Why Instagram Isn’t Growing Your Business (And What to Do Instead)
You’re not imagining it, getting clients and making sales online feels harder than ever right now. You’re posting reels, creating carousels, chasing trending audio, and showing up on stories just to stay afloat on Instagram. But when you look at the results, the likes, the comments, and the impressions aren’t turning into paying clients. The DMs about your services or courses aren’t showing up. And deep down, you may be wondering, is this even working? Or am I the problem?
I want to be clear with you: it’s not you, and it’s not your content. The real issue is the platform itself. Instagram simply isn’t built to deliver the kind of long-term ROI that business owners need. And today, I’m going to break down the math to show you why.
The Harsh Reality of Instagram Math
I don’t pull out the whiteboard often, but when I do, it’s because I want to prove something that can’t be ignored. Let’s look at how much time Instagram really demands if you’re serious about growth.
Research suggests you need to post two feed posts, three to five reels, and several stories every week. That’s an average of about seven pieces of content weekly. Multiply that by four weeks in a month, and you’re creating 28 pieces of content.
Now let’s talk time. Each reel, carousel, or story doesn’t just magically appear. You have to come up with ideas, script them, film or design them, edit them, and then write captions. To keep it simple, let’s say each piece takes about 30 minutes to produce. (And honestly, for most people, it takes longer but we’ll keep this conservative.)
That adds up to three and a half hours of work every week, or 14 hours every month. Fourteen hours of your life spent creating content for Instagram.
And here’s the kicker: the lifespan of that content is about 24 hours. Studies show the average reel or post only “lives” for 21 hours before it disappears into the void. So your 14 hours of work only gives you 28 hours of visibility.
Fourteen hours in… one measly day of impact out. No wonder you’re exhausted and questioning your marketing.
The YouTube Comparison That Changes Everything
Now let’s compare those same 14 hours of effort on YouTube. Instead of 28 short-lived posts, you only need four videos a month, one per week. Let’s estimate on the high side and say each video takes you three to four hours from start to finish. That still adds up to the same 14 hours.
But here’s the massive difference: the lifespan of a YouTube video is far longer. The average video continues working for nine days at a minimum. That means those four videos you posted in a month live for a combined 36 days and in many cases, they continue driving views and sales for years.
I still have videos from 2018 bringing me subscribers and clients today. Can you say that about a reel you posted in 2018? Of course not.
This is the fundamental difference: Instagram content dies. YouTube content compounds.
The Mindset Behind Short vs. Long Form
It’s not just about lifespan, it’s about the viewer’s mindset. People scrolling through reels or TikToks are killing time. They’re waiting in the school pick-up line, distracting themselves during lunch, or zoning out before bed. They’re looking for entertainment, not transformation.
But when someone goes to YouTube, they’re in problem-solving mode. They’re actively searching for answers and solutions. When they click on your video, they’re ready to sit down and spend ten minutes learning from you. That’s ten minutes of building trust, establishing expertise, and nurturing a relationship.
And that’s why long-form content almost always out-converts short-form. It’s not about vanity metrics like likes or reach. It’s about the ability to sell.
Why Instagram Is Failing Business Owners
Let’s layer in a few more truths about why Instagram is no longer working for business owners the way it used to.
First, as of 2024, Instagram engagement rates have tanked. The median engagement for most posts is under half a percent. Even reels, the platform’s golden child, are showing sharp declines in reach.
Second, ads aren’t a reliable safety net anymore. Meta is changing its policies, and by 2026, you won’t be able to target people as precisely as before. Even if you throw money at ads, your results will be weaker and less predictable.
And third, AI has completely changed how people discover experts. Tools like ChatGPT and Gemini can crawl platforms like YouTube, but not Instagram. That means your reels and stories literally make you invisible to the discovery systems that matter most right now.
So while you’re grinding to keep up with Instagram’s hamster wheel, your competitors who are on YouTube are quietly building searchable, indexable content that AI can recommend every single day.
Real Client Results from YouTube
I know this might sound scary or overwhelming, so let me give you some real-life proof.
One of my clients stopped posting entirely in February. She had built a library of about 100 YouTube videos, and then she walked away for six months. In August, even without posting, she still gained nearly 3,000 views, 400 impressions, and 50 new subscribers. All completely organic.
Another client started her channel just five months ago. In August alone, with only four videos published, she had 24,700 views, 545 new subscribers, 40 sales, and two high-ticket clients, all directly from her YouTube content.
That’s the power of YouTube. You build once, and your videos keep working for you.
Instagram’s Million-View Illusion
I want to share another example to put this into perspective. Katie Sekli, who has over 200,000 Instagram followers, recently shared her posting breakdown. She posts daily, reels, stories, feed posts, and she reached about a million people in one month.
Sounds impressive, right? But remember: she started with a massive audience, and she worked nonstop to produce content. Most business owners don’t have that kind of follower base or time. And despite all those views, Instagram reach rarely translates into consistent sales.
Contrast that with my smaller YouTube clients making thousands of dollars from videos with just a few hundred views. That’s the real difference: quality, not quantity.
The Anti-Hustle Marketing Plan
Here’s the truth: posting nonstop on Instagram will never be enough to grow a sustainable business. But putting that same energy into YouTube? That builds a sales asset.
Every video you create on YouTube is like a mini sales rep that keeps working long after you’ve moved on. It lives on your channel, shows up in search results, gets recommended by AI, and keeps pointing people toward your offers.
That’s why I call YouTube the anti-hustle marketing plan. It allows you to stop chasing clients and start attracting them on autopilot.
Repurposing Without Wasting Work
And here’s the good news: you don’t have to start from scratch. All the content you’ve already created for Instagram, podcasts, or emails can be “YouTube-ified.” That means taking those same ideas, expanding them into long-form, searchable videos, and letting YouTube do the heavy lifting.
That way, none of your past effort is wasted. It just gets repackaged into a format that works harder and lasts longer.
Future-Proofing Your Business
If you’ve been feeling stuck on the hamster wheel of Instagram, now is the perfect time to pivot. AI, changing ad policies, and collapsing engagement rates are all signals that Instagram isn’t built to sustain your business long-term.
YouTube, on the other hand, gives you visibility, discoverability, and the ability to connect deeply with your audience. And when you build with YouTube, you’re not just marketing for today, you’re future-proofing your business for years to come.
So if you’re ready to get off the hamster wheel and start creating content that actually pays the bills, now is the time to shift your focus.
