In short, carousels have never been as open to expression as they are now. You can have a different line for each one as you go. The update is in India already and will be with everyone else this week; it may well put a new spin on how creators put together a post to be seen and heard.
What changes for your carousel posts
You used to be stuck with one caption for the whole set, which could stifle a good story or leave some nuance on the table. Not anymore. Now every image or video can have its own words, something the company has been hearing about for a while.
It’s an easy option in the caption field. On their creators account, Instagram put it bluntly: ‘One toggle. That’s it.’ Of course, if you’re fine with the way you’ve been doing it, no one is making you change.
The word count twist
Some of the figures are a head-scratcher. We’re talking 378 words or 2,197 characters to a caption. Do the math on a 20-slide carousel and you’re looking at 7,560 words in a single post. The old rule of thumb was 7,500, but the numbers say otherwise.
That kind of room means you can do some long-form work right on the app. A photo essay, a travelogue, a tutorial, or even a meme that builds to a punchline over several swipes.
Why creators are excited
There’s no question that a carousel will outperform a lone photo when it comes to reach. By allowing the copy to change with the swipe, Instagram is giving brands and makers a way to hold an audience’s attention a little longer.
And it’s not just for the pros. Anyone with a product to show off or a few photos to dump can now put a separate note to each one. No more vying for space under a hodgepodge of text.
This is what we’re seeing from those on the ground:
– More context where it belongs, right by the photo
– Tutorials with a smoother step-by-step feel
– Jokes and reveals with the right timing
– A bit of a hook to make sure they keep on swiping
How to switch it on
Nothing to it. Put together a carousel, hit the caption box and you’ll see 'Multiple Captions‘ to turn on. Then you’re free to write for each slide.
Or don’t. You can still have one caption for the lot if you want. Instagram says the rest of us will have access to it in the coming days.
Part of a bigger push from Instagram
These per-slide captions are part of a run of updates that seem to come from the users themselves. If you’re on an Android, the in-app camera now has Ultra HDR and Night Sight for those who do everything from their phone.
They’ve also put in place some tools to put your stamp on the algorithm and to reorganise your grid without the hassle of deleting and re-uploading. It all adds up to a platform that is ceding some control back to the creator.
You have to time it right. Carousels are already a hit, so adding individual captions is like putting a match to kindling. The best stuff on here is usually the most deliberate, and now you can be as specific as you like where people are looking.
Now it’s a matter of trying things out. Open with a story on the first slide, end with a point. Let the context and the punchlines do their work. As this gets out there, we’ll see which ways of doing it stick.
