Podcast Summary: Call Her Creator with Katelyn Rhoades
Episode 102: The Weekly Scroll: TikTok’s New Podcast Power Move, Instagram Upgrades, Plus Boost Engagement
Date: November 20, 2025
Host: Katelyn Rhoades
Main Theme / Overview
In this episode, Katelyn Rhoades delivers a rapid-fire breakdown of the week’s biggest social media updates, focusing on significant moves by TikTok, Meta (Facebook, Instagram), and Threads, with actionable insights for creators and entrepreneurs. The episode purposefully spotlights new features, trends, and engagement tips to help content creators maximize their online business potential and adapt quickly to a rapidly changing social landscape.
Key Discussion Points & Insights
1. TikTok’s Bold Entry into Podcasting ([02:05])
- TikTok partners with iHeartMedia: Launches the "TikTok Podcast Network," introducing 25 new shows hosted by prominent TikTok creators.
- Significance:
- Marks TikTok’s expansion beyond short-form video into a full podcast ecosystem.
- Positions TikTok next to YouTube and Netflix, who are also focusing on audio content.
- iHeartMedia gains access to younger, digitally native audiences.
- Drives anticipation for more podcast-related content and cross-platform promotion.
- Personal Take:
“As a podcaster myself, I'm a little scared of this because it's a full-blown podcast ecosystem... but maybe if more people start to do [podcast snippets], we can pull people in.” — Katelyn Rhoades [03:03]
2. Meta & Facebook Marketplace Upgrades ([04:29])
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Collaborative Shopping:
- Users can now involve friends in Marketplace browsing, start shared chats, vote on options, and compare listings as a group.
“Meta's way of making shopping more social, not lonely. So kudos to Meta.” — Katelyn [05:45]
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Meta AI Shopping Assistant:
- Integrated into Marketplace search, users can request curated listings via keywords or voice.
- Big implications for creators/businesses—emphasizes SEO in product descriptions and titles.
“This could be a huge game changer for businesses... so important for all of you that use that for your business like SEO, search, search engine optimization.” — Katelyn [06:44]
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Market Positioning:
- Meta aiming to rival Poshmark, Etsy, Craigslist with AI commerce, expanded business tools, and analytics.
3. Meta Business Suite Optimization Score ([07:53])
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New Score Feature:
- Business Suite now provides an optimization score (0–100) for content and ads, with actionable improvement suggestions.
- Inspired by Google’s ad optimization score—eases campaign optimization for non-technical users.
“It's almost like someone's going to be sitting on my shoulder... giving me options to make my ads better.” — Katelyn [09:09]
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Benefits:
- Faster diagnosis and fixes, especially for small advertisers.
- Built-in “coaching” experience.
4. Privacy & Conversation Features ([10:25])
- Auto-Clear Facebook Search History:
- Set search history to auto-delete after 24 hours, 7 days, or 30 days.
- Facebook Notes Feature:
- Instagram-like Notes being tested in Facebook DMs to encourage private conversations and mimic iMessage threads.
5. Major Instagram Updates and What They Mean for Creators ([11:28])
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Shareable Stories:
- Experimental: Your story can be directly re-shared to someone else's story for wider reach.
- Especially valuable for launches and promo amplification via “hype teams.”
“This is a way to get them involved and ask them to share your story too. Again, for maximum reach.” — Katelyn [12:27]
-
20-Minute Reels Testing:
- A throwback to IGTV but integrated into the Reels ecosystem.
- Intended to help Instagram compete with TikTok’s long-form and YouTube Shorts.
- Katelyn urges caution for most users, as short Reels still dominate engagement.
“Most users still watch reels that are under 30 seconds, so I would use this with caution.” — Katelyn [13:44]
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Full Caption Transcript Edits:
- Creators can now see and edit the entire transcript/caption within the Reel editor—especially helpful for longform/talking-head videos (creators like Katelyn).
-
Trending Audio Updates:
- Instagram now surfaces audio trends specifically popular with your audience.
- Niche discovery—no more generic trending sounds; creators can laser-focus their content.
“IG is going to literally be telling us [which audio is trending in your niche].” — Katelyn [15:16]
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Trial Reel Scheduler:
- Creators can now pre-schedule experimental “trial” Reels to queue up different formats.
“So, hi, it's me. I'm the problem. It's me. I will definitely be using this trial scheduler…” — Katelyn [16:27]
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Who-You-Follow Privacy Update:
- Instagram is removing the ability for others to see who you follow.
- Boosts privacy, limits competitor/“stalker” tracking of connections.
“There's nothing really good about someone doing that to you unless they're trying to stalk you... this will be a way for you guys out there that are stalkers, you're gonna have to stop.” — Katelyn [17:23]
6. Threads as a Podcasting Hub ([18:11])
- Threads pivots to serve podcasters:
- Tools/support for episode discussions, audio clip sharing, real-time conversations, and episode summaries.
- Katelyn keen to explore this for her own show’s growth.
“Apparently Meta wants Threads to be the place for podcast talk. So this is great for myself and the Call Her Creator strategy.” — Katelyn [18:21]
7. Engagement Tip of the Week: Reply to Your Own Comments ([19:10])
- Buffer’s study:
- Analyzing 2 million posts found the best tactic for engagement is replying to your own comments.
- Builds connection, conversation, and is favored by the Instagram algorithm.
“This is still the easiest strategy to win engagement is to reply to your comments.” — Katelyn [19:31]
Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments
- “TikTok just partnered with iHeartMedia to create the TikTok Podcast Network... this could shift podcast discovery in a big way.” ([02:23])
- “Meta’s way of making shopping more social, not lonely.” ([05:46])
- “This [Meta AI search] could be a huge game changer for businesses... SEO in your descriptions and titles is going to be so important.” ([06:42])
- “It’s almost like someone’s going to be sitting on my shoulder... giving me options to make my ads better. So I'm excited about this update.” ([09:09])
- “I would use [20-minute reels] with caution. But I guess we’ll have to see how this goes.” ([13:44])
- “IG is going to literally be telling us... which audio is trending for you.” ([15:32])
- “If people who aren’t following me can go see who I’m following, like, why does it concern you?” ([17:30])
- “This is still the easiest strategy to win engagement is to reply to your comments.” ([19:31])
Timestamps for Important Segments
- [02:05] — TikTok Podcast Network announcement & implications
- [04:29] — Facebook Marketplace collaborative shopping, Meta AI Shopping Assistant
- [07:53] — Meta Business Suite Optimization Score
- [10:25] — Facebook privacy tools, Notes feature in DMs
- [11:28] — Instagram updates overview
- [12:27] — Shareable Instagram Stories & hype team strategy
- [13:44] — Long-form 20 minute reels: opportunities & caveats
- [15:16] — Trending audio feature tailored to your audience/niche
- [16:27] — Trial Reel Scheduler for Instagram
- [17:23] — New privacy: hiding who you follow
- [18:11] — Threads pivots to podcasting discussions
- [19:10] — Engagement boost: Reply to your own comments
Episode Takeaways
- Platform moves are converging: Instagram and TikTok are expanding formats; Meta heavily integrates AI and social features.
- Biggest wins for creators: Leaning into collaborative features, harnessing AI for smarter selling, and honing in on niche-specific content and engagement strategies.
- Actionable strategies:
- Embrace new story-sharing and audio tools on IG for wider reach.
- Optimize Facebook Marketplace listings for AI search.
- Use new scheduling and optimization tools to save time and improve ad/content effectiveness.
- Prioritize engagement—reply to every comment.
Final Thoughts
Katelyn ends the episode with a rallying cry for creators to stay ahead by showing up consistently with the right content, leveraging Club Influence for ongoing support and trending strategies, and focusing on engagement above all else.
“Instagram doesn’t reward the people who try the hardest. It rewards the people who show up consistently with the right content.” — Katelyn Rhoades [20:00]
Links & Resources:
Next week: More timely updates so creators can keep outpacing the constantly shifting social media algorithm.
