Likes don’t keep the lights on. Sales do. And Anneke Odendaal knows this. So, she set out to solve it.
Anneke is the founder of social media agency Pink Sparrow Social. The Australian-based entrepreneur has built a six-figure coaching business teaching others how to grow their Instagram presence.
Then she realized something wild: most folks were making Instagram Reels but weren’t making sales from them.
Big mistake. Huge!
She saw folks with 1 million followers who couldn’t pay their bills. Heck, they couldn’t even sell a t-shirt.
So she created a simple Reels formula that doesn’t just rack up views; it rings up sales.
The Challenge
Anneke didn’t just want to go viral. That’s easy. She wanted to cash in on her content. And she wanted to make sure others could learn it, too.
She saw her clients and students in her Reels Academy coaching program posting Reels daily, but when it came to turning followers into buyers…tumbleweeds. Static hum. Crickets. 🦗🦗
So, they’d start following up potential customers in the DMs like a crazy ex. Or reworking their offer (because the offer has to be the problem, right?!).
But Anneke knew what was missing: A formula. A repeatable system that generates revenue from Reels.
The Goal
Anneke developed a system with a three-fold approach:
- Create Reels that really solve a problem for her target audience (not her competitors)
- Get more engagement; the kind that leads to purchases, not just likes.
- Automate the IG sales process so she could close high-ticket offers, and so her husband doesn’t have to work a 9-5 anymore (yup, that happened).
She named her automation PinkBot. (Because her brand is all about pink, duh.) 🎀
How it Works
Here’s the whole system, step by step.
Step 1: Create problem-solution Reels that are like catnip to your target audience
Forget dancing. Forget lip-syncing. Forget trendy audios that have nothing to do with your business.
Anneke’s first move was to create Reels that call out her audience’s biggest problems and then tease the solution, like this:
- Frame the Reel around one juicy pain point. Make it shareable and relatable.
- Mention the product, freebie, or offer.
- But don’t give the solution away in the Reel; instead, direct folks to comment your magic keyword to get the painkiller to their pain point.
Step 2: Get ’em to comment so much it’ll make your competitors blush
Once the Reel grabs attention, it’s time to get people talking (and commenting).
Anneke trains their audience to expect that magical keyword moment in every Reel. Here’s how:
- Drop a clear call to action, like “comment BONUS to get the solution”.
- Make the keyword fun, catchy, and easy to remember.
- Place the CTA in the caption and the Reel itself (because some people skip captions, so we’re not taking any chances).
Step 3: Treat engagement like puppy school (but for humans)
Anneke takes engagement training to the next level by meeting her audience exactly where they are — in what she calls the puppy phase or the dog phase.
What’s that mean?
Puppy phase followers are new, excited, but not quite ready for deep conversations. They drop a quick emoji or a simple comment.
Dog phase followers? They’re loyal and ready to have actual back-and-forths.
“This person commented just some claps and smiley face with their hearts. So I matched her, and I said, ‘sending you some virtual hearts back.’ And then she replied, saying, ‘Thank you.’ Nice and simple, nothing big, nothing to scare them away.”
By matching their energy and training folks to engage, Anneke keeps the conversation natural and builds trust, one tiny interaction at a time.
Step 4: Send ’em the freebie, offer, and land that sale (with a lil’ help)
- The second someone drops that keyword, Manychat instantly slides into their DMs. (You can use Manychat’s customizable “Grow followers with a freebie” template to get started!)
- PinkBot delivers the freebie, product link, or masterclass invite for her. Yay!
- Every DM also includes a friendly follow-up (because fortune’s in the follow-up, baby).
With one Reel, Anneke had 800 people go through the automation.
“It is just incredible. It blows my mind. I absolutely love Manychat. It just changed my life,” Anneke gushes. “There is no way I would have been able to personally help 800 people all at once.”
Show of Hands: Who Actually Clicks on the Link in Bio?
Bueller?
Bueller?
Yeah, just as Anneke says: “Nobody does because they get lost on the way. They get distracted. Maybe a cat meme pops up or a baby cries or something.”
(Cat memes. Very important. Your link in bio? Not so much.)
Instagram loves when you keep folks on the app — and Manychat helps make that happen by keeping the entire experience on Instagram, which means better reach, more engagement, and a happy algorithm.
The Results
Anneke’s PinkBot has been tested, and her system has proven to be cash-flow positive:
- She used this exact method to grow her own account from under 1,000 to 100,000+ followers in 90 days.
- One single Reel using this formula made five figures in one hour. (Yup, her notifications blew up her phone.)
- In just a few automations, Anneke’s PinkBot handled more than 2,000 inbound DMs.
“One of my Reels had over 2,363 runs with an 88% click-through rate. And this Reel to this day continues to make me sales,” Anneke adds. “It’s so simple, and it’s so easy. You highlight the problems they have, you direct them to the solution, and use a keyword for the magic part.”
Why This Works (and Why You Need it, Too)
The old way: Make Reels. Post and pray. Ask people to “click the link in bio.” Hope for the best.
The new way: Make Reels with a purpose. Use a clear problem-solution hook. Train your audience to comment a keyword and to engage with you. Less begging for clicks. More hands-free sales.
Swipe This Strategy
Here’s how to get it:
- Call out your audience’s problem: Make it sting real bad.
- Tease the solution: but make them work for it (by commenting a keyword).
- Automate the DM reply: Deliver the goods, capture the lead, and secure the sale.
Now, you can make your Reels drive sales with Manychat.
| Step 1: Sign up for Manychat (oh, did we mention it’s free?!) Join 1 million+ smart brands and sign up for a risk-free trial. No lock-in contracts here. | Step 2: Build your first automation (with a lil’ help)Choose from one of our ready-to-go templates and get it up and running faster than your hubby can say, “Wait, you made HOW much from a Reel?” | Step 3: Secure the bag! 💅No, really. Get more sales from Instagram every time you post. |
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