Instead of reaching out to potential clients, my bio does the hard work for me.
Clients now reach out to me!
How?
I optimized all my social media bios correctly on each platform to drive interest and curiosity.
Remember, no one wants to be sold to, but everyone likes to buy…if your product or service fulfills their desires.
But before people start buying, they need to trust you, which is why your bio is so important.
I am going to talk about bios for the following social media platforms;
1. INSTAGRAM
There are several layers to driving interest and trust.
Not only does your bio have to be clear and succinct, but the pictures on your profile must also look amazing and showcase exactly what you do.
If there is any question as to what it is you do, you’re going to be skipped over… more on that later!
First of all, you have to make sure your bio is easy to read and broken up with paragraph lines.
I personally like to use emojis at the start of each line to direct people’s attention to each point. Choose emojis that represent your brand or are relevant to what you talk about in that line.
Here is the bio success formula:
- What you do + target audience
- Achievements to build trust (or personal tidbit)
- More achievements or accolades (or personal tidbit)
- How you can help them
- Call to action
Number one is crucial because you’re prospecting. If people resonate with your first line, they are your target audience, which helps you automatically weed people out.
The more people who follow you who resonate with your first line, the higher engagement you’ll get on your posts.
You can prospect by either naming them directly for who they are such as “fashionable millennials” or sharing a similar belief system like “believer in cruelty-free beauty.”
It’s less important to add what you do than it is to say who you’re looking to serve.
But if you can concise it down to one word such as “blog” and are a blogger, then that’s great! You can also add words like “serving [target audience] worldwide” or “advocate for [target audience].”
Here is an example for NEW fashion bloggers.
- Blog for fashionable millennials
- Featured in @LadyBossBlogger
- Based in Chicago
- Learn how to become a trendsetter
- Email me to collaborate!
Even if you’re new, you can still find ways to be helpful to others. A good way to do this is by sharing your knowledge on a certain topic within your niche. Learn how to find a profitable niche here.
If you’re not sure how you can help yet, mention a personal detail like “Champagne lover” or “Photography enthusiast” to connect to people who enjoy your hobbies and interests. People follow others on Instagram when they share similar interests (and post about them)!
Here is an example for beauty bloggers.
- Believer in cruelty-free beauty
- Brand ambassador for @elfcosmetics
- College girl in Denver
- Daily 5-min makeup routines
- Visit my blog below!
You only get 150 characters including spaces, so use each word wisely!
The beauty bio above is exactly 150 characters so you wouldn’t be able to add any emojis to it. That’s fine, because it’s the words that are important.
If you type your bio directly in Instagram you won’t be able to achieve the look you want because it doesn’t allow for paragraph spacing. You’ll have to type it exactly how you want it to look in the notes app on your phone or in a blank email, then copy and paste it into your bio.
Now that you have optimized your bio and come up with the essence of who you are and what you do, you should optimize your name too.
Think about the keywords you want to be associated with.
For my @LadyBossBlogger account, my name is “Entrepreneur Tips+Quotes+Inspo” to describe the type of content I post. I also made sure to include a category, I chose “Education Website”.
For my personal account @ElaineRau I left my name as is and added “A Blogger’s Life.” For my category I chose “Entrepreneur,” which is displayed under my name to give more context.
Finally, make sure to create a free Linktr.ee account which allows you to link to multiple things in your profile. I have links back to popular posts on my blog as well as email opt-in landing pages. But everything in there is incredibly useful and directly targets my desired audience.
Now let’s go back to how NOT to get your profile skipped over.
You must have great graphics that represent your brand.
Whatever you talk about in your bio should be evident in your photos. If you say you’re a dog lover, I would expect to see a few pictures of you with your dog(s). As long as your words and pictures correlate, you’re in good shape!
The easier your profile is to understand and the better you are at visually telling that story with your content, the better chance you have of picking up clients from Instagram.
This is how I do it:
My strategy for both my accounts is inspiration and motivation, not monetization, which sounds counter intuitive. Yes, you’re trying to convert them to be your clients, but they need to get to know you first and trust the information you provide.
Grab my free 22-page ebook on How To Become An Instagram Influencer and learn how I started monetizing my instagram at just 6,000 followers!
My professional account is all about motivation. I provide daily motivational quotes and business resources that link back to my blog so people have the tools they need to succeed in business.
I accomplish this on my personal account by pairing my every day life with inspirational quotes that match the context of the picture.
If you want to build a following and attract clients, the focus should always be on THEM, not YOU.
If I can provide inspirational content for you every single day that makes your day better or provide thought-provoking quotes, then you’ll start tuning into what I have to say.
If you like what I have to say on Instagram, you’re likely to start tuning into my blog to get more content, sign up for my list to stay in contact, and start interacting with me as a resource you go to for help.
I will then direct you to helpful blog posts, paid products, or another contact who can help you with what you need depending on what you’re asking for.
It’s not about a fast sale, it’s about developing trust and relationships with people who value your voice and opinion because you have helped them in one way or another.
This will take time so make sure you’re in it for the long haul.
2. TWITTER
The best thing about Twitter is that it allows you to link to anything and everything, so it’s easy to redirect people to your blog or website. Take advantage of this!
For example, I suggest including a link to opt-in to your email list.
As you craft your bio, you’ll be able to use similar tactics to those needed for your Instagram bio. Here’s a formula you can use for Twitter, which will look very similar to the last formula. It’s supposed to! Only a few details will change.
- What you do + target audience
- Achievements or accolades to build trust (or personal tidbit)
- How you can help them or what you do
- Call to action (a link is essential here)
You have 160 characters, just a little more than your Instagram limit; use them wisely. Because line-breaks aren’t an option for Twitter bios, emojis are more critical here to separate your text.
Before each element of your formula, insert an emoji to vivify your bio but also to clearly separate each of the four elements.
One thing I changed on Twitter is instead of using my Linktr.ee link is I used just one link with one specific call to action. Because people on Twitter are less likely to check out your profile in detail, you have to provide them a quick win and ask them to take action immediately to keep them engaged with you.
Knowing your target audience well will help shape your call to action.
Additionally, have a call to action on your cover image as well. Don’t just ask them to subscribe; also include what they will get from your subscription.
Here’s an example that could work for a fitness blogger.
- Blog for fitness moms
- Featured in @LadyBossBlogger
- Learn 150 stay-at-home workout routines
- Watch my latest video below!
Finally, craft a solid name for your Twitter account that accurately describes the kind of content you’ll be posting. My Twitter name is “Entrepreneur Tips, Quotes, Resources & Interviews.” Notice how it explicitly illustrates the kind of content that I am posting.
As you craft your name and bio, remember that while Instagram is centered around images, Twitter is more about quotes and words, but quotes with images do 7x better. Make sure your images are 1024×512 pixels so they show up in the best way in the feed.
3. PINTEREST
Your Pinterest bio is all about keywords and should be written around search terms.
Now, this bio is especially fun to craft, because Pinterest is the most trafficked app of the bunch.
Lots of people are on Pinterest, and the insanely shareable invention of a “pin” makes for a ridiculous amount of shares and new viewers.
Because your audience will inevitably be different on Pinterest than on the other networking sites, your bio should also be different.
Many Pinterest users browse the app to find relevant resources versus specific people or brands, therefore most of the people you interact with (at least until you get big) are people who are unfamiliar with your brand.
Your bio, then, should be descriptive of the awesome resources your boards will provide. Pinterest bios differ in that you want to show off less of yourself and more of your content.
Emojis aren’t as necessary on Pinterest. Instead use a vertical bar ( | ) to separate each element in your bio. Here’s a good formula to apply.
- What kind of resources you provide
- Who your page is for (target audience)
- What type of pins you upload (keywords)
- Way to contact you (optional)
Pinterest bios aren’t as rigidly structured as social networking bios. After all, they’re based on your content, and content varies for everyone.
Here’s a potential example for a travel blogger.
“Resources for travelers and bloggers. Inspirational Quotes | Travel Tips | Equipment Recommendations | Follow and email to adventurer50@traverse.com for collabs.”
Exactly 160 characters, straight-to-the-point and descriptive, just as a bio should be. Linking your blog and adding your location are also helpful so people can get to know a little more about you.
4. FACEBOOK
Facebook pages are basically useless now because of all the changes Facebook has made.
However, Facebook GROUPS are still a useful place to build community and either get clients or stay in contact with them.
The reason groups are better than pages and why they work is because you can actually interact with people about a common topic.
The name of your group must be filled with keywords to describe your ideal client and target audience.
My group is called “Female Entrepreneur + Blogging Resources.” Pretty straight forward, right?
In the group’s description you’ll want to state who the group is for and what it will be used for. That’s pretty much the formula in and of itself.
- Who the group is for
- What kind of posts are acceptable (questions about a topic, relevant tips, etc.)
- What kind of content should be shared (resources, tips, etc.)
Now, in order to make the group successful, you must spend a lot of time in it and bringing people into it.
Active, mutually beneficial interactions are more helpful than a one-sided page.
So don’t be afraid to interact with your fellow bloggers!
Build your own bio!
Now I want to see you construct your own bio!
A bio is exactly like a first impression, and first impressions are invaluable in helping clients understand why they should choose you.
Use these tips to be memorable from the first time people meet you on social media.
If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to me at ladybossblogger@gmail.com, and I would be glad to answer any questions you may have!
If you loved this post, please PIN the pic below!
Much Love,
<3 Elaine Rau
Giselle Gaytan is a sophomore at Wheaton College (IL) studying English Writing and Journalism. For the past three years she has served as Marketer at Los Tres Manantiales, a restaurant in Wisconsin. Her creative nonfiction work has been published in two issues of the Kodon literary journal. She currently serves as Special News Reporter at the Wheaton Record.