🔥 Is Instagram Broken in 2025? Here’s the Truth No One’s Telling You

Why is your Instagram reach dropping like crazy? Are hashtags dead? And what the heck is up with the new Friend Map? In this episode of Rockin Social Media, Paul breaks down exactly what’s really happening on Instagram in 2025 — and what you need to do if you want to grow.

You’ll learn:

• The real reason Reels aren’t hitting like they used to (and how to fix it)
• Why original content is more important than ever
• The best formats to use now: Reels, carousels, Stories & UGC
• Whether hashtags still matter (and how to use them without getting shadowbanned)
• How to navigate new features like Trial Reels, Shared Access & AI tools
• What the Friend Map actually does (and why digital safety matters for your brand)

If you're serious about building a brand that connects and converts on Instagram — this episode is your roadmap. Get ready for the real talk, the strategy, and the tools you need to stand out and thrive.

💬 Got questions or myths you want Paul to unpack in the next episode? Drop them in the comments or tag us on Instagram @rockinsocialmediaagency

🎧 Listen now and take your brand from stuck to standout.

📅 Retreat info: https://rockinsocialmedia.com/retreat

In this episode, I’m cutting through the noise and giving you the Instagram updates from July–August 2025 that actually matter for your growth as a DJ, creative, or entrepreneur.

We’ll cover:
• The brand-new Repost feature and how to use it for fast, high-quality content
• How Instagram’s new Maps function can help you get discovered locally and promote events
• Why the Friends Tab on Reels changes how your content gets found
• The “Sends per reach” metric — your new shareability superpower
• AI editing tools in the Edits app that could boost your reach overnight

You’ll also hear about my 5-day DJ & Brand Growth Retreat in Estepona, Spain — May 2026, designed to give you hands-on skills, a clear strategy, and the confidence to go bigger with your brand.

🎧 Whether you’re behind the decks, behind a camera, or building a business, these updates can help you stay ahead of the curve.

📅 Retreat info: https://rockinsocialmedia.com/retreat

ChatGPT is powerful, but only if you train it to sound like YOU. In this episode, I show you step-by-step how to make ChatGPT your creative sidekick, write in your tone, and help you plan, write, and scale your content without sounding robotic.

🎯 Whether you’re a coach, DJ, course creator, or content strategist, you’ll learn:

• How to set up custom instructions
• How to create your own GPTs
• How to use AI to save time, write faster, and stay consistent
• Why this actually makes you more human, not less

💥 Plus I’m giving you my own GPT templates to copy. Scroll down for the prompts.

🎁 BONUS
👉 Download my custom GPT prompts

Learn my voice

I am going to provide you a full text file of my writing style and transcriptions from my previous emails, writings, video content, and podcasts. The idea here is for you to understand my tone of voice and my writing style and replicate that in my email newsletters, video scripts, and any other writing content that I produce. The best way I can describe my tone of voice is ...................... - my goal is to .................... Let me know when you are ready for me to provide the text of my writing and I can upload it. (Then add all the text you have collected as described in the video)

SOCIAL MEDIA

Act as world-class social media expert. I am a [title] in [niche] and I help [audience] to achieve [goals]. Create 30 content ideas for Instagram that speak directly to my audience’s pain points & goals that are actionable and engaging.

CONTENT HOOKS

Act as world-class copywriter expert. Create 5 attention-grabbing hooks for [topic]. Each hook should be no more that 15 words and should entice followers to engage with my content. Please write in a simple, fun & professional writing style. Please use the AIDA method!