What you need to know
- Facebook has started testing ads on Instagram Reels.
- The test is currently limited to Brazil, Germany, Australia, and India.
- Ads on Reels can be up to 30 seconds long.
Facebook has announced that it will begin testing ads in Reels, its TikTok rival. The tests will initially be limited to India, Brazil, Germany, and Australia. In the coming months, however, Facebook plans to expand the test to more countries. As revealed last month, the social networking giant is also testing a feature to allow creators in India to share their Reels on their Facebook accounts.
The ads in Reels will be full-screen and can be up to 30 seconds long. Similar to other content on Reels, users will be able to like, comment, view, save, share, and skip Reels ads. Facebook says It will learn from how users and businesses engage with Reels ads to "bring the best possible experience to the community."
Introduced in August last year, Instagram Reels has proven to be a huge success in markets such as India, where TikTok is banned. India is also one of the biggest markets for Facebook-owned WhatsApp, which is one of the best Android messaging apps. Speaking to Reuters, Carolyn Everson, vice president of global business group at Facebook, said the new test is an "indication of how strong the momentum is for Reels."
Additionally, Facebook has confirmed plans of testing sticker ads in Facebook Stories. Businesses will be able to create stickers that creators can place in their Stories. As you would expect, a cut of the sales made through the ads will go to the influencers.
The tests are part of Facebook's efforts to create new ad formats to enable creators on its platforms to monetize more types of content and help brands "reach more audiences." Facebook claims in-stream ad payouts on its different platforms have grown over 55% from 2019 to 2020.
