Instagram’s trying out another way to help creators get more followers, this time via early access Reels, which will only be viewable by people who follow that user.
As you can see in these examples, posted by social media expert Lindsey Gamble, some creators are now being given access to an “early access” Reels option, which enables them to lock their Reel for a period of time, with only followers able to access it before it goes live for everyone.
As explained by Gamble:
“These Reels show a clock with a star icon on the cover in the grid and a blurred cover labeled ‘Early Access.’ When viewers tap in, they see a message encouraging them to follow the creator to watch the Reel, along with a timer for when the Reel will be available for everyone and a follow button.”
It’s an expansion of the lockable Reels option that Instagram launched back in May, which enable creators to share Reels that can only be viewed by those who have an access code.
That provides another engagement option, inviting fans to become more involved in the creators’ community in order to gain access to exclusive features.
This latest update is more designed to drive community growth, using a similar mechanism to incentivize following, and drive more interest in creator content.
As such, it’s not a major shift, but it could be something for creators to experiment with, in order to build hype, and get more people to sign up to be part of the group. That will then facilitate more opportunities to appear in more feeds, and increase your reach through algorithmic signals.
Of course, you’ll want the content you’re hiding to be worth signing up early for, in order to get the most out of the option, but it could be another growth consideration to experiment with.
The option is currently in testing with selected creators. We’ve asked Instagram for more information on the roll-out plans for the option.