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Instagram bio writing 101
Your Instagram bio is a key piece of digital real estate for your brand. It’s typically the first thing Instagram users see when they open your profile and gives visitors a glimpse of what you have to offer. You only get one shot at a good first impression - so use those 150 characters wisely.
As a social media marketer, you already know Instagram marketing is all about connecting with potential customers and building interest in your product or service. A great Instagram bio does all that and more. It tells your audience who you are, what you do, who you serve, and prompts them on next steps. The best Instagram bios incentivize social media users to hit the follow button without even thinking, so make sure your bio is compelling enough to make people want to stick around.
So what truly makes a good Instagram bio? Keep reading to find out!
Components of a Killer Instagram Bio
There are a million different ways to write a great Instagram bio. While each brand’s bio will be unique to them, here are a few common elements that your bio should contain:
Username and Display Name
Don’t mix these up! Despite their similarities, your username (or Instagram handle) and profile display name serve different purposes for your page.
Whenever you comment, like or follow another Instagram account, your username is the first thing they’ll see. In most cases, your Instagram handle will be your name, your brand’s name, or something close to it.
Your username is the first thing Instagram will check when users search for your brand on the platform, so make sure it’s simple and contains the most relevant keyword to your brand or product category. Double check that your username doesn’t contain any unnecessary symbols that would confuse your target audience or prevent you from appearing in searches.
Your Instagram display name, on the other hand, is the name people will see at the top of your Instagram bio when they visit your profile. By looking at your display name, your target audience should be able to identify what your page provides and if it’s something they’re interested in. Your display name is a great opportunity to include additional keywords and boost your Instagram SEO. We’ve done that with our account by adding our product category to the name - which is “social media scheduling tool” – to increase our reach and draw in more search traffic.
Business Category
Your business category is displayed at the top of your Instagram profile and helps visitors understand what type of business you are. Note that this option is only available to creator and business accounts.
Image courtesy of Animoto
When setting up your Instagram business profile, you’ll be asked to select the category that best represents your brand. Instagram has literally hundreds of categories, so try to find one that matches your business as closely as possible. Bonus if it contains one of your keywords! You can edit your category at any time, as well as choose to hide it from your profile using the Edit Profile menu.
Profile Photo
Your Instagram profile photo is one of the first things people will notice when they visit your profile page. Here are some tips to ensure your picture makes a lasting impression:
- Use your headshot or brand logo to build brand awareness.
- Make sure your image is high-resolution and cropped to the correct size (at least 110 x 110 pixels). We recommend uploading an image at a higher resolution to retain quality.
- Incorporate a pop of color to stand out from the crowd - this could be through your photo background, a product, clothing, or text.
- Make sure it’s on brand. Your profile picture colors and tones should complement the rest of your Instagram feed aesthetic.
We love this example from social media coach Lucy Vincent. It incorporates color and rich contrast, while coming off as professional and friendly:
Description
Your description is the star of your Instagram profile! It’s your chance to show off your brand’s personality, share crucial details about your business, and inspire people to take action. Think of it as your elevator pitch. Your description should showcase who you are as a brand and touch on the following areas:
- What your business does. Start with the basics. What product or service do you offer? Ideally, this line or sentence should be straightforward and incorporate keywords where possible. You can also add line breaks, bullet points or emojis to make it look neat and easy to read.
Superfood brand Blume does this perfectly through a combo of their Instagram display name and bullet points highlighting their unique product features:
- Who you serve. Let’s be real - Instagram users want to follow people they like and trust. To build connections with your target audience, your bio should speak directly to them using language they understand.
See how IG expert Mya Nicol speaks directly to her target audience – coaches and service providers – in her bio:
How you do it. Why should people follow you? What can they hope to gain? Your business bio should give visitors an idea of the kinds of content to expect from you and help them understand your value, like social media strategist Daniele does here:
To sum it up, there are many different ways to write your Instagram bio description, but the best bio will help your business stand out and allow your personality to shine through.
Contact Information
Funnily enough, this is the one section that a lot of businesses fail to fill out properly. Especially if your business has a brick and mortar component, you should be adding your address and phone number at a minimum.
Instagram has built-in action buttons for your email, phone number, and address. You can choose whether these are displayed or not, but we recommend adding all three if possible. If you opt not to display these on your profile, provide another avenue for potential customers to contact you such as a link to the contact form on your website or a link to book a discovery call.
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Branded Hashtags
In this new era of user-generated content, branded hashtags are a fun way to engage your audience and encourage Instagram users to share their experiences with your brand’s product or service.
For example, check out how Lululemon created a social media movement among fitness lovers by encouraging people to join their branded hashtag, #thesweatlife. This has resulted in over 1.5 million posts using the hashtag:
Call to Action
Put simply, a call to action or CTA is a way of getting people to do something. People are much more likely to perform an action when you give them clear directions, so your call to action is crucial if you want visitors to convert to customers.
Your call to action and bio link should work together to guide users to learn more about your business. Here are some of our favorite (and effective!) calls to action:
- Visit our online store
- Book a discovery call
- Download our free guide
- Find our products
- Learn more
- Sign up now
Ideally, your CTA should sit directly above your bio link. To grab viewers’ attention, use emojis like a pointing hand or add emphasis through fun Instagram fonts or capitalized words like Media A La Carte does here:
Bio Link
Your Instagram bio link is a clickable link that can be used to drive traffic to your website, latest blog post, landing page, downloadable offer, or signup form. It’s a clear next step for your Instagram users that converts them into customers.
In 2024, there’s really no reason to limit yourself to a single bio link. Add multiple links to your profile through a trackable Instagram bio link like LinkTree or Sked Link. A tool like Sked Link allows you to link to a customizable menu that connects Instagram users to multiple pages at once. It also has advanced analytics capabilities which help you track how many Instagram users click on your link. The best part? Sked Link is totally free for Sked Social users! Try out a free 7-day trial here.
Action Buttons (*NEW*)
Take your call to actions one step further with Instagram’saction buttons. Thanks to Instagram’s ongoing efforts to support small businesses, you can now add the following action buttons to your business account:
- Book Now: Book an appointment.
- Reserve: Make a reservation at a restaurant.
- Order Food: Get food delivery or takeout from a business.
To set up an action, you need an existing account with a partner to select them.
To access these features, head to your business profile, tap Edit Profile, then under Profile Information, click Action Buttons. Tap to add the action button you want, then tap save (iOS) or the checkmark icon (Android) to go live. Note that only one action button can be displayed on your profile at a time.
Keep in mind that you must have your Instagram set up as a Creator or Business account to access the Action Button feature.
Strong Instagram Bio Examples
Now that you’ve got a good understanding of how to write an Instagram bio, let’s see how top brands put it into action. Here’s a roundup of the best Instagram bio ideas we’ve come across:
Nora’s Plant-Based Ice Cream
Why We Like It:
Nora’s nails every element of the Instagram bio with their colorful vibrant profile pic and fun emojis to break up their description. They’ve incorporated a brief brand slogan, compelling (and delicious!) product features, and a clear call to action that drives users to their LinkTree.
Serenity Kids
Why We Like It:
Serenity Kids employs a bright orange logo paired with colorful story highlights to give their page a young playful feel. They’ve also incorporated their brand values and a branded hashtag into their description, a smart move on their part since up to 72% of US consumers prefer to buy from brands that reflect their beliefs and values. This values-forward approach paired with their rainbow aesthetic is both eye-catching and purposeful.
Gymshark
Why We Like It:
Funny Instagram bios like fitness brand Gymshark’s are always a great way to engage your Insta audience and encourage them to follow. And we have the data to back it up - 91% of people globally prefer brands to be funny, yet 95% of business leaders fear using humor in consumer interactions. Moral of the story? Don’t be afraid to get a little silly with it.
Apart from their witty, humorous description, Gymshark uses their signature shark logo as their profile picture and utilizes a link in bio that showcases their newest releases. Simple, yet effective.
Honest Mum
Why We Like It:
Honest Mum (aka Vicki) is a mommy blogger, author, broadcaster, and influencer. With so many things on the go, it’s important that her Instagram bio keeps her audience up to date. She showcases who she is via a professional, high-quality profile photo and uses her bio link to drive traffic to her blog and invite users to connect with her via Facebook and TikTok. Vicki’s profile is the perfect example of how to write a killer Instagram bio for your personal brand.
Round Out Your Instagram Efforts with an All-in-One Social Media Tool
Now that you’ve written an amazing Instagram bio, you need an attractive and cohesive Instagram feed to go along with it! How posts look on your grid is a big part of brand building on Instagram. Sked Social’s Visual Planner lets you drag and drop posts in an instant to design gorgeous layouts. Once you’re happy with the look, you can schedule, queue or draft your posts to make sure everything’s perfect before it goes live. Publish posts and Stories, add Instagram hashtags, access Reels insights, and more with our 7-day free trial.