How I used my background as an artist, graphic designer, reel enthusiast, and aspiring product designer to redesign Instagram Reels.
Instagram Reels Case Study
Bright sunbeams peek through the layers of branches above me. I close my eyes and take in the fresh air, the warm sun, the sound of my next door neighbors playing in the sprinkler— debating if I should just take a break myself and enjoy a quick run through the cold, rushing water.
That’s when I hear a small voice in my head: “No. I must set out to accomplish what I came here to do”.
Sitting up, I quickly analyze my set-up. The picnic blanket radiates summer vibes. Twenty minutes later and the canvas, paper towel, and brushes are scattered ever so purposefully that they appear effortlessly aesthetic. Lastly, I take off my shoes to have a brush holder (right shoe) and water cup holder (left shoe).
Last summer, I was doing what I usually did on a perfect day — outside in my backyard filming an Instagram reel for my art account.
Like many young creators, I adore documenting my process. Platforms such as Instagram have allowed me to share what I love to do and find others who appreciate or love to do the same. The satisfaction of finding the perfect audio to use is just the icing on the cake of a sometimes tedious, but incredibly rewarding process. However, this personal appreciation and enjoyment towards creating reels can be quickly sullied after pressing “share”.
My beloved, 30 to 90 second creation, will most likely be viewed for last than half a second in an endless stream of content. From its outdated content to its sizeable comparisons to TikTok, for years people have held Instagram Reels in an unflattering light. Instagram Reels was designed to give viewers and creators a platform to explore an expansive, diverse array of interests; yet, problems of oversaturation and the overall set-up of the feature have caused it to fail to resonate with a majority of users today.
That warm summer day and reel became my inspiration to revamp the current design of Instagram Reels.
I started writing my problem through the lens of an artist and online creator:
When I am posting content, I want to reach as many accounts as possible, so I can have a large following/consumer base to share my work with.
But I can’t do that well because:
- My content is set alongside the millions of small creators struggling to do the same.
- I am an inconsistent poster which minimizes my chance of being “picked up” by the algorithm.
Afterwards, I approached other users to find a solution beyond MY problem with reels.
The Problem with Reels
When Instagram users view reels, they want to feel a sense of connection to the videos they are watching, but they can’t do that well because…
- There’s limited transparency as to what videos appear for users — users don’t know why they’re shown what they’re being shown.
- It’s rare to find/discover the type of creators and content users care most about.
User Research
First, I approached users hoping to identify key “turn-off” points in Instagram’s reel-making and reel-viewing process. The users I interviewed included a musician (content creator + reel enthusiast), an avid Instagram user (impartial to reels), and a non-Instagram user (disdains reels).
Key Insights ➜ Trends
- Users frequently compare how TikTok is more engaging than Reels. ➜ Users perceive Tiktok as the clearer, better option for video content.
2. Users will tend to rank their preference of the internal features within the app (stories, DM’s, posting, reels). ➜ Users have found specific ways to use Instagram by sticking to 1–2 features they really know.
3. Content creator users find it hard to display their content to specific target audiences who would enjoy and interact with their reels. ➜ Users want a way to find their target audience without having to guess what methods will boost their content.
4. Users want a way to find their target audience without having to guess what methods will boost their content. ➜ Users like having a feeling of interpersonal connection with the content they view and share.
Brainstorming
I asked two of my fellow friends in Psychology for their help in a late night brainstorming session at our favorite study spot.
Feature 1: Creator Spotlight Pop-Up
While the intention behind this feature was to better bridge the gap between creators and non-creators — the function of a pop-up would ultimately be to disrupt the user’s flow. Disrupting the user’s flow would cause change that would be more of a detriment than a solution.
Feature 2: Prompts for Reels
The intention behind this feature was to begin to create ways to establish solid categories within reels. By using a familiar story feature that gives the option to either (1) create a reel towards the prompt, (2) view friends’ reels, or (3) view a gallery of all posted reels, users might better find content they resonate with.
However, upon showing my friends the flow for this feature, they brought up a great point: “It’s still not really up to the users what they see”. Establishing categories without user feedback and input into what categories they’re shown doesn’t solve the core problem with Instagram Reels.
It became clear that the solution was much bigger than a pop-up or a shiny, new button:
Feature 3: A Discover Page
After sifting through hundreds of sticky notes, coming up with top six ideas, the smell of Sharpie lingered in the air.
We chose to move forward with the Discover Page feature for its high impact — not only does this solution include our intentions behind previous features, but through the heavily reliance and ability to edit categories, users are given much more control.
Rather than being taken to a single feed that plays one video at a time, what if users opened up Reels and immediately taken to a Discover Page?
Inspiration
For developing the layout of the new discover page, I referenced the Snapchat discover page and the now-discontinued TikTok discover page.
Initial Design
After looking at numerous discover pages, explore feeds, and discover profiles, I listed out basic elements and functions that would bring the Discover Page to life:
- an overall trending category ➜“Hot Today”
- tags at the bottom that would lead to specific trends/popular searches
- a tag that would lead to a page that contains reels using that specific sound
- the ability to add and edit categories ➜“My Interests”
- a creator spotlight
As I began building my prototype, I found myself constantly referring to Instagram’s preexisting designs and features to ensure the feature aligned with Instagram’s current design and information hierarchy. When a user explores categories, the user is taken to the familiar one-video-at-a-time format. I originally debated on using the Instagram heart icon, or developing a pin icon, to signify being able to add interests; however, I decided against it, sticking to Instagram’s familiar blue buttons.
From a very bright, out of place button that was originally placed in the corner of reels, to a hidden Discover card on the explore page that would only appear if a user randomly felt like holding down a reel, this final design was one of many.
I originally wanted to do something similar to TikTok — having a vibrant, almost separately styled Discover Page to signify creativity and exploration. But as mentioned before, through the time I had been working on the app, I realized that the most effective solution needed to seamlessly combine with the app itself, making sense along its preexisting functions.
Finalized User Flow
It was only when it all came together — all profiles had been filled with myself and stock images, every last gif had been imported — that I could take a step back and see that:
The vibrance and creativity I was looking to emulate wasn’t in the graphics or designs I was creating, but the content itself.
Final Prototype
Conclusion/self-reflection
This was my very first case study, and I’ve learned so much from working on this project. As a frequent Instagrammer, getting the chance to dissect and make decisions on the app was an invaluable experience that showed me how to work on my creativity and intuition — in an interpersonal, visual, and technical sense.
In user interviews, office hours with my design mentors, late night brainstorming sessions with my roommates & friends, I felt my own ideas melding with the past experiences of so many different people in my life — all of which helped me create a final solution.
From combining what I know from visual design and learning how it can be applied to the world of UX/UI was a challenging, but fun process.
I can’t wait to create more screens!
