You became a beauty professional because you love making others shine. But in order to grow your business to continue doing what you love, you also have to make yourself shine (aka market your business). In today's digital age, one of the most important places you can show off your work is social media, and even more specifically Instagram. But as a salon owner who already has a full-time job, who has time to master a second job as a social media manager too?! We know it can be overwhelming, and even downright uncomfortable at times. But allowing current and potential clients to explore what you have to offer is essential in building your clientele and establishing credibility for your salon. So we broke it down for you with 10 Instagram tips for beauty professionals... #1: Have A Business Account & Make Sure It's Public By converting your Instagram account into a Business Profile, you will gain access to several features that are invaluable to business owners. First of all, Instagram will place buttons on your profile to allow visitors to get directions, call or email you, or even book online right from your profile! How cool is that?! To learn how to get your booking link on your Instagram profile, check out this step-by-step blog. You also get access to Insights, where you can view helpful stats about your posts and your followers. Last, you get the ability to create ads on Instagram. To convert your profile to a Business Profile, go to your profile settings, tap on the Switch to Business Profile section, and follow the prompts. (@dosanddyes) #2: Make Marketing Personal Your clients want to feel a connection. As a stylist, you probably feel the relationships between you and your clients more like friendships rather than business relationships. Showing your skills while including personality on Instagram allows your clients to remember how great you are on both a personal and professional level! (@kelseymorris18) #3: Consistency Is Key! Be attentive to where you are taking your clients’ photos. We know the work you’ve done is awesome, but having a consistent backdrop and lighting goes the extra mile in making your photos and Instagram page more aesthetically pleasing. (@ashleylantzhair) #4: Hashtags and Tagging Hashtags might seem tedious at times, but they are so important for growing your business! Hashtags expand your posts to reach people who are looking for content about a specific topic. It’s smart to make some of them generic, yet local to where you live (#orangecounty, #ochairstylist). That way people can find your profile if they live in the area and are searching for a hairstylist. We also recommend making a personal, or brand-specific hashtag - for example #annietrangstylist. (@annietrangstylist) Tagging photos is also important in making your Instagram discoverable. Make sure to tag us @SolaSalons in your posts so we can like, comment, and re-post your awesome work! When you tag an account in the image or video,