It is 2022, and Instagram is still the peak of social media branding. From updated messaging features, popular hashtags, or reels, this social media platform assures a vast and profitable follower base when one knows how to utilize it. In fact, Business Insider explains that 72% of Instagram users have purchased or used a product or service they saw on their feed. For this reason, Instagram has become an excellent tool for many professionals and business owners in the aesthetics industry. Here are tips on building your Instagram following.

Bio

‍

Writing your bio can be a long moment of existential crisis and stress. There are questions you can ask yourself to make the process easier. Ask yourself: Are you using clickable links to your website? Is your profile picture a reflection of you? Do you have a thorough description of yourself and your services? Think of these as guiding questions to help portray your most authentic and thoroughly presented self.

Nicole Brustkern, DNP from Bird Rock, explains, “Your clients will come to you for your skills and results, but they’re also coming to you because they like YOU as a person. Present yourself exactly as you want to be perceived.”

Attracting your target audience

Secondly, keep in mind who your audience is or should be. With this, you can strategize on which people you want to follow, whether that be potential patients, other aesthetics providers, or businesses like medspas and salons. An easy way to find these people or have such people find you is to search hashtags related to aesthetics. Hashtags act as signposts that direct people to pages of interest. With this, you can find posts, and hence pages, to follow (while expecting a follow back) or post content using hashtags in order for people to find you.

Instagram allows up to 30 hashtags per post, but feel free to find and select the top ten trending in aesthetics and add those to each post. We also recommend using location-specific hashtags to tap into your local community in particular. When hashtagging a location, you could simply name your city, for example, #LosAngeles, or specifically your area, #OrangeCounty.

Other ways to get your target audience to follow you might include engaging with their content, doing giveaways (Who doesn’t like free things?), or simply sending DMs introducing your page. This is especially important for client retention. The aesthetics business is all about sustaining your relationships with clients and ensuring they are consistently engaged so they remember to use your services.

If you have an employer who does not want you to connect with patients online, make sure to stick to other strategies that might not include reaching out. You can do this by interacting with already engaged followers. As you post, do not just walk away; answer questions in polls, respond to comments, and like what they say. There are many other ways to have a two-way street social media engagement that does not include reaching out directly, but it relies on follower boosting strategies.

However, do speak up if you feel like your current situation with your boss suppresses your growth goals.

Jolene Retaskie, RN from South Carlsbad, explains, “It is common to have your goals and aspirations suppressed by who your bosses are. I don’t feel like one person's words are the concrete of where I’m going to stop. Another is that as much as we try to build up a community and community resources are great, I will stand up for unsafe techniques or unsafe situations.”

Have a well-mapped out content creation strategy

You need to create a cadence to posting. While you might have a busy schedule as an injector, find out the best time to post your content on Instagram and stick to that schedule. It can be every day before bed or every two days as long as it is consistent.

After creating a posting schedule, figure out a time for social media engagement. Great social media engagement means your customers have a stronger relationship with your brand and, in turn, more opportunities to build referrals, increase clientele, and brand loyalty. You can do this by spending 30 minutes a day posting, liking, or commenting on aesthetics-related pages as well as potential patients’ profiles.

Lastly, take time to understand how the content is working for you. Kristen Doezie, MSN from Temecula, says, “I will say I spend a lot of time and energy trying to understand my ideal client, and then I tailor the information that I create directly to them. You can do this using Instagram polls of Q/A on stories. Not only does this help with engagement, but it helps you know your followers better.”

Another way to get in-depth information on your followers is through “Insights.” All of the strategies and tips mentioned above and posting to Instagram stories won’t mean much if you do not study your numbers and audience statistics. This Instagram tool helps you see how each post is doing and learn what content your followers like. Under each post, you can click “view insights” to see who is checking out your content, how they got there, and who clicked a link in your bio.

To access your Instagram Insights, you must have a business profile. If you don't have a business profile, check out this guide to get yours set up.

All in all, there are many ways to make your Instagram work for you. And while all these tips may go a long way, Jolene Retaskie also advises, “You can follow all the algorithms, but it changes all the time, and it goes back to just being who you are and staying true to that.”