The Instagram Stories Podcast

Mindy Thomas is a marketing professional in the digital ad strategy and organic strategy space. In a former life, she was a professional hairstylist and makeup artist. Passionate about moving the beauty industry forward, she forayed into marketing, specializing in local branding, content creation, and paid ad strategy. Over the past 8+ years, Mindy has racked valuable experience on both the agency and brand side; most recently working for a major hair care and cosmetology education conglomerate. With the un-predicability of 2020, she decided to step away from her full-time career to focus her attention on her two children as they navigate virtual learning and adapt to a new way of living while making sure they continue to prosper and grow, even in the middle of a pandemic. Follow along as she works to reinvent a life that reflects the era we’re living in, the good and the bad, but more importantly, it’s unseen opportunities. Mindy resides in a suburb just outside of Columbus, Ohio with her husband, two kids, and their German shepherd/hound mix.
In this episode, Mindy and I discuss how to pivot to a different life choice without regrets, how to make a hair salon Instagrammable, what her favorite tools and apps are for managing her Instagram, and a lot more.
You can find Mindy online at:
Web: http://www.mindythomas.comInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/mindysthomasTwitter: https:www.twitter.com/mindysthomas

Marty Markenson is passionate about creating augmented reality applications and content. By day he works as a product manager for PTC’s industrial AR platform. By night he creates AR filters for Instagram.
In this interview, we discuss how to make your own GIFs for Stories, how to upload them so they can be re-used across different platforms (including TikTok!) and how to film yourself properly for a GIF.
Check out the rest of the episode for more!
Connect with Marty at:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/igstorystrategyWeb: https://www.cavelit.com
And check out these great GIFs Marty made for me! I added them to GIFHY so I can use them in my Instagram Stories!

Amanda Robinson is The Digital Gal. She is widely recognized in the digital marketing industry for her knowledge, training, skills and coaching as a Facebook Ads expert with her Swift Kick In the Ads Membership, her 4 Week Facebook Ads Training Bootcamp, and for her creative chatbot skills. She is an author, international speaker, consultant, and educator who has taught thousands of business owners and entrepreneurs the foundational skills of Facebook Ads. Amanda brings personality and passion to teaching others how to make Facebook ads work for them.
In this episode, Amanda and I talk about getting started with Instagram ads, including using Facebook Ads Manager, plus we discuss Facebook Messenger bots finally coming to Instagram, and how businesses can take advantage of it.
We also discuss how to get started with ads on Instagram. If you’ve never used Instagram Ads before, boosting posts is a simple and easy way to start in small amounts. However, once you start spending close to $500 per month, Facebook Ads Manager is a much better option because it gives a variety of tools and choices that can help you reach your desired target audience, ensuring your money is spent as efficiently as possible.
You can find Amanda online at the following places:
Instagram: https://instagram.com/thedigitalgal
Twitter: https://twitter.com/thedigitalgal
Website: https://thedigitalgal.com/
Swift Kick in the Ads Membership Program: https://thedigitalgal.com/swift-kick-in-the-ads-3/

Mary Pendleton is a nationally recognized social media strategist and self-proclaimed chillpreneur. Her expertise lies in Instagram growth with a passion for purpose-driven businesses! She offers 1:1 strategic planning sessions and a handpicked hashtag membership to help increase visibility and sales. Mary is a mom of 3 and calls in San Francisco home.
In this episode, we talk about how Mary got started on Instagram, transitioning from shop owner to Instagram expert, hashtag strategies, Mary’s program “Hashtag Hero”, and much more.
You can find Mary online at:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lovemarypendleton
Web: https://www.hashtag-hero.com

Sandie DeMarco has been in the social media industry as a consumer, business builder, and coach since 2015. She has successfully built social media communities and ultimately sales on Periscope (now owned by Twitter), Snapchat, Instagram, and Facebook.
Sandie owns SociallyBranded, a Social Media Agency where she is a social media coach. #TeamSociallyBranded partners with Real Estate Professionals to help them generate organic leads and build brand awareness through her unique management services.
In this episode, Sandie and I talk about the lessons we learned from Snapchat and Periscope, and how they apply to Instagram. We also get deep on hashtag strategies, and what to do if you feel like your Hashtags are not giving your posts any additional reach.
Connect with Sandie online at:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sociallybrandedlive
Web: https://sociallybranded.live