How to Create and Maintain Your Beauty School Portfolio on Instagram

Beauty school can be such a rad time in your life! It’s where you can pursue an education and learn necessary skills in your field. It’s also the first big step to achieving your career dreams. Whatever program you pursue – cosmetology, esthetics, nail tech, or barbering – making the most out of your time in school is an important aspect for stepping out into the beauty world feeling optimistic and prepared.

One of the best ways to make the most out of your time in school is by getting your name and your talent out there. Instagram is a great marketing tool to do so through creating and using a beauty profile! Also known as an Instagram portfolio, this marketing tool can help you in several ways by:

• Monitoring your beauty school progress
• Sharing your talent and knowledge with other followers
• Giving information on appointment scheduling and prices
• Creating a name for yourself in the beauty world
• Building a clientele even before you graduate

Start building a community and clientele while in school! After school, creating a community is even more of a top priority. In order to build a clientele and even get a job, it’s important to show work you’ve done. By using Instagram as your portfolio while in school, you can get a head start on this. So, let’s learn how to create one!

1. Create A Unique Handle

A username or handle is like your business name. It’s a way to establish your brand identity and let people know your purpose and mission from the start. It’s also an opportunity to stand out among others in the beauty community!

Some tips to creating a handle are:

• Make it memorable so people can remember you easier.
• Add in a keyword such as esthetics, hair, skin, barber, etc. to describe your services.
• Choose to include your name if you want your personality to shine.

Once you start coming up with a username, if your initial name is taken, don’t worry about it! This is the perfect opportunity to think outside the box and create the right username for you. Some people who killed it with their names on Instagram are:

• @jzstyles.co – A hair salon and extension company. “JZ” is to describe the salon owner, “styles” describes what they do, and “.co” is there for potential company growth.
• @hairby_chrissy – A simple and straightforward name to describe what she does.
• @prettylittleombre – A fun name that describes her and what she does.
• @themaneartistry – A way to use fun keywords to describe her brand.
• @haircolorbible – A group of colorists sharing tips on hair color with a book.
• @foodsandfoils – A name that describes two things she loves.

Whatever handle/username you decide on, make it yours! You have the chance to think creatively, so have fun while remembering to stay true to yourself and your brand.

Create A Brand and Style

The next step in the process of creating a killer Instagram profile for your beauty business is going even further when it comes to your style and brand. We’re talking about vibes. What vibes do you want your photos and graphics to have when someone looks at your content? Knowing this can help you create graphics and help you stick to your brand identity.

Aspects of incorporating your brand and style into your content includes:

• Color scheme
• Font family
• Tone of voice

Color Scheme

Your color scheme is the group of colors you’re going to use when you create graphics. Choosing different colors can create different feelings and emotions so it’s important to choose the right ones. Whatever feelings you want your followers to have when looking at your pictures and thinking about your brand, choose colors that represent those emotions.

Font Family

Your font family is the group of fonts that you will use when creating graphics. Sticking with the same font family will make your instagram profile look more consistent, aesthetically-pleasing, and aid in creating a solid brand.

Tone of Voice

Always stay true to yourself when writing content and captions on Instagram. When you use a different tone of voice on your social media than in person, you can unintentionally throw off your brand and confuse clients. You, as a beauty professional, are at the forefront of your brand! By being yourself and sticking with the vibes that stay true to your style and your personality, you can:

• Let people know who you are and create a name for yourself.
• Allow your personality to shine through.
• Get your clients excited for the experience you can give them.
• Have people want to see you for their beauty needs.
• Build a loyal community of followers with personal relationships.

Decide What Content To Share

The content you choose to share is a huge part of building your brand and showcasing what it stands for. Here are some fun and effective content ideas to market yourself on your Instagram:

• Introduce yourself.
• Tell your journey.
• Showcase your values (things that you care most about and guide you in your journey).
• Offer tips and advice or things you’ve learned.
• Get someone to take behind the scenes shots.
• Promote yourself, your services and your school.

We like to follow the 80/20 rule! This means that 80% of your content should tell your story, whereas 20% should be promotional. Your followers want to get to know you and connect with you. Don’t do “sales” posts too much or it’ll just seem like that’s all you care about. Interact with them and tell them your journey from learning why you wanted to go to beauty school and everything leading up to where you are now!

Tips When Taking Photos

Showcasing your photos is huge for people wanting to come and get their hair done by you! When followers see a quality photo with the hair color, style, or cut that they want, they’re more likely to buy into your services and book with you. This is why a quality picture is so important. However, you don’t need an expensive camera to take pics! Here are some of our favorite tips for capturing the right photo:

• Use natural lighting so there’s no harsh light or discoloration.
• Shoot in portrait mode on your iPhone to draw more attention to the hair instead of the background.
• Take different views of the transformation (for hair – side, front, and back).
• Choose a background with a solid color that won’t distract.
• If you’re wanting to use filters, make sure the filter stays true to hair color to not give unrealistic expectations.

Follow these tips and you’ll create some amazing photos to post on your Instagram!

Use The Right Hashtags

How do you get other Instagram users (that could be potential clients) to see your post when they’re not following you? One of the best ways to do this is through hashtags! Hashtags, when used correctly, can help others find you and your services in a much easier way than accidentally stumbling upon your profile.

We recommend starting with your school hashtag, creating your own personal hashtag that can strengthen brand awareness, using local hashtags, and then throw in some industry hashtags of your choosing. Here are some examples:

School hashtag – #avedainstitutetwinfalls or #avedainstituteboise
Personal hashtag – usually your handle or a fun way to describe your brand like #avedahair or #avedacreations
Local hashtags – #idahocosmetologyschool #idahohairschool #idahobarber #idahocosmetologist
Industry hashtags – #behindthechair #balayage #fade #microdermabrasion

Although you can include 30 hashtags in a post, we recommend 10-15. Make sure to mix them up and include ones that are relevant to your photo so Instagram doesn’t flag it as spam. Be intentional and don’t forget the hashtags!

Be Active and Consistent

Being active and consistent is where you can start building and nurturing your community! Staying active gets you to interact and engage with your followers. When your followers comment, dm, or mention you, respond and carry on a conversation. You can also engage with them through different stories features such as polls, questions, quizzes, or a countdown. Using Instagram tools can also help Instagram know you are important to the Instagram community and provide value!

Staying consistent allows your followers to continually see and interact with your content. Whether it’s once, twice, or multiple times a week, make sure you’re posting consistently to get your content out to more of your followers by showing up on their feeds.

Have You Started Pursuing An Education?

If you’re dreaming of making a difference in the social media world, why not pursue an education in beauty? The topics of hair, skin, and nail health are huge for Instagram influencers to discuss and followers to know more about. Marketing can be a great asset to grow your business. At Aveda Institute Boise and Aveda Institute Twin Falls, you can learn both skills in your field and marketing best practices so you can get a head start on creating a loyal community of followers and clientele. To learn more about our programs and what you could learn, contact us today!