How to create an effective Instagram Bio

On a scale of “🫣” to “😎”, how much thought have you put into your Instagram bio?

On the surface, an Insta bio might seem trivial, but there’s a lot that’s riding on its presentation and execution. Your bio is the first thing audiences see when they land on your profile, so it really needs to grab them from the first character. 

What makes for an attention-grabbing bio?

Well in short, it must be to the point and informative, all while giving the reader a complete understanding of what your brand is all about. You only have 150 characters, so each word needs to be considered and effective.

Here are some points to consider when crafting your Instagram bio.

Shot & styled by Shout + Co. for ManukaRx

PROFILE PIC
Where a brand has a figurehead, we always recommend using a headshot as a profile pic. This tip is especially relevant to the likes of estate agents, celebs / personalities, politicians, etc. Other business types would benefit from having their logo as their profile picture - think grocery stores or FMCG brands, anyone who’s using their social media to profile a broad range of products. Other brands would see value in using a lifestyle image of their products or services to provide a glimpse into their offer. Sell candles or kids clothes? This is the route we would suggest you take.

MAKE YOUR NAME COUNT
Your profile name is prime real estate for helping your audience understand - in just a couple of words - what you do. Here we recommend having your business name followed by a 2 or 3 word tag line. For example, our Insta name is Shout + Co. | Content Creators. We’re using these characters to share our business name as well as the service we offer.

KEEP YOUR USERNAME COHESIVE
Make your username the same as - or as close to - your business name as possible so that it’s easy for your followers to find you. This might be tricky given the sheer volume of brands and accounts already registered on the platform (especially if you’re just launching your brand), so if your business name is taken, we recommend using your website address (without the www.).

USE YOUR KEYWORDS
If you’ve got an SEO strategy, this should be pretty simple and straightforward. If you don’t have an SEO plan in place, then you’ll need to start from scratch on this one. What keywords or search terms is your target market using to find the types of products or services that you offer? Google’s Keyword Planner is a great tool to use here, while Instagram’s search bar is another option to help you find relevant hashtags (i.e. keywords of the social media world). Whether you’ve got your keywords already or have developed a list from scratch, use them in your bio to create a cohesive keyword strategy across your various platforms.

While we’re on the subject of keywords…

Shot by Shout + Co. for ManukaRx

USE YOUR BRANDED HASHTAGS
If you’ve developed hashtags particular to your business, this is a good place to put them. 

KEEP IT SHORT & SWEET
Less is more in this case, so choose your words wisely. Be effective and efficient with your message so that it’s succinct enough to be impactful while still being informative.

CALL TO ACTION
Make it clear what action you’d like your audience to take when engaging with your profile: do you want them to subscribe to your newsletter? Make a booking? Message you for more information? Make it clear and visible. Then double check you’ve got the right link following your call-to-action.

USE EMOJIS
Emojis are a fun way to engage your audience - they’re especially effective as bullet points, highlighting a call to action or explaining your offer.

USE HIGHLIGHTS
Create folders for your stories and give them eye-catching icons and brief descriptions to make it easy (and enticing) for your audience to access story content that interests them. These icons should echo your business’s look and feel for a cohesive brand experience. 

KEEP IT UPDATED
Make sure that any key changes in your business are reflected in your Insta bio. Changing your store’s opening hours? Update your bio. Offering a new service? Update your bio. Launching a new product? Update your bio. 

If all that feels like something you need to outsource, give us a call to give your Insta bio an overhaul. And if your social media in general is something you need to outsource, we can do that too. Book a FREE Discovery Call to tell us all about it.