Instagram Reels or TikTok? Which platform is better for your brand? Tips, differences and tricks

Front and center in that revolution are two of the most important social platforms of our time: TikTok and Instagram. Both let users create, edit and share short-form video, but there are significant differences between Instagram's Reels and TikTok.

REAL USERS OF INSTAGRAM AND TIKTOK

Source: Mediapanel, average monthly Affinity Index, period: 2022, platforms: PC, Mobile, data for WWW+APP

The chart above shows the number of real users on the popular social platforms. A common myth about the TikTok community is that the platform is aimed mainly at very young users and that they are the ones using it. What does it look like in reality? One glance at the chart is enough to see that the largest group in the audience is 35 to 44 years old.

So where did that belief come from? It may be a leftover from Musical.ly, the original app TikTok took over. It may also come from the fact that it is mainly young people who create and publish the material. Over time the character of the videos posted on TikTok changed, which turned the platform into a place for entertainment, inspiration, news and even learning. We'll look at that more closely later on.

Another important point is that Instagram still has more users than TikTok. It is also a much older platform: it arrived on the Polish market in 2012, TikTok only in 2017. Over those years Instagram has won a crowd of fans, mostly from Generation Y, who are reluctant to move to each newer social media channel that comes along.

The conclusion — to match the tool we plan to use in a marketing strategy effectively, we first need a very good understanding of the target audience.

TIKTOK BASICS

TikTok is the most downloaded app among the young generation, but it is also winning a following among older people and among brands, which are getting bolder about working videos on the platform into their marketing strategies.

The platform lets you make creative videos in vertical format, which you can build out with soundtracks, AR overlays (augmented reality), filters and stickers. It has also taken care of the relationships between users, allowing them to comment on videos, send them in private messages, repost content and take part in LIVE broadcasts.

Without a doubt, one of its greatest strengths — and one of the reasons it rules among video apps — is its advanced algorithm and recommendation system. The platform matches content to each individual user's preferences with surprising effectiveness. That makes TikTok not only a form of entertainment but also a source of inspiration for life and for shopping.

ABOUT INSTAGRAM REELS

The people building social platforms watch each other closely, and the moment a given feature gains in popularity they react at lightning speed and ship something similar to what the competition has. That is exactly what happened when interest in TikTok shot up among users — Instagram answered the challenge by launching a new feature, Reels (also available on Facebook).

The tool needed time to develop its capabilities and offer creators features close to those of the pioneering TikTok. Today Instagram's short-form video editor is far more developed than it was in its first months. Just as on TikTok, users can create and share vertical videos built out with music and effects of all kinds.

TIKTOK VS INSTAGRAM

Given the steadily growing popularity of both TikTok content and Instagram Reels, plenty of users, creators and brands decide to publish identical content on both platforms.

What are the upsides of that? Time, certainly. You don't have to make two near-identical videos. But honestly, that is where the list of upsides ends.

The short-form video features on the two platforms may be similar, but who their users are and what those users expect from content are completely different!

DIFFERENCES — CONTENT

TikTok and Instagram differ a great deal in the content itself. What gets posted on TikTok is above all funny, natural and “human.”

The young generation fell in love with TikTok for its authenticity. The app lets you pick from a hundred beautifying filters, but using them is seen as a bad look. Users will turn the ever more “beautifying” filters into a joke and build trend concepts around them. And the most popular AR filter, “bold glamour,” has been called terrifying.

Videos on TikTok are not “polished.” Users often shoot them on the fly — in the car, in bed, in a kitchen nobody has tidied.

It is a different story on Instagram, where an attractive feed is sacred to plenty of influencers, brands and private users alike. Reels are fine-tuned on the aesthetic side. The videos are easy on the eye, but they are seen as not very authentic.

DIFFERENCES — USER CULTURE

Short-form video is not only entertainment; it is also where new communities and user cultures are born.

TikTok users react fast and act spontaneously. They pick up emerging trends and challenges in the app with ease, which helps material spread very dynamically. Trends on the app are born as fast as they die — their lifespan is about a month.

Instagram is a little more forgiving on that front. Putting more weight on aesthetics and on the style of the recording means the trends are not nearly as dynamic.

Instagram users are used to pretty pictures, so music playing under a Reel counts as the cherry on top, which translates into praise and appreciative comments.

WHICH ONE SHOULD YOU GO FOR?

It is important to be aware that a highly polished video will not win much appreciation on TikTok, and vice versa — a chaotic, hurried clip will not find a following on Instagram.

If you decide to bring short-form video into your marketing strategy, there are important questions to answer for yourself:

• Is the brand ready to show itself in natural light rather than in the glare of a flash?
• Is it ready to approach certain things with humor and a bit of distance?
• Where is my audience concentrated?

If you are not sure, or you want to step into the world of short-form video but have no idea what to make — it is worth consulting the specialists at a social media agency