The perfect Instagram bio for hairstylists and estheticians
If you're even a little familiar with me, you know how much I've struggled and stressed over my Instagram presence in my business.
Over the years, I've tried everything from completely ignoring Instagram, to (recently) publishing 5 stories a day. (Embarrassingly, that resulted in a measly *68 views* per story… I died inside a little!)
But I don’t stress nearly as much as I used to since I found a real tool that works easily to increase my sales and consistently keep eyes on my business (more on that below!)
It also helps a TON to have friends like Jodie that assure me that with a bit of tinkering, I can turn my Instagram profile into a key marketing tool.
Jodie Brown is a Brand Visibility & Marketing Strategist, a former hairstylist, creative director, and Instagram genius.
Having been behind the chair as a hairstylist for 15 years, Jodie has learned over a decade and a half of trial and error what really works to build a loyal clientele, from first introduction to booking consistent appointments.
Most importantly though, Jodie has learned (and teaches!) how to demystify and simplify Instagram for everyone who works in beauty: hairstylists, nail artists, waxers, spray tanners, estheticians, and everyone in between.
“I spent 15 years behind the chair and…I've realized that so many people in our industry [are] feeling really overwhelmed, burdened and stressed out by the shift towards social media and social media marketing. Because it was an area where I had so much success in my own business, I felt called to help shed light that it doesn't have to be [a] really stressful thing - it can actually be really powerful in terms of building your business.”
I recently had an amazing chat with Jodie about what she does to optimize her Instagram profile to attract clients and increase conversions.
In today’s blog, we learn from Jodie:
The key info that over 50% of hairstylists still need in their Instagram bios to attract clients!
Why hashtags in your bio aren’t working the way you think they are
The importance of Instagram stories to show off how much your clients love what you do
A bunch of important tips for maximizing your reach on Instagram!
Your dream clients are searching for YOU online right now, but a lot has changed in the past year in digital advertising. I spent a ton of time researching these changes and have learned some crazy stuff that you need to know! Check out my BRAND NEW Masterclass replay right here.
Potential clients want to see these things on your Instagram profile
The first thing I wanted to know from Jodie is, what are the really important things to show on Instagram to help potential clients get to know you and trust you with their business? Here’s what she shared.
Show your face!
“Your face is so important,” shared Jodie.
“People connect with people, they want to know who they're doing business with. And especially for us independent beauty pros, it's an intimate relationship with someone, and it's one of the last industries where we have that connection.”
“It also gives you a major edge over corporate brands because connection is really, really important. If you can lead with that and start to kind of build that relationship, you can do this through showcasing brand photos.”
Jodie mentioned that potential clients will scan your profile looking for candid photos of your face, as well as “Face-to-Camera” Reels in your Stories.
And be sure to show off your beautiful mug in your profile photo, too!
Show your space!
“I love to see [someone] showcasing guest experience and testimonials and [their] space,” Jodie explained.
“I want to get a vibe. So when I come to your page, this is the importance of branding. I want to be able to feel what I'm going to feel in your space.”
Potential clients will seek out environments that feel soothing, welcoming, refreshing, or cool. You know the feeling you want people to have when they’re on your table or in your chair…show that off on your Instagram profile.
Show off your specialty:
“It should be pretty front and center, what you specialize in.”
“So if it's lashes, there should be [examples] - [but]...your page shouldn’t look like a camera roll. So you definitely do want to have some variety here. Graphics are great to call out some of the things that you do.”
If you advertise all the services you offer, you’re not drawing in your ideal client or showcasing your expertise.
Be sure to highlight front and center what your “bread-and-butter” specialty is, whether that’s balayage or Brazilians or microneedling.
The key information you need on your Instagram bio to book clients
Jodie says that a huge part of her work with her students is to get them to really understand that Instagram bios can make or break a sale with potential clients.
“We think about ‘Call To Action’ when it comes to posts, but if someone reads your bio, how do they take the next step with you? Do you want them to send you a dm? Do you want them to check out the new client tab on your website? Where do you want them to go? If they read it and they [think] ‘This resonates with me, I want to know more’ - where do they go from there?”
Here are the key pieces of a high-converting Instagram bio for hairstylists, estheticians, nail artists, waxers, and other beauty business owners, according to Jodie.
Location:
“This is absolutely beyond important because if you think about…that customer journey…going from wherever they see you to coming to your profile. That person is looking for a facialist or a hairstylist or someone to do their lashes or whatever that is - if you’re not in their area, that immediately discounts you. They need to be able to access you.”
Jodie explained that an estimated 50% of beauty business owners miss adding their location on their profile, and it’s the difference between creating a new client or not.
Searchability:
“Instagram has over a billion active monthly users and 82% of people self-report that they use Instagram to search for products and services. It's worth putting the time in,” Jodie shared.
“What you do needs to be written in the terms that your potential clients will understand, and it needs to be in searchable terms.”
“For example, I'm a hairstylist, so ‘lived-in color’ was this big buzzword that we were using, but are clients really searching for ‘lived-in color’?” Jodie wondered.
“You've got 150 characters, so choose carefully. You always want to go with clarity over cleverness. Include what your clients are searching for or what it is that they'll recognize, so maybe you do, maybe you say blended blondes or blended hair color, things like that.”
Your name:
“There's [an] old school corporate mentality that we should disconnect from work and work isn't personal, and I think sometimes that filters in to our subconscious. But…as an independent beauty [business], the end goal here is they're going to meet you, so they're going to need to know your name.”
Jodie recommended to write your actual full name so that clients know who to expect behind their chair or table, and can familiarize your name and face together.
Your values:
“When you get clarity on your brand - say you are eco-friendly, [a] sustainable salon, whatever your top values are as a business, that can also be really great to include [in your bio]. You can put that other places too - people are really values focused when it comes to being a consumer now.
A Call To Action:
“It depends on what your goal is,” Jodie explained about what to write to get people to take action in your bio.
“Say your goal is [to] filter in a ton of clients. You could say ‘New clients, click below!’ And then in the link in your bio you have your New Client intake form, or some more information about your services, however you move them through the pipeline.”
“If you're someone who wants to just start a lot of conversations, say, ‘Send me a DM, let's chat about your hair’ or whatever [your] service is.
“If you are wanting to sell a lot of product, then you can [write] ‘Shop my links below!’
As a general guideline for writing your Bio in an accessible way, Jodie explained that keeping it short and easy-to-browse is most important.
“We want to break up our bios so that they're easy to read, but what I've seen is a lot of breaking them up vertically. When you're crafting your bio, they're only going to see three or four lines without having to click to read more.”
“So I recommend using an emoji or something to break it up and have it be on three lines, so you can make more than three points. You can do it bullet-form using emojis, but just try to make it so that all of the information that a potential client needs is instantly visible without them having to click Read More.’”
How to measure the ROI of your Instagram profile
So let’s say you put in the work and spiff up your Instagram profile using Jodie’s advice; how will you know that you’ve made a difference for your beauty business?
“One way is I measure it in how many connections am I making, how many people are joining my community, how many people are starting conversations with me, listening to my podcasts, taking the next step, how many people are connecting with me enough.
“That's how I know that I'm doing a good job showing up as myself and really talking about how to take that next step.”
“The underrated way that I measure Instagram [ROI] though, is that it's really a solid platform for building brand awareness. I had clients who didn't come to see me and didn't engage with my content, and then they'd show up in my chair and I'd ask, ‘How'd you find out about me?’ And they’d say, ‘I've been following you on Instagram for three years, and I just love your content. So that's another way. The conversations that I get to have on the platform, the people that you connect with, that's a really solid way to measure the impact that you're having on social media as well. I don't measure it by reach or engagement or any of those vanity metrics.”
If you want more from Jodie, you can follow her on Instagram (and check out the master herself at work!) @itsjodiebrown. She also has an amazing podcast called Hairstylist Rising, and tons of free resources on her website.