🍦8 Instagram reels you should steal

This is a super simple video. You just go to a restaurant, film the vibes, film some food and drinks, then post. You don’t even have to tell them you’re coming. It won’t cost much and you’ll get to eat tasty food.

Last time Naptown Scoop posted one of these, it got 156,000 views and earned us 485 new followers.

New restaurants perform exceptionally well here but you can do it for any restaurant.

P.S. For numbers context, Naptown Scoop has 33.6k followers on Instagram.

Another super simple video. Find all the restaurants that opened this year (which you should already know from writing your newsletters), pick the top 5–7 and post this video with 2–3 clips per restaurant.

Scoop’s results:

I love this one because you can make it a series. The video above is for cozy winter dates. You can also do outdoor summer dates, non-restaurant dates, and more.

Pick a theme, pick your date spots, then make a video with 2–3 clips per spot. Put a super brief explanation for each in the caption.

Scoop’s results:

Just like restaurant vibes, you can do this one over and over again. You could do favorite breweries, coffee shops, hikes, and so on. The sky really is the limit.

Pick a great looking spot in town, put together 10–15 clips, and post it!

Scoop’s results:

This is awesome content because you’ve already done the research for your newsletter. And people love knowing what’s new (or coming soon). This one’s all about the caption. Brief description for each one. One short clip that loops over and over while people read.

Scoop’s results:

Time to learn what TV news has known for years. Foul weather is your Super Bowl. Snow, floods, tornadoes, extreme wind, huge waves. If there’s unusual weather, get out there and film it (safety first, of course).

And while this is always the case with time-sensitive content, it’s even more important here. Posting speed kills. We had the above video up like 30 minutes after sunrise and we crushed everyone else.

This isn’t a one-off. Over the last 5 years, foul weather has always meant more followers for Naptown Scoop.

Scoop’s results:

Bonus: When I see a post getting ready to go viral, I add fuel to the fire with some boost dollars. I put $70 behind this post and got 14,148 more views and 370 new followers. How do you know this is worth it? Way higher like counts in the first few minutes after posting are the signal.

Drones aren’t as cool as they once were, but their content still crushes it. Get one and get licensed or find a friend with one. Shoot your city’s coolest landmarks (perfectly straight down is always a cool view) and add some cool music. Simple as that.

Can always do multiple editions of this one. Above is bridges. We did snow edition, too. That got even more views than bridges.

Scoop’s results:

P.S. I boosted this one, too. $150 for 24k views and 425 followers.

Every city has Christmas. Every city has Fourth of July. But every city also has its own unique traditions. I’m fortunate to have a lot in Annapolis. You might just have one. Whatever it is, get out there and film it. Just like foul weather, it’s absolutely critical that you post this as fast as possible after the event. It doesn’t even have to be over yet if there’s no defined endpoint in the storyline.

The above is from 2 years ago and is still the most viewed piece of content I’ve ever created. I’ve only hit a million views two more times since. There is nothing like the feeling of a truly viral piece of content.

Scoop’s results:

Ethan Barber - vibes are off the charts

Chesley McCarty - a realtor with actually good social media

Pretty Little London - absolute OG. They branched out too far from London but are still a great inspiration.

Discover Newport - makes sense that one of America’s best cities has a killer Instagram

Best Date Food - Prolific creator with tons of great ideas