Two weeks ago I was sitting down with my morning coffee and I opened my email to find one of the most heartfelt testimonials I have ever received. A Talent Match client said that our program had “transformed her business in every aspect.”
I was deeply moved by her heartfelt testimony of success, but more than that, I was genuinely thrilled for her. This is the exact reason why we’re passionate about the work we do at Talent Match. We can only take credit for providing the guidance. She achieved her success through her dedication to implementing what we taught her. And I’m sure you can guess one of the key elements in her journey – using Instagram for recruitment.
If you head over to her Instagram profile, you can witness it firsthand. Simply scroll down to her post from July 31st, and take a brief look at everything leading up to it. Then, pay close attention to what follows. I’m confident you’ll notice the remarkable transformation.
Leveling up your Social Media Game
Social media is part of your world forever forward as a salon leader. It’s not a big club that people excel in because they have some secret sauce. It’s a game. And if you can’t figure out how to play the game, your marketing efforts- for clients & talent- will only get harder in the future. AKA growth will feel hard.
Here’s the thing. You have got to play to win and I know most of you are not playing yet.
So how do you play to win? Today I’m giving you a simple breakdown of how to play in the world of social media and win. (and I know you like winning, you’re a business leader!)
Step 1: What the f*ck am I doing?
We all start here. Every single one of us. It was a world of overwhelm for me when I got started in social media. The sheer amount of time I needed to learn something new was enough to make me stall over and over. I spent a long time flailing around, sharing non-sensical content that would never get shared and only got liked by my friends. Harsh but true.
The best thing you can do for step 1 is to figure out how to get out of that space as fast as possible. Let my years of crappy content pay your dues too.
Here is what I recommend to anyone at step 1. Create simple content for beginners
Don’t get fancy and try to use every feature Instagram makes for their reels. And don’t stall because your team doesn’t want to be on camera. Pick a topic to showcase (ideas below) and start talking about them.
Create a short video, select the captions option in Instagram and let them auto-create all of the writing you see on the screen. Add one piece of your own writing to the video and that is a hook. This is also known as “why should someone watch this or what is it I’m talking about in this video.
Then post it. That’s it.
So what do you talk about? Pick one of these five topics to
Step 2: I can do this.
Once you get yourself on camera a few times or piece together a few pictures of your team at work into a video you’ll start to feel way more confident in what you are doing. Practice makes perfect, as they say.
Now it’s time to power up and diversify what you are posting.
Get 1 team member on your team who loves social media and go ask for their help to inspire the rest of the team. AKA: create a social media ambassador. The two of you (and your other leaders) can start making videos together. Keep them simple until you feel confident enough to start exploring all of Instagram’s Reel creation features.
Have a look back through the videos you have been posting and see which ones got the most engagement and likes. Do more talking about that same type of content. Once you know what works- do more of it!
Then sit down and make a list with your new IG ambassador of 20 ideas for Reel topics you can create over the next month. This short brainstorming session will give you mega power.
Check out Behind the Chair on Instagram for lots of content inspiration! They reshare tons of great salon content.
Step 3: I can see the results happening fast.
I’m a data junkie and I pride myself on accurate information so I have to disclose that this next data point is a total guess. I believe that less than 5% of salons are actively sharing on social media in a powerful way to attract new talent. And I spend a lot of time looking!
Why does this matter to you? Well, just a few posts a week means you’ll be light-years ahead of any competition. Think of Instagram as the tool that gives you the superpower to find your perfect employee. When you start sharing this behind-the-scenes reality of your business the right talent can recognize if they would fit in well there. You truly can build your dream team.
It’s in your hands.
In Conclusion
I hope this is the boost of confidence you need to realize a little bit of impact will start creating a big change for your business. It doesn’t have to be scary and you don’t have to dive all in making a post every single day.
Just get started. Set the example and bring your team in to follow you. This is how the world works across every industry or career.
The best success stories come from staying the course and continually learning new things.
Are you ready to level up your team and grow your business?
I believe in you.
