Episode 94: The Weekly Scroll (Mini Episode): Instagram Trends & Algorithm Updates Week 3, Oct 2025

Call Her Creator with Katelyn Rhoades
Date: October 23, 2025

Episode Overview

In this concise mini-episode, Katelyn Rhoades delivers a rapid-fire breakdown of the latest social media trends and algorithm updates for creators and business owners, with a strong focus on Instagram. With her signature pragmatic and encouraging tone, Katelyn steers listeners through new features, platform shifts, and actionable insights—all designed to keep savvy creators informed, inspired, and ready to adapt their strategies.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Facebook’s Throwback: Local Job Listings [01:23]

• Highlight: Facebook reintroduces its local job listings feature.
• Takeaway:
  • Small business owners and social media managers can utilize this old-school tool for both hiring and brand visibility.
  • “Facebook might be old school, but local visibility still converts.”

2. Meta Verified for $1/Month (Test) [02:03]

• Details: Meta is testing a $1/month verification option.
• Implications:
  • Potential for broad accessibility to the blue check.
  • “My translation of this is they want more people verified. Without that monthly commitment, if it does roll out globally, expect a wave of blue check businesses everywhere.” [02:36]

3. Skippable Reels Ads on Instagram [03:00]

• Change: Instagram is testing skippable ads on Reels, similar to YouTube or TikTok.
• Creator Impact:
  • May influence ad share payouts.
  • Meta is attempting to balance monetization with user experience.

4. Mandatory AI Integration at Meta [03:38]

• News: Meta instructs employees to infuse AI into all workflows.
• Katelyn’s Advice:
  • Embrace AI as a “copilot, not your replacement.”
  • “If you're not on top of AI right now, you're gonna get left behind.” [04:31]
  • Her agency uses AI for captions and trend spotting.

5. Instagram Layout Shifts: More Focus on Creation [05:00]

• Update: Instagram shifts its UI, centralizing Reels.
• User Experience:
  • Reels now front and center to promote creating over consuming.
  • Frustration over constant changes: “Can we stop moving the DM icon every six months? Come on, Instagram. Nobody cares about that.” [05:50]

6. Stories Nudged Into Reels [06:05]

• New Push: Instagram encourages users to convert Stories into Reels.
• Katelyn’s Take:
  • Against this shift—believes it dilutes the quick, authentic nature of Stories.
  • “Forcing reels everywhere just feels so desperate... it’s not you, it’s just the platform.” [06:50]

7. Instagram Reels Watch History [07:10]

• Feature: Enables users to revisit watched Reels.
• Value:
  • Boosts replay value and discoverability of content.
  • Personal anecdote: “It’s like I’m building a house right now...I see something and need to send it to my husband, then forget or exit out, and it’s gone. This makes it easy to find it again.” [07:50]

8. Extended Music on Stories [08:33]

• Update: Stories can now include up to 45 seconds of music (previously 15 seconds).
• Creative Impact:
  • Enables fuller “vibe” and enhanced storytelling.
  • “Imagine full chorus moments or emotional storytelling. More like TikTok, less like a photo dump.” [08:56]

9. Edits App: Reverse Functionality [09:12]

• Feature: Reverse clip capability within Instagram edits.
• Utility:
  • Greater creative control for transitions and visual effects.
  • “You don’t have to have CapCut. You can do it inside of Edits.” [09:40]

10. Threads Updates: Group Chats and Media Reordering [10:05]

• Group Chats:
  • Launching globally, potentially reviving interest in Threads.
  • Cultivates small communities/creator groups without platforms like Slack or Discord.
  • “I don’t know why it’s taken this long to bring it over to threads.” [10:21]
• Media Reordering:
  • Now possible to rearrange photos/videos before posting.
  • “No more deleting your whole post just because one photo uploaded out of order.” [11:00]

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Embracing Facebook’s Comeback:
  “Facebook might be old school, but local visibility still converts.” [01:50]

• Meta Verified Test Reaction:
  “Kind of jealous about this because I’m pretty sure I pay what, $15 a month?...but you heard that right, $1.” [02:10]

• AI as Copilot, Not Replacement:
  “At the agency, we use it to help us write captions, for trend spotting...If you're not on top of AI right now, you're gonna get left behind.” [04:31]

• On Instagram's Relentless Changes:
  “Can we stop moving the DM icon every six months? Come on, Instagram. Nobody cares about that.” [05:50]

• Frustration with Story-to-Reels Push:
  “Forcing reels everywhere just feels so desperate and like we’re already getting bombarded with video all the time...if you’re feeling that post fatigue, it’s not you, it’s just the platform.” [06:50]

• Reels Watch History, Real-life Example:
  “I watch something, it’s like I’m building a house right now… and I might think, oh, I need to send this to him, and then I forget...This is a really great way to go back and look at your watch history longer.” [07:50]

Timestamps for Important Segments

• [01:23] Facebook Local Job Listings Return
• [02:03] Meta Verified $1/Month Test
• [03:00] Skippable Instagram Reels Ads
• [03:38] Meta Employees Must Use AI
• [05:00] Instagram Layout Changes (Reels Centralized)
• [06:05] Stories Pushed Into Reels
• [07:10] Reels Watch History
• [08:33] Extended Music on Stories
• [09:12] Edits App Reverse Feature
• [10:05] Threads Group Chats + Media Reordering

Episode Tone

• Direct, Practical, and Encouraging: Katelyn’s advice is strategic, actionable, and always grounded in what’s actually working for creators now.
• Relatable: Personal anecdotes and playful exasperation (“Can we stop moving the DM icon every six months?”) keep the tone accessible and real.
• Forward-Looking: Emphasis on embracing change—AI, feature updates, content formats—to stay ahead.

Conclusion & Next Steps

Katelyn wraps up by encouraging listeners to stay ahead of trends and join her membership “Club Influence” for weekly plugged-in resources, tools, and done-for-you content strategies.

“Go make something scroll stopping and I’ll see you next week.” [13:46]

For creators wanting to tune social media noise into smart, sustainable growth—this episode equips you with what’s new, what matters, and what’s actionable, fast.