The Reelies, an awards show exclusively celebrating the work of small business owners on Instagram, is holding its first ever event at the Plaza Theatre on Sept. 15.
Your Social Team, an Atlanta-based company that helps social media professionals grow their audience on Instagram, is hosting the event. According to a press release, over 300 guests from across the U.S. and Canada are expected to attend.
The Reelies is meant to celebrate small business owners and entrepreneurs, particularly women, who often have to juggle multiple roles to keep their businesses running. The award show is the brainchild of Manu Muraro, the founder of Your Social Team. Muraro previously worked at Cartoon Network, but started Your Social Team as a way to help consult business owners on how to use social media, particularly Instagram, and stay fulfilled while doing so.
“Yeah, they can grow their Instagram account, or whatever. If they’re miserable working all day and neglecting their families, that’s not a win,” Muraro said.
Part of the impetus for starting The Reelies was to provide those smaller business owners and social accounts a space where they could be celebrated. Unlike something like The Shorty Awards, or The Webby Awards, The Reelies pays particular attention to Instagram as well as to smaller accounts. Some finalists for The Reelies have hundreds of thousands of followers, but many have as little as just over 1,000, or even closer to 500.
Muraro said she also wanted to use the awards show as a way to help connect these different business owners together in one space.
“It’s beyond ego,” Muraro said. “Yes, it’s great for the ego too, winning an award – that’s amazing. But even if you don’t win, or even participate, and you just go, all those events are really fun.”
The awards ceremony is set to be hosted by Davi Crimmins, the host of the podcast “Davi The ScapeGOAT.” The red carpet starts at 5 p.m., the ceremony at 6 p.m., and there will also be an after party at The Rooftop at Hotel Clermont that goes from 7:30-10 p.m.
The Reelies will award winners in 30 different categories. A group of jurors selected the finalists for each category, but the winners were picked through a public vote online. The categories include Best Educational Reel, Funniest Reel, Most Heartwarming Reel, Best Pet Reel, and more. A full list of the finalists can be found online.
Muraro said she hopes The Reelies become an annual way to celebrate small business owners and their use of Instagram.
“People are increasingly doing more work on their end and getting less recognition, or less rewarding experiences from it,” she said.
Tickets for The Reelies are sold out, but the event can be livestreamed here.
