies, show how they’re gentle on hair and don’t leave creases.
- Selling digital planners? Record a screen capture of how your file opens, prints, or syncs with an app.
- Make jewelry? Use Reels to show how to style a necklace with different outfits.
These videos don’t have to be perfect. They just need to be useful. Add on-screen text, music, and a caption that includes relevant keywords to increase visibility.
Turn Customer Content Into Sales Drivers
Social proof is powerful. Sharing content from happy customers not only gives your followers confidence, it makes them feel like they’re part of your brand.
Here’s how to use user-generated content (UGC) effectively:
- Reshare tagged posts and stories from your customers using your products
- Create a highlight labeled “Happy Customers” or “Styled by You”
- Compile quick Reels using customer photos (with permission) and add a fun audio track
- Post a story thanking a customer for their support and tag their profile
Encourage buyers to tag you in their posts or use a branded hashtag to make it easier to find and share their content. If you offer customizable products, be sure to feature those personal touches when resharing. This shows future buyers what’s possible.
Use Engagement Tools in Stories
Stories include built-in features designed to spark interaction and encourage engagement. Try using:
- Polls -> “Which color do you love more?”)
- Questions -> “What product should I bring back next month?”
- Quizzes -> “Guess which new item is coming this week!”
- Countdown stickers -> for restocks or product launches
These tools keep your followers active and signal to Instagram’s algorithm that your content is worth promoting.
Bonus: When followers engage with your Stories, they’re more likely to see your future posts and Reels in their feed.
Post Consistently But Keep It Fun
You don’t need to post a Reel every day or document every moment of your workday. Even just one or two Reels per week, along with a few Stories, can keep your audience engaged and your brand top of mind.
To make the process easier, try batch-recording several Reels in one sitting so you always have content ready to go. Use templates within the Reels editor to maintain a consistent look and feel across your videos. You can also repurpose parts of your Stories into Reels (and vice versa), which saves time while giving your content new life.
Keep your tone conversational and make sure your visuals reflect your brand’s personality. You’re not just promoting products—you’re building relationships.
Need more Instagram inspiration? Check out eRank Manager Starla Moore’s 30-Day Instagram Challenge. It’s a fantastic way to kickstart your content planning and stay consistent on social media. You’ll get easy-to-follow prompts for what to post and when—perfect for building momentum and boosting engagement.
Make Instagram Work for Your Business
Instagram Stories and Reels aren’t just for influencers or viral dance trends. As a product-based business owner, you should take advantage of them in order to build trust, show your expertise, and guide your followers toward making a purchase—without being pushy.
Use behind-the-scenes footage to give your audience a peek into your process. Share product demos to solve real customer problems. Let your buyers help promote you with their own content. And have fun experimenting with interactive tools to keep the conversation going.
Start with one feature, stay consistent, and let your creativity shine. You never know which post might be the one that turns a viewer into your next loyal customer.
Not sure Instagram is the right social media channel for your business? Learn more with Best Social Media Platforms for Etsy Sellers.
