How to Optimize Your Instagram Bio for Growth
I've run multiple six and seven-figure businesses and 75% of my leads? They come from Instagram.
You've heard that first impressions are everything, and I'm here to tell you, it's true.
When that next reel goes viral, those new eyeballs will take one look at your bio and decide in a split second whether or not they want to keep watching. No pressure.
So rather than leave it to chance, let's optimize the landing page of your Instagram Profile to make sure that when you do go viral, you're keeping those idea clients around and watching.
So let’s walk you through the formula I use to help my clients optimize their Instagram Bio to make sure that it's compelling, authoritative, and most importantly, MAGNETIC. When done correctly, you'll be attracting hot leads into your wake with ease. If you're finally ready to hop off the Instagram struggle bus, you're in the right spot.
Your bio has ONE job - it's to get people to say "ok, I'll bite."
If she finds you from a hashtag, a reel, or a recommendation from a friend, she's going to come to your bio to find out a few things: Who are you, what do you do, and can you help ME? The time for being vague or even humble is gone. We have one glance to win her over. So let's step into our braggy pants a bit, and be willing to own our corner of the market.
You ready for the step by step formula I use to optimize your bio?
THE Bio Formula
- PHOTO
We have such a small space to work with, so be sure to have your photo be high quality and of JUST YOU. Your kids and dog are cute, but I need to be able to see you. Also, try to make sure you're looking at the camera so they feel eye contact. Keep the background simple, and if you need to, you can remove the background and make it a solid color background in Canva.
Remember that a picture says a thousand words, so this is where we show your personality. Maybe you're funny, so you're laughing. Maybe you're serious, so you have a boss face. Show her subliminally what she can expect from you.
- SEARCHABLE TITLE / HANDLE
You have 2 places to optimize how people search for you. Your handle (the @name ) and the title, (the bolded section under your photo). It's my formal recommendation that your handle simply be your name, or the name of your brand, if and only if it's easy to read as one word. YOUR NAME HAS TO BE SOMEWHERE, either in handle, title or both if you're a personal brand, so 9 times out of 10, I don't recommend your handle be a cutesy brand name. The title is also searchable, meaning you should place something in that section that they would be searching for. Choose something they'd actually know to look for - you'll see mine is Marketing Expert, because it lends authority and it's a phrase she'll understand. She may not understand something vague or a title you "made up" for yourself, so use one she'll understand.
- HOW YOU HELP THEM
Your first sentence in your bio should not be about YOU at all, but about her and what she needs. Tell her what you do and how you help her, but make sure to use "you" language instead of I language. You'll see my example here is "Explode your REACH & REVENUE with Marketing and Sales Strategies that Work." From reading that, she knows that i help her grow her reach and her revenue, and I do that through proven marketing and sales strategies.
Try creating the traditional "I help" sentence and then switch the language from "I" to "You".
Example: "I help 40+ women increase their energy with food." (I help _____ accomplish ______ with or without _____)
Using "you" language, that statement sounds like "Increase your energy in your 40s without starving" Second one sounds more compelling, no?
- AUTHORITY
She needs to get an idea of just how big of a deal you are.
Have you been featured somewhere? Did you earn a title / accomplish something truly impressive? Use it.
In the past I've used accolades like "Confidence Coach to watch by @yahoofinance" and "7-Figure Business Coach" or "Founder of Magnetize" as examples.
Maybe you're top in sales in your company or industry. Don't worry about being braggy.
You'll see that I'm testing a new strategy with authority here, by using mystery. I've used "They call me Coach" as a way to create curiosity - who is "they?" how many of them are there? It makes you want to learn more. If that's not your style, just be straight forward, but don't shy away from telling her WHY SHE SHOULD TRUST YOU. She needs authority to do so.
- CALL TO ACTION
TELL HER WHAT YOU WANT HER TO DO.
Download your free guide, join your free class, or solve the problem you solve.
A strong call to action gets her saying "I want that!" so whether it's "You ready to (change problem)?" or "Snag my (solution to your problem) guide" - make it clear that you want her to click the link.
PRO TIP: I don't love link in bio options, because it's scientifically proven that if you give people choices, they freeze. That being said, if you're going to give options, PICK AS FEW AS POSSIBLE.
Sell one thing, give one thing away, drive them to one additional source of value (blog, podcast, Pinterest board)
Want to see this all in action? Download my Instagram BIO FOR BOSSES free guide to learn how to optimize your instagram bio in order to attract clients that are excited to work with you.
https://whitneyabraham.kartra.com/page/3oX125