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Common Mistakes and Practical Tips for the Right Social Media Formats

Dennis
|June 13, 2025
Format templates for Instagram and other social media platforms have changed significantly over the past year. This makes it all the more important for social media managers to be aware of these changes and adapt their content accordingly. Here is an overview.
Quick Tips 🚀
  • Create your posts in 3:4 format (1080 x 1440 px)
  • Create your reels in 9:16 format (1080 x 1920 px)
  • Use templates and safe zones in production

Table of Contents

The right format on social media

In the fast-paced world of social media, changes to platforms are commonplace. It is therefore important to first become aware of these changes and then to reflect and support them.

Attention spans are limited and there is fierce competition for visibility in feeds. That's why visual optimization of social media formats is also part of the mandatory program for social media managers.

What do the 4:5 and 3:4 formats actually mean?

Instagram has evolved over time and moved away from the classic square image format. A portrait format is now recommended in order to increase visibility, purely from a statistical and behavioral perspective, when users scroll through their feed, for example.

The 3:4 format is the new classic in feeds. It is important to bear this in mind when designing content to ensure that posts are not cut off when displayed on your profile.

Differences between posts and reels

Unlike posts, reels have their own section within the Instagram app itself. There is also a separate tab for reels in your profile.

This means that the 9:16 format is standard for reels. This allows social media videos to fit perfectly into the prepared framework and exploit their full visual potential.

However, it should be noted that reels can also be displayed in the profile and are also shown in 3:4 format outside the reels tab. It is therefore important to find a suitable thumbnail that will not be cropped.
The Instagram Size Guide 2025/2026 on current Instagram formats.

The importance of portrait formats for social media managers

As already mentioned, portrait formats ensure greater visibility in users' feeds. When scrolling, a larger image area is visible, which can increase visibility and engagement.

By observing new formats and adapting to them, you also ensure that content can be played back smoothly and without confusion for both familiar and new users. If the content is cut off, user-friendliness decreases significantly.

Overall, a professional brand image can be ensured through consistent formats. If you are unsure which formats are currently relevant and which changes need to be made, you can use a social media tool that summarizes all the guidelines.

Practical tips for implementation

The most important tip is to create templates for content creation, e.g. in Canva, Figma, or Photoshop. Templates for posts, reels and even thumbnails make the framework clear right away, so you don't have to get distracted during the creative process or make time-consuming adjustments at the end because you neglected the aspect ratios.

This also means that you should enter the current safety zones so that your content is not overlaid by elements of the Instagram app, such as the Like button or your channel name. So make sure that your content is not designed too close to the edge.

Also, keep in mind the issue of cross-posting. But we have some good and reassuring news: Instagram Reels work just as well visually as short videos on TikTok, YouTube, Facebook and LinkedIn.
Instagram Reel dimensions including thumbnail and safe zones.

Common mistakes when formatting content

Export your content directly in the sizes specified by the platforms. There is no point in uploading content in higher resolution than the platforms allow, because they will automatically scale it down, which can lead to a loss of quality. Avoid this mistake by taking the appropriate precautions as described above.

If text or other image elements are positioned incorrectly, e.g. too close to the edge and therefore cut off, this can ruin the performance of entire posts. Your content and its added value can only be well received if you have complied with the technical requirements and thus done your homework.

Industry tips for agencies and experts

Standardize the workflow for your clients, starting with export templates in your graphics program and a central social media tool for content planning on social media channels.

Test your content with A/B testing to find out which formats or content are best received by your target groups and generate maximum response. Here, too, a central performance analysis helps to adjust the content strategy accordingly.
Schedule formatsUse Deepnetic Social to schedule your content in the right format and even benefit from tried-and-tested format templates.
Summary
  • Create your posts in 3:4 format (1080 x 1440 px)
  • Create your reels in 9:16 format (1080 x 1920 px)
  • Use templates and safe zones in production