One day as I was scrolling through my Instagram Stories feed, I began to notice that many of my podcasting friends were promoting their shows on Instagram. Yes, of course I also see this happening on Twitter, and at times on Facebook, but somehow I found the Instagram posts to be much more intriguing and I guess you can say that they actually felt more “natural”.
They were sharing their podcasting gear, podcast cover art, behind the scenes, and even those adorable audio gram videos that everyone (not just me) seems to love so much.
After a few weeks of following and attempting to analyze this culture behind this trend on Instagram I decided to just give in and embrace it while it's still fun and enjoyable. I'll leave it up to the Insta-experts to figure out why Podcasts and Instagram are so perfectly suited that they are like a match made in heaven.
Why Promote Your Podcast on Instagram
I know you might still be wondering about this so I'll give it a shot. First we gotta ask ourselves ~
Why promote your podcast on Instagram?
The wide adoption of Instagram by 1 billion active users, spread across multiple demographics means your audience and potential listeners (your target) are most likely using Instagram. It’s easy to use and lends itself to podcast promotion because they offer tons of unique features to help connect you with your listeners. Here's what I mean.
Features Podcasters Can Use on Instagram
Watch this short video to see why I love Instagram so much and the really cool Spotify integration that podcasters can use to get new listeners directly from their Instagram Stories!
- Add up to 30 #hashtags! Checkout the Hashtag Finder in Tailwind *This post contains affiliate links, which means I will make a commission at no extra cost to you should you click through and make a purchase
- Location search in the explore
- The square layout in the Instagram feed is perfect for posting podcast cover art
- Tags/@mentions
- Images and short videos can be added to the feed (like those Audiograms we can make with Wavve or Anchor )
- Unique photo filters are visually appealing and can add and interesting twist to your images
- But wait there's more…the Spotify integration I mention in the video will share your podcast directly from SoundCloud now too!
Instagram Stories and Instagram Live
I have to admit that many times I go on Instagram just to see the latest story from my daughter Nicole (yes I stalk her on IG) where she often shares podcast promo clips or live podcast recording videos. Here are some tools you'll find in Instagram Stories. This might generate ideas for you and I hope they help spark your creativity:
- Movie clips
- Augmented Reality [AR] Filters
- Animations and overlays
- Focus, Hands free
- Rewind, Boomerang, Super Zoom
- Music lip sync
- Type text and add Gifs
- Keep Stories permanently on your Instagram profile as Highlights
- Don't forget to use Live Video
Tailwind Hashtag Finder
Before I go I want to give you a closer look at Tailwind and the Hashtag Finder. Let me share a few screenshots to walk you through the Tailwind scheduler and dashboard.
This is the basic layout – over on the left you see your account and on the right you can see a grid of all your latest Instagram post (you can toggle this grid off if you wish).
After you upload your image, Tailwind prompts you to start typing your caption so the smart hashtag finder can start doing it's thing!
See how the color coding helps you pick the best hashtags. I like to include some of the best and competitive hashtags when I share a podcast episode.
Build your own list of hashtag and save it to a list. Add the ones that work best for you, so that you don't have to reinvent the wheel every time you post to Instagram. I love how the counter at the bottom keeps track of how many hashtags you have so that you don't go over the limit!
Track your follower stats or upgrade your account and you'll be able to:
“Track Likes, Comments, and other Engagement Metrics when you get Plus!”
This post contains affiliate links, which means I will make a commission at no extra cost to you should you click through and make a purchase
Btw – in case you didn't already know, you can manage your Pinterest account inside of Tailwind too. This will come in really handy now that we can claim our Instagram accounts on Pinterest!
Grab Your Instagram Name Tag
There's one more cool “Insta-tip” I want to share to help you promote your podcast. Check out this cool name tag you can use to promote your Instagram account on all your other social networks and even when you meet people in person. Look at it this way, it might take forever for you to explain how people can subscribe to your podcast! But this little Instagram Nametag is super quick and makes is so easy for people to add you and follow your podcasting journey on Instagram.
These name tags come in 3 flavors: Color, Emoji and Selfie. Pick your favorite and share it whenever you can! Just go to your profile page, click the hamburger menu at the top right and you'll see the “Nametag” option. That's also where you go to scan someone else's Nametag (like to one above 😎
More Instagram and Podcasting Resources
- Instagram For Business For Dummies
- Listener Support for Podcasters on Anchor
- 100 Great Podcasting Tips: From 100 Great Podcasters
- How to Stop Podfading and Keep Podcasting
If you have a question, or want to leave feedback that might be featured on the podcast, you have three options:
- Call-in to my station over on Anchor.fm or
- Use my handy SpeakPipe page to record your question in a voicemail.
- Send me an email here
Subscribe to the Ms. Ileane Speaks Podcast on Apple podcasts, Google Podcasts or Stitcher.
Use this link to Subscribe on Android.