Instagram is the artist’s business card
Instagram is still very much a business card for artists and will continue to be so through 2025.
When someone lands on your page for the first time, it’s important to
let people know what you do
you are open for business
With this in mind let’s start at the top with the profile.
The below image shows the key features that you can edit.
The handle - this is your @
The Account Name can be different and I encourage you to use your actual name in this section, why? because you’re already aware that people do business with people, and this adds a human touch, which is why people buy directly from the artist. Plus stranger danger… so let’s give our followers some authenticity and put them at ease.
The profile picture: A headshot of you clearly visible is WAY better than a picture of an artwork. Again, it lends authenticity, and builds trust. As an artist you should already be aware of the importance of visual communication. Your photo is doing that for your audience. Show your face. Anything else is you hiding. And if you’re hiding, well I have a mindset program for that, LOL
The Bio: Limited space here so we gotta use it wisely. This should say what you do, and what people can expect from this page. And preferably a Call To Action (CTA). Personally I also like to see where the artist is located but that is optional. Does your ideal buyer need to know? Would it help? If yes, then add it in.
Good examples:
Devon based landscape painter.
Painter of modern life exploring social justice and identity
Bad examples: These are where you talk about materials over substance, replace original thought with poetry or similar in the hope it does the talking for you. These are better used in the captions of the actual posts, not in your bio.
Artist working in oils.
Luke 13:24
“The wound is where the light enters you” Rumi
FIRST LINE OF THE BIO
For some artists, this opening line may be elaborated by explaining how your client benefits from your work. This is getting into real marketing territory and it works great. And still, this is not going to be for everyone.
Examples:
Devon based landscape painter bringing the great outdoors indoors.
Nature inspired art for your home.
Abstract painter sharing the joy of colour.
Portrait painter: Art to mark your life’s big milestones.
Collage artist: Turning your wedding stationery into timeless art
Good examples of artists bio:
You can use the example of my own bio which I tweak regularly.
Where I have written Author of Show Your Art (Get it on Amazon), think about what would be a similar line for you. Have you won any awards, or are you in any exhibitions currently or coming up?
Examples:
RA Summer Exhibition 2024
Upcoming: The Other Art Fair, Dallas in May
ACE funding recipient
Featured in Art Seen Issue 12
Where the first line is what you do, this second line is lending some proof to your journey. While your CV or resume is likely abundant with achievements, you only need to add one of these things to this line. This can be the most recent, the one you are most proud of or the next upcoming exhibition. Remember this bio is not a ‘set it and forget it’ situation. So you might also want to amend it ahead of any promotions you are doing.
On the third line of my own profile, I have ‘Go Watch My Stories ‘ This works for me because even the days I do not post on the grid I post to my stories. This is where I do more talking to camera and I hope give my audience a different connection. Use this line if this is true for you.
If not, you will want to use some call to action here.
“DM to enquire” is so common place on artists profile, but it also feels like, ‘wait i just arrived and you’re selling me something?!’
Is there something more juicy with less desperate vibes you can say here?
How about
“DM to get on the guest list for my next exhibition” (say when it opens)
“Available work on the website 👇”
“To talk about commissions, my DMs are open”
“Join the waitlist for my next print drop 👇”
“Next print drop in March, join the priority list 👇”
This might be a good time to mention emojis are optional.
So let’s recap:
what you do,
where you’re based,
how you make your ideal client’s life better,
some proof of your journey, or what is coming up,
and a call to action.
Remember you can always use ChatGPT if you have some semblance of the above to get started with and see what it says. Tweak and test.
So when we put it all together from the above examples we get
“Devon based landscape painter bringing the great outdoors indoors. RA Summer 2024.
Next showing at The Other Art Fair London April 2025. DM to get on the VIP list.”
Links in Bio
Next the links. You can have multiple links within Instagram. You do not need linktree anymore.
Personally I amend my links each time I am running different promotions. So it might be a program, it might be a consult call for 1-1 coaching, Buy my book, Buy Art Seen and so on.
So for you:
Link 1 can be your artist website, however if you are actively promoting a collection for example, use the url to the webpage with the collection, not the home page of the website.
Link 1 examples:
Available Prints
Floral Collection
Abstract Paintings
Works on Paper
Link 2 example
Your mailing list, or the guest list or wait list that you mentioned up in the bio. This link should take them to the sign up page, where they will usually enter their email.
Enquire about commissioning an artwork,
Link 3 ideas
Any galleries that you are showing with, the link to your page on their website. This can include any online galleries you list on.
The link to webpage of a current exhibition
The link to read about you in an article, or hear you on a podcast etc
While you can have several links in the bio, we also want to be sure we are not confusing the visitor. Too much choice can make visitors bounce before choosing, so be mindful of stuffing a ton of links up there.
It is fine to send all traffic to your website and label the buttons with your different collections.
And when you have an upcoming event, change one of the links to more info about the event.
Remember this is a moving part and not fixed for the rest of the year.
See details for my program about using Instagram effectively to grow your sales and visibility
https://www.thecuratorssalon.com/elevate-your-insta-game
Gx