Instagram for Hairdressers: 8 Ways To Grow Your Business

Real Ways To Build Your Confidence Posting on Social Media 

To post or not to post? That’s actually not the question. Instagram is your one-way ticket to growing your business long-term and reaching your goals. Whether it’s gaining new clients, building your portfolio, becoming an educator or turning your specialities behind the chair into steady revenue—we all need to start somewhere. 

At Moroccanoil® ️The Collective, the brand’s first-ever international community event in Vegas, BTC’s very own VP of Influencer Marketing & Strategy Haley Gable (@haleygable) hosted a social media panel with top celebrity hairdressers, influencers and educators. Since we had a front row seat, we’re sharing real advice and tools you can start using today. 

Keep reading for 10 things that will change your career today from these experts:

• Rachel Williams (@rachelwstylist)
• Jessica Scott Santo (@jessicascotthair) 
• Matt Rez (@colorbymattrez)
• Greg Gilmore (@greg_gilmore)
• Maguy Rosen (@themaneartistry)
• Gareth Williams (@garethwilliamshair) 

Instagram is your portfolio—use it as a tool to gain new clients. 

Post the clients you want to attract. Sometimes “free work” on the right canvas can help build your books from the ground up. 

Maguy: “I started doing hair for free and I would find models and bloggers locally. I remember my first viral post on BTC was a photo of a girl I did for free and the photo I took was off of my camera and not my iPhone. I knew instantly that I needed to change my IG, aesthetic and start shooting photography. That helped me grow and find my niche. I stayed really consistent. Staying consistent on social media is the key to success.” 

How to make yourself visible in your community. 

Matt: “I moved salons and left a full clientele. I reached out to a client [a well-known fashion influencer] who just moved to LA and offered free blowouts/gloss and she responded in 15 minutes. There’s a value in that. She’s the poster walking around and I’m in a new place, so I started using [local/hair] hashtags. It’s really good to have a local person that’s visible in your community and you can work with them and exchange services for publicity to help reach more potential clients.”

From finding new clients in LA to becoming a world-renowned celebrity colorist, see Matt’s A-List clientele and portfolio: 

Ask yourself: What is your niche? Then, focus on consistency. 

Identify your specialities and the services you love. 

Gareth: “Trying to find my niche was really tricky. Some advice I was given was don’t try to talk to everybody. Imagine one person and talk directly to them. I imagine my assistant in the salon who is just about to become a stylist and I think about the things that she asks me and turn that into my content.”

Be consistent with the type of content you post. 

Jessica: “Be comfortable with what you’re known for and where your passion is. Just because you can do it all, doesn’t mean you should. Where is the page going? Be comfortable knowing your craft and that all comes from passion and what your end goal is. I put myself out there.” 

Why staying consistent works: Jessica has won multiple #ONESHOT Hair Awards in categories like Balayage and Educational Post—which is exactly what you see on her Instagram feed below. 

We all start somewhere. How to build your confidence from the start. 

Rachel: “We all have different personalities: From shining from the shadows where your work is the star to more outgoing personalities showing your face. I am comfortable with hair. For me, putting myself doing hair in a video was way more comfortable than me just putting myself. [If] you love hair, post videos of you doing that. You slowly get more comfortable with being in public.”

Here’s an example from @rachelwstylist of how to create a hair video that educates both clients and other stylists with an engaging video and clear caption, calling out tips and products she uses to achieve the look. 

Don’t miss upcoming classes at the Moroccanoil® Academy in NYC—click here!

Get seen by other stylists & brands: 3 strategies to find your voice 

#1: If you want to educate online or in-person, start small. 

Maguy: “I would practice in the bathroom, record myself and re-play it back for myself to hear what I want to change. Listen to other artists/educators and listen to their verbiage and how they speak. On Instagram and TikTok, voice-overs help. You’re not doing it in real time, so it’s not as scary. Start educating that way and baby-steps to move forward into live public speaking.” 

Rachel: “Start with small classes—three people, your assistants, your salon. At my salon, we all educate each other. We have classes on Sundays and [one stylist] teaches brunettes since she’s really great at it. Then, we’re teaching. If that is your goal and you want to speak in front of people, start small.” 

Jessica: “When I first started teaching, I did a balayage class with three people. I was really nervous. After the class, I got positive feedback and was encouraged to charge more.” 

#2: Keep taking small strides to master your skill-set. 

Greg: “I [learned] how to understand my pace and tone. How to use my body language to display what I am trying to say. All of that takes practice and over time, choosing to walk through the veil of fear in those small instances to say what I am [applying] on this [client’s] head for color. This is just the accumulation of that. Small dust leads to big dust, so you gotta keep going and put yourself out there.”

#3: Speak to your audience: Sometimes the most simple content goes viral. 

Gareth: “One of the most viral videos I have ever seen is someone showing how to do a towel wrap. How simple is that? It doesn’t need to be overcomplicated, it’s showing that simplicity in how you work can really connect with someone.”

Be conversational—remember: How would you describe what you’re doing (and why you’re doing it) to an assistant? Use that to drive your content. Watch this example from @garethwilliamshair. 

Nervous about posting or negativity online? Read this advice. 

Rachel: “You have to learn how to brush [negative comments or DMs] off of your shoulders and keep going. You have to put yourself out there and realize not everyone’s going to like it and that’s okay. When you receive negativity, don’t let it knock you down.” 

Greg: “I am [always] trying to always tell a story, whether that’s a simple before and after—she started this way, we went through this process and in the end she felt great because she’s so different now. You can say that in 15 to 20 seconds.” 

For example, watch @greg_gilmore showcase three summer transformations and go-to color formulas in ONE video. 

Gareth: “One of my first viral posts, my goal was to get 10k views. This video that was just showing a teased section toward the parting got 10MM views and I got 5k new followers from that. When you’re approaching social media, think about it like a game. Don’t take it so seriously that it will give you a breakdown, because you’re not going to enjoy it.” 

Get MORE education from these artists: See all Moroccanoil® classes!

Watch Next: 

• Get an exclusive inside look at the three-day event: Look & Learn classes, artistic stage presentations, the first-ever Moroccanoil® ️Global Hair Competition and more >> Click here to watch the IG Reel.

• Are you formulating with Ash Gold toners to keep up with this year’s bright blonde trends? You should be—here’s what Moroccanoil® colorists have to say.

This content is sponsored.