What is a social media bio?
A social media bio is a short descriptive text that appears in the information section of a user’s social media account, be it on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, or TikTok. Your social media bio is how you can introduce yourself to your audience, serving as a snapshot of who you are or what your business does. Social media bios will generally display these elements:
- Header image
- Profile picture
- Username
- Display name
- A short description
- Contact info
- Link
For businesses, a well-crafted social media bio contains a brief description of the company, its mission, branded hashtags, and a call to action. For individuals, bios contain information about their interests, hobbies, or other unique things about who they are and what they do. You can also use your bio to direct your audience to a link, asking them to sign up for a newsletter or encouraging them to explore your products or services.
Why is a bio important on social media?
Bios are the first impression people get of you and your brand since it’s the first thing people see when they visit your social media profile. So having an engaging bio is key to social media success. In just a few seconds, your bio can make the difference between a casual visitor deciding to follow your profile or continue scrolling.
Every part of your bio is an opportunity to introduce (and re-introduce) yourself and communicate your values to your audience. Your bio can attract customers, like-minded individuals, and collaborations when done right.
How do I write a good bio for social media?
Because bios are the first impression visitors to your profile page have of you, it’s key to ensure it’s engaging and gets them to follow your account. If you’re looking for more ways to optimize your social media bio, here are some of our top recommendations:
- Get specific: Use this space to share your brand hook, highlight new products/releases, highlight partner accounts, or share a hashtag that users can adopt.
- Provide all necessary information upfront: Some bios go straight to the point with the information new followers might want. It can even save them a Google search if the way they would typically find out the information in your bio is by clicking through several pages. For example, Getaway House, a brand that rents tiny cabins, details all the places you can find its rental cabins, saving you a fruitless click to their website.
- Get creative: You can choose the route of the quirky bio by using emojis that match your brand personality or alternative fonts to grab attention.
- Maximize your “link in bio”: You might have seen captions or Reels saying to “click the link in bio” for some extra information or access to new content. Your link in bio is the optimal opportunity to direct users to your owned content. Many people choose to use a landing page to hold several links, and lucky for you, you can make one right in Buffer, called a Start Page.
- Fill out ALL the (relevant) details: Each social media platform allows you to include a lot of information before users even scroll down to the rest of your page. For example, with Instagram, you can take advantage of the available tools by including Contact buttons, letting users Shop from you right in your account, or creating Instagram Story highlights.
- Add a CTA to encourage action: If you want visitors to take a specific action the first time they visit your page, tell them in your social media bio. A few options to use are ‘Click the link in bio to do x,’ ‘Send us a message,’ and ‘Use the hashtag #xyz.’
- Offer a deal: Make the sale immediately by offering deals to visitors – after all, they’re potential customers.
- Use a relevant profile picture: Whether it’s your logo, a recognizable face, or a campaign image, you must fill in the profile picture space with something that fits your brand.
Can I use the same bio on all social media platforms?
While you should be consistent across all social media platforms, it’s important to tailor your bio to fit the specific platform and its audience. Different social media platforms have different character limits and best practices, which may require some adjustments to your bio.
Here are some best practices for how you should tailor your bio to each social media platform:
- Instagram: Instagram bios are limited to 150 characters, a few action buttons, and a single link. Your profile page has to say a lot in a small amount of space, so it’s important to consider how you use it carefully. The neat thing about Instagram’s bio is that you can harness the power of SEO and hashtags to boost the chances of your profile appearing in Instagram search results.
- Facebook: Facebook allows for longer bios, which means you have plenty of room to share valuable information about your brand. You can include important details such as your mission statement, what products or services you offer, and your business's location.
- Twitter: Twitter is the best platform to interact with people who are in your specific niche and to let your personality shine, so use words that this niche uses and add a touch of humor, relevant hashtag, and emojis to show your personality. With only 160 characters, brevity is key on Twitter.
- TikTok: TikTok is known for its creative, laid-back, and fun content, which, combined with its 80-character bio limit, makes it extra important to keep it short, snappy, and engaging. Include a CTA and a link in bio to encourage users to drive traffic to your website.
- LinkedIn: With LinkedIn being the more professional platform out of the bunch, your bio should be more formal and concise and should speak to your company’s mission, brand vision, and key achievements.
What should I include in my business bio on social media?
Nowadays, it’s common for people to head directly to your brand’s social media profile to learn more about your business instead of your website. So it’s crucial to ensure your bio includes all of your brand’s most important information. Ideally, you should include these things in a business bio:
- A short, clear description of what your business does
- The services or products you provide
- Your brand’s mission and/or values
- A call to action, like ‘Click the link in bio to do x’, ‘Send us a message, and ‘Use the hashtag #xyz'
- A link to your website or to a landing page, like Start Page
- Where you are located, your opening hours, and contact information (if applicable)
- Any other branded hashtags or emojis that represent your brand
- Keywords that help people find your brand via search
Social media provides an opportunity to share your business's story in a more casual and engaging way, so don’t forget to add some personality into your business bio, too!
