How to Make Food & Nutrition Focused Reels: An Easy Guide for Dietitians and Nutrition Experts
Written by nutrition student Saaimah Chhalawala. Edited by Dietitian & Snapstudio55 founder Elis Halenko.
Making reels can seem intimidating, but I can help make the process just a little bit easier for you with this simple and easy guide made especially for dietitians and nutrition professionals. In the past couple of years, reels have dominated over Instagram and taken over the entire algorithm. In order to become successful on Instagram as content creators, it is essential to be able to make reels.
Reels are short videos on Instagram that are usually 15-30s long. Since reels have been on Instagram for quite some time and with the hype around reels, there are now millions of them all over the platform. In fact, new reels are posted every single day.
So, why should you make reels?
Healthcare professionals and dietitians use reels to educate and entertain their audiences. Reels have become a fun and engaging way to communicate evidence-based nutrition information to the public.
Many of these content creators have lots of practice from making reels for years, which makes it intimidating for beginners to make reels. If you are a beginner or even an intermediate at making reels this guide will help you reach to the next level of reel making!
Stop being a Perfectionist - just start!
The very first and most important step for beginners when making reels is to STOP being a perfectionist. Learn as you go and post what you have. Reels on Instagram have exploded in the past couple of years and there are so many reels on instagram that look “perfect”. But, remember everyone must have started from somewhere so don’t get intimidated.
Don’t compare your first reel with someone else's 100th reel.
Being a dietitian or nutrition professional often develops added pressure to make your posts perfect, but it’s okay to post and make reels that show imperfect looking foods and recipes. Dietitians and nutrition content creators are human and we eat real imperfect foods. In fact, it can be actually refreshing for Instagram audiences to see the real you without the filters and perfect shots. So, the next time you’re making a reel don’t be afraid to show real, raw content.
Repurpose existing content & use photos if you don’t have video content yet.
If you don’t have any videos for reels don’t worry, just get started with what you have. As nutrition experts and dietitians, you are likely to already have pictures of foods, ingredients, supplements and products you love. Use these pictures and get creative to turn them into reels.
Taking videos can be intimidating in the beginner stage, so take it slow and start with some pictures. Making reels out of a picture or collection of pictures is super simple. Start by taking a picture, add some text, sound and you're all set. Posting pictures of foods and their benefits with some music in the background is a simple reel idea that you can use as a nutrition content creator. Reels gain much more engagement compared to traditional posts so posting pictures through the reels section will also help boost your posts.
Do your research & gather inspiration within your industry.
If you don’t have any videos for reels don’t worry, just get started with what you have. As nutrition experts and dietitians, you are likely to already have pictures of foods, ingredients, supplements and products you love. Use these pictures and get creative to turn them into reels.
Taking videos can be intimidating in the beginner stage, so take it slow and start with some pictures. Making reels out of a picture or collection of pictures is super simple. Start by taking a picture, add some text, sound and you're all set. Posting pictures of foods and their benefits with some music in the background is a simple reel idea that you can use as a nutrition content creator. Reels gain much more engagement compared to traditional posts so posting pictures through the reels section will also help boost your posts.
I hope that these tips will help motivate you to start making reels and improve your reel making game. Always remember that everyone has to start somewhere and you have to start in order to get better. Don’t be afraid to mess up and fail. Keep going and one day you will achieve your goals! Lastly, for every perfect reel you see, just keep in mind that there must have been many, many imperfect ones before it.