improve your profile
improve your profile
It may be a cliché saying but it really is true, first impressions count and when your main platform is instagram, your first impression is your profile! In this chapter we're going to take you through exactly how to form your profile in a way that brands will LOVE as soon as they see it!
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the perfect profile picture
Your profile picture is what your potential followers and customers will instantly when landing on your page. And this is what they will associate you with - so make sure it's relevant! If you're a business coach - dress smart and opt for a professional headshot! If you're a personal trainer - show yourself at the gym! Here are some general Do's and Don't's when it comes to selecting your profile pic!
profile picture dos and don'ts
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DON'T
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Use a good quality picture I know it's just a tiny circle - but you can still tell if it's poor quality!
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Match your pic to your feed If you have a certain colour theme or aesthetic, make sure your pic matches up!
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Use your niche - if you have a niche, then show it!
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Be original, logos are more than fine - but make sure it's original, otherwise you'll be harder for brands and followers to recognise and differentiate!
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use a group photo - this is just as bad as using a group photo on a dating site, brands and followers want to know which one is you!
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Not show your face Make sure if you are a personal influencer to show your face (or your pet's if you're a petfluencer!)
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Use logos without your face logos are absolutely fine to use, but if they don't show your face you'll look like a brand, not an influencer
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Be unprofessional... I'm looking at you duck lips/snapchat filter!
the perfect name/username
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Just like your profile picture, you want your username to be relevant! You also want your username to be memorable and uncomplicated! Here's a few rules of thumb when it comes to picking the perfect name and username!
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on't overcomplicate it! chose something that is simple, and easy to remember
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Don't use too many 'filler' characters these are characters such as; x, o, _, . (e.g. _x.becky_xo) _too many characters like this and no one will be able to remember your name!
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Don't use too many numbers the same principle applies
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Optimising your 'name' for discovery & growth:
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Putting key words in your Instagram name means you will come up in search results for this search term! In this example I've used my personal account - it is set to 'Abigail | Digital Coach' therefore when people search for 'Digital Coach' my profile will come up!
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Just incase you were confused about the difference between 'name' and 'username', we've popped a little image in to make it clearer! (with help from our fav babe KKW!)
contact/links
One final thing to mention on the topic of profile organisation, is the importance of having contact options - most importantly an email address. You can either put this in your bio if you have the space, or switch to a 'creator' profile (Profile>settings >Account > Switch to creator profile), which is what we recommend. We will talk a little bit more about the differences between 'business', 'personal', and, 'creator' accounts a little later.
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If you own a business - make sure a link to your website is in the bio! If you have any other important links associated with your account or you as an influencer (i.e. your 21 buttons, Depop or Youtube channel) be sure to pop that in the link section as will!
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Lastly, when it comes to your link - make sure include a 'Call to Action' or 'CTA' at the bottom of your bio. This is a short sentence that directs your audience to your link, tells them what to do with it and what it is - and acts as an incentive to click increasing your site traffic. As you can see in the example above, I have included a link to our site, and told the audience that they can 'join us' - using downwards pointing emojis to incentivise them to click!
the perfect bio
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Your 'bio' (short for biography) is the piece of text situated underneath your username. This is where you need to tell your new followers and potential clients exactly who you are and what you do (well, at least as close as you can get to it within the 150 character limit!) Use your bio as a punchy first introduction to your page and your personal brand! Here are a few tips you can follow when writing out your bio
Be Clear and Concise Don't waffle on! Nobody needs to know the year you met your boyfriend or the name of your pet parrot!
State your what and who What do you do, and who do you do it for?
This helps potential followers and customers decide whether your profile is suitable for them!
Use Key Words and talk about your niche or Industry!
Make sure you include your niche, industry, and any key words in your bio - your niche should be so obvious even a blind bat or your mum without her glasses couldn't miss it! What do you do - fitness, home decor, beauty treatments? Tell your audience!
Use emoji's and paragraphs to make your bio more readable and digestible
As seen in the example of our account above, we've used a combination of paragraphs and emojis to both break the text up, and add some fun and colour to make it easier to read and comprehend in a a short glance!
the perfect highlights
No, we're not talking about this season's must have hair colour, we're talking about story highlights - the lovely little organised groups you can save memories from your story into, so everyone can quickly jump to what they want to find out! They appear as little circles underneath your bio (as below) here's some top story highlight tips!
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Stick to your Niche!
Now we don't want to sound like we're just repeating ourselves here, but when something's important, it's worth repeating! Make sure your story highlights match your niche! If you're a travel blog, sort them by country, if you're a beauty influencer you can sort your stories into highlights such as 'tutorials, reviews, favs' etc. If you don't know what your niche is just yet - don't worry! We have a whole section on finding your niche!
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Make em' visually appealing!
You can choose your story highlight's icon (what shows up in the little circles on your page!), so make it a good one! Story icons are a popular choice (such as in the image above) but once again, make sure they match the feel and general aesthetic of your page! If you're a hardcore metal fan, and this is what your content displays, maybe don't mix delicate pinks and flowers!
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Tell us about you!
One of the best ways to gain influence is making and maintaining a personal connection and relationship with your followers. The more they feel like they know you, the more likely they are to stick around, and be influenced by what you say and post! Use your highlights to get a bit personal and tell us about you. This could come in the for of a Q&A, a selection of all the funny things you've posted talking to camera, you with your friends and family. Show your personality = gain fans. Simple!
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Mix it up!
Make sure your story highlights show a little variation
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Have fun!
Don't be all doom and gloom (unless that's your thing), have a bit of fun, show your followers and brands your positivity, personality, and unique way of looking at life!
the perfect feed
Okay so don't freak out too much just yet, this section is not on content - it is just on the appearance your your 'feed', or 'grid' - otherwise known as those squares you see on your profile - all ya posts in miniature form all lined up next to each other in a regimental 3x3 march. We will talk more about creating the perfect content later - but for now lets just focus on that aesthetic baby!
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Your feed is just as important as the aforementioned; name, username, bio and, profile picture - and it serves a very similar purpose when it comes to getting recognised and growing your following. Your feed should be consistent. By that I mean it should have a consistent look, feel and colour palette. Your feed should once again make sense with your niche, and work with the appearance of your story highlights and profile picture. One way to ensure your feed is consistent is by using the same colour palette and filter.
Perhaps you could also have a consistency with what you post when. For example, making sure only every other picture is of yourself, and intertwining these with inspirational quotes or similar. Make your feed easy to understand and comprehend almost instinctively when one visits it. No one should have to work through your content to understand what your profile is all about - they should be able to instantly tell by the coordination of your feed. Your feed should be able to give an instant taste of what your profile is all about.
the perfect feed
Want your feed to look more cohesive and aesthetically pleasing? Consider uploading your pics in one of these Instagram grid patterns
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The different colours you see in these examples could mean anything from content type to colour palette! By uploading in a pattern or particular order, you maintain a theme and consistency - giving your profile a boost above the rest
how does your profile add up?
how does your profile add up?
Want our two cents on how your profile is looking? Not sure how to implement the content in this lesson to your account? Want expert advice to help you become more discoverable in your niche?
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We offer full bespoke profile audits for any one on our course! Our profile audit is a complete 3-page PDF file that will go over every aspect of your profile - from profile picture, to name/username, bio, CTA and links, Content and more!
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We even give you a re-written bio suggestion that you can copy & paste. and everything is tailored to you and your profile! These audits are usually £20 - but as a Ultimate Influencer Course Member - you can get 10% off all products with your unique code: UIC4710
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Tap the add to cart button to grab yours!
[video] optimising your profile
