Do Instagram carousels or videos work better for a local brand?

"Instagram carousels are working really well, guys. I know some people doing video, which I would assume would be the better play, and people are having more luck with carousels."

That surprised me. I don't go on Instagram personally. But the results keep pointing the same way.

What's the evidence?

• A guest on my podcast posted the same weekend events as a carousel and as a reel. The carousel got almost 40,000 views and more engagement. The reel got about 9,000.
• News carousels are some of the ones I see working really well.
• A plain post of mine, white background, dark text, no branding, did about 2,200.

Those are other people's results plus one of mine, not a controlled test.

It's also a change from what I saw earlier. In early 2025 I'd have told you our list carousels did okay. By September 2026, carousels were the thing working best for the local brands I watch.

What should a local carousel look like?

• Lists get one image per item. A top 10 gets 10 images.
• Weekend events on Thursday, when people are planning.
• An arrow on the first slide so people know to swipe.
• Plain beats designed. More on that in plain vs polished posts.

For WilCo Guide my rule is at least two carousels a day and up to about five.

When does video still make sense?

When you're in it. The common move is a "top five events this week" graphic with a moving background. My improvement: talk through them on camera.

"Look at this event... that sounds like it'd be super fun. I might go there with my family this weekend. This one over here looks cool."

Thirty seconds of personal commentary. Personal voice beats a graphic alone.

What's the risk with news carousels?

Images. Grabbing a local news brand's photo for your carousel can get you in trouble. That's the part I worry about most as we automate carousels across locations.