Your complete guide to the Instagram Profile!
Priming your Instagram Profile to prepare your followers for sales is no easy feat. It takes a ton of time and effort. Trust me, not only do I spend countless hours on my pages, but as part of my job, I also audit and finesse others’.
Over the past few months, I’ve been diving really deep into different aspects of the Instagram Profile. We’ve talked about the different areas: what purpose they serve, what they should look like, and most importantly, tips to spruce yours up if it’s not quite doing its job.
In today’s post, I want to put all of these things together so you have it as a giant resource.
Listed below is a brief overview of all 11 parts of the Instagram Profile as well as external links to my Instagram or blog posts that walk you through how to clean up and perfect those areas.
Handle
Your handle is the most searchable place on the Instagram profile. You want to make sure it is concise and recognizable as your brand and personality. Click here for tips on how to choose the perfect Handle for your brand.
Photo
A picture’s worth 1,000 words isn’t it? So.. what does your Profile Photo say about you? Does it deter users from following you? Can followers immediately recognize it as you and your brand? Like your handle, it should be clear and concise. Click here for 10 steps to the picture-perfect profile.
Headline
The Headline is the second most searchable place on the Instagram profile. You want it to be unique and discoverable. Consider including words that aren’t in your handle. For a better understanding of how and why it should differ, click here.
Type
What kind of profile do you have: personal, business, or creator? Your profile type is important if you’re looking to do specific things, for instance, if your brand wants to participate in Paid Partnerships you need to be using the Creator option. Unless you are an eCommerce business, you want to choose the Creator profile VS the Business profile. It has more in-depth analytics, ways to categorize your DMs, the ability to schedule IG and IGTV posts, and more options on how you would like to be contacted as a business. Here is a link if you would like to read more on the differences between the profile types and which one might be better for you.
Bio
Your bio is prime real estate on your IG Profile. On average, you have 7 seconds to capture your ideal client’s attention, letting them know who you are and whether or not they want to follow you. If I were to look at your Instagram Bio right now, would I know immediately who your page is for, what I would get by following your page, and how you would deliver on that promise? If your answer is no or IDK, check out this blog post where I break down the biology of the Instagram bio.
Link
The most important thing about your outside link is that it works! This is a great place to put your website if you’re an eCommerce business but if you’re a creator or blogger, I recommend a Linkree. A Linktree allows you to host as many links as you want and change them frequently without having to constantly update your Instagram bio. Here is the website for Linktree if you would like to look into it.
CTAs
A creator profile allows your followers to call or email you (whichever you choose). If you have a business profile, you can add the location of your business or connect your profile with 16 different 3rd party apps for scheduling right through Instagram. Both profile types allow you to add action buttons for followers to purchase gift cards/food if that’s your thing too!
Stories
Stories are the best way to show up on your page as your brand every single day. It draws in more engagement and keeps people on your page. This has actually become the biggest piece of the Instagram profile. Make sure to utilize the polls, quizzes, and question options that Instagram provides for maximum Profile engagement!
Highlight Reels
These reels are prime real estate on your profile so the more stories you add daily, the more footage you have to add to these Highlight Reels and keep your audience engaged on your page. Choose specific reels that pertain to you and your brand. For example, we all love food porn but if you’re not a restaurant or a nutritionist, don’t put that on your page. Remember: this is about preparing your followers to want to work with you!
Feed
If you were to look at your Instagram feed RIGHT NOW through the eyes of your Ideal Client, how do you think they would feel? Your feed is what gives off the vibe of your page and visually shows users what you’re all about. If you’re really not sure what the vibe of your page is or how to even begin creating this, this Instagram post will walk you through step by step to start having a cohesive feed today!
IGTV
IGTV is a great place to repurpose and host all of your content. Instagram released a feature earlier this year that allows you to categorize your IGTV videos into "series" like your own mini-Netflix channel. We can create a series for anything in your business, literally, anything you want to talk about on your page can become a series. This is a great area for people to "go down the rabbit hole" of your brand so you want to make sure that they have somewhere to dive into.
I hope that you found this guide to the Instagram Profile helpful. If you have any questions that I left unanswered, let me know in the comments below!
