11 Bio Ideas for Instagram In 2024
Alright, now that we’ve covered some general tips about writing Instagram bios, let’s look at some bio ideas and examples for Instagram that put those tips into practice!
1) Use Creative Words And Phrases
One of the best ways to make your Instagram bio stand out is to use creative words and phrases. Instead of using generic terms, try using adjectives or nouns that capture your personality or niche.
Here are a few Instagram bio examples to use:
Foodie: culinary connoisseur, epicurean, gastronome
Traveler: globetrotter, wanderer, nomad
Fitness Enthusiast: athlete, bodybuilder, fitness fanatic
Artist: creator, painter, sculptor
Musician: composer, maestro
Entrepreneur: CEO, founder
2) Make it strategic 🎯
This works best for small businesses or accounts that want to be more searchable and is one of the smartest ways to format your Instagram bio. As different niches on Instagram are saturated with accounts, you can use your bio as a way to increase discoverability and get closer to your target follower or customer
Hot tip: Instagram features localized search in such a way that when people look for accounts using certain keywords, the algorithm prioritizes ranking local profiles.
Instagram, as we know, is searchable, and this applies to bios too – so, for example, if you are a Nail Technician, and have this keyword within the first line of your bio, it’s more likely that users will find your profile when actively searching for Nail Technicians.
One of the first ideas (and easiest to implement) is to structure your Instagram bio around keywords within your niche.
First, decide what the most important keyword is. What searches do you want to appear in?
Then, think of other important keywords, like location, contact details, etc.
Next, craft your bio by putting important keywords first, followed by secondary keywords—let’s look at an example:
Blondies Kitchen makes it clear within the first few words of their bio and description that they are a bakery, based in the UK. Once this is established, they offer details on how and where you can order their products, as well as where they are located. This is clear and concise, and allows new users to understand exactly what it is they do, whilst upping their search-ability in Instagram – Click here to learn about how to use SEO on Instagram to push this even further.
2) Have a little fun 😂
People want to understand who you are and get a snippet of your personality before clicking that ‘Follow’ button, especially if you are a creator or a larger brand on Instagram. One of the most effective ways to get across your tone of voice and create a hook on your profile is by using a witty bio that makes users smile.
However, you need to strike the right balance without going too abstract or niche, that people don’t actually understand your joke. The key to a funny or witty bio is to think of it as a viral meme. The best-performing memes are those that are relatable or could be appreciated by almost anyone. They are based on everyday occurrences that don’t take too much inside knowledge to understand. Here’s an Instagram bio inspiration:
Friskies does a great job of playing off of the well-known ‘cat owner problems’ by insinuating buying their food = buying your cat’s love. This is particularly clever because whilst it is a witty bio line, it still manages to get across the message that they are a cat food brand, and likely are cheaper than their market competitors.
Instagram is all about community, and building a dedicated following. As your account starts to grow, you can play around with your bio a bit more, to create references to your fandom.
Here is a creative Instagram bio from Slim Jim, who has made Instagram their art. As they use Instagram almost like a meme account, it makes sense that their bio follows suit and speaks in the same tone of voice that they use across their social channels and with their community. As a large brand with high awareness, people already know about their product, so it becomes less of a need to clearly communicate what they offer materially, but more of a need to communicate what they offer their community.
Their CTA is to “join the Long Boi Gang” which is what they refer to as themselves and their fans playfully. This is their way of directly calling out the audience they want to celebrate and giving themselves some added “cool factor” whilst maintaining the continuity of brand identity on socials.
4) Communicate your values 📖
Today, people really care about the values that companies or accounts stand for, so another Instagram post bio idea is to communicate these clearly in your bio.
Milk Makeup includes its branded hashtag, which allows users to know exactly where to share their community posts. They also show their brand ethics by stating that they are 100% Vegan, Clean, and Cruelty-Free. Finally, they include hashtags that further communicate their brand values, by featuring causes such as #blacklivesmatter #stopasianhate and a spotlight on the @lgbtcenternyc account.
5) Show people what you do 🎤
As a creator, it’s important that people understand who you are from the get-go. You’ll also want to include any other links that could up the chances of drawing your followers to other social media accounts where you might be active.
Above, True Crime YouTuber, Bailey Sarian clearly states her niche by referring to the videos that made her famous on YouTube. She then includes a Linktree (which houses multiple links within your bio) allowing people to click through to her new video and see her other social media links. This Instagram bio example allows for follower crossover/cross-promotion of accounts, in case of users discover her on Instagram vs. YouTube.
6) Call out your target audience 👏
Another Instagram bio idea is directly calling out your target audience. People tend to be self-focused when it comes to social media and respond better to content that directly calls them out.
What we mean by this is content that calls “you” out or says this is for cat-lovers for example in the first few seconds of the video or the first few lines of a caption. You can apply this same logic to your Instagram bio, especially if you have a clear picture of who your target audience, follower, or consumer is.
To help with this, we recommend using Instagram demographic analytics to create an audience persona. This is a generalized description of the kind of follower who absolutely loves your account and content—a bit like an ideal customer persona (ICP) in marketing. Once you’ve created one, you can use it to better target your messaging at specific demographics. In the above Instagram post bio example, the magazine Glamour UK directly refers to itself as “the go-to magazine for Millennial and Gen-Z women.” This speaks solely to that specific group, and when users read it, they clearly understand whether or not they fall into this category. This is a smart idea if you do appeal to a specific niche, but if you do have a more varied audience, you want to be careful not to alienate any potential followers who don’t fall into the group you call out.
7) Use emojis 🎨
Emojis are a great way to add personality to your bio. They can also be used as a way of communicating what you do or what your brand stands for. While you don’t want to go overboard (i.e., crowd out your text), emojis are an easy way to add some instant value to your bio.
The makeup brand Anastasia Beverly Hills frequently uses emojis as part of its branding. As a result, it makes sense that a few emojis made it into their bio. In this creative Instagram bio example, they use the 🏆 emoji to represent the superiority of their makeup products in a funny way.
They also use the ✨ and ⬇️ emojis to highlight their call-to-acton. We think this was a great move because it helps direct the reader’s eye to the hyperlink below!
8) Highlight your experience or skills 💪
If you have a wealth of experience or skills that you want to communicate to your followers, you can use your bio to do this. This is a great way to show people that you’re an expert in your field, and it might even encourage them to reach out to you for advice or collaboration.
In her Instagram bio lines, journalist Kathy Ryan highlights her qualifications by mentioning her current title and most recent published work. She also name-drops the gallery that represents her work for a bit of extra “umph!”
Remember: The goal isn’t to sound braggy—you’re simply listing a few relevant details to lend your page some credibility!
9) Use a quote 📖
Adding a quote to your bio is a great way to communicate your values or beliefs. It can also be used as a way of inspiring your followers.
In the example above, the fitness and adventure influencer Kerstin im Allgaü features the quote, “at the end of the day, your feet should be dirty, your hair messy and your eyes sparkling”. This is a great way to sum up her philosophy on life while appealing to the outdoorsy people who will likely find her page interesting.
10) Reference pop culture or current events📺
Referencing pop culture or current events is a great way to show that you’re up-to-date on the latest trends and that you’re relevant to your followers. Plus, if you represent a brand, it helps your audience begin to personify your brand into a brand persona.
11) Shoutout to a good cause 🗣️
Including a shoutout to a good cause in your bio is a great way to show your followers that you’re socially conscious and that you support a good cause. Plus, it can help attract new followers who also care about giving back. It’s an Instagram bio example that shows your values.
In this bio idea for Instagram, Nike shows support for two movements that are generating a lot of discussion in America at the moment—Black Lives Matter and Stop Asian Hate.
They’ve chosen to do this through hashtags and a bio that links to educational resources, but you can get creative with how you show support!
12) Create a few Stories highlights 🔦
Okay… this isn’t technically a tip for creating the perfect bio for Instagram. However, Story highlights occupy a similar section of visual real estate, so we’ve decided to include it anyway! In case you’re not sure what Stories highlights are, they’re essentially past Instagram Stories that you feature below your bio. This is a great way to show off some of your best content or to give people a snapshot of what your account is all about.
National Geographic’s account is a great example of how to do this well. They have tons of Story highlights for people to flip through—all clearly labeled and thumbnailed. This is a great way for interested users to quickly browse their content to get a sense of what to expect from the page.