Instagram Reels for Hairstylists with Kaitlyn Granger

Hello, my friend. Welcome back to the Modern Hairstylist Podcast. Today, we have an uber special guest to be spilling the tea with us today on the podcast. She's somebody you're familiar with, she's somebody who makes...

Keeps me sane, she's somebody who helps me a whole lot in my own business and in my life, and I appreciate her very much. And she's gonna come here, and she's going to be teaching you a whole lot about Instagram Reels today. Okay? Um, I know that Instagram Reels may seem a little bit daunting to some people.

I know that maybe you are doing reels right now, but maybe you're not getting where the, the results that you're looking for, or maybe you just want to bring your reels to the next level. No matter where you're at right now, I know that this episode is gonna be super helpful for you. We're going to deep dive into it, we're gonna learn a whole lot, and I'm excited. So, Caitlin, are we ready to get into it?

Let's do it. Let's go. Let me guess. You are a hustling, bustling hairstylist behind the chair, working so hard to build a beautiful career for yourself, one that gives you time, freedom, and energy to spend with yourself, your family, and your friends.

But you feel like you're always working in your business, even when you're not behind the chair. My name's Hunter Donia, and I help you automate your systems and implement really beautiful strategies so you can grow your business without the overwhelm. And this is the Modern Hairstylist Podcast. What's going on, Caitlin?

How are you? Are you excited to spill all the tea? I am excited. We're flipping the script a little bit this week, and I think it's gonna be a fun one.

We are flipping the script. I've been wanting to do this episode with Caitlin for a long, long, long, long, long time, and I'm super excited that it's finally here and that we're finally doing it and s- uh, and giving it to you guys. And so, Caitlin, would you mind just giving, like, a brief introduction of yourself and, like, what you do and how you help hairstylists? Yes.

So, um, my current situation is I pivoted from working behind the chair when I moved to England with my husband earlier this year, and I dove headfirst into coaching hairstylists on how to effectively make Instagram Reels work for their business and to grow their business and fill their chair with dream clients. Like, that is my grand goal. I love that. So, what got you to where you are now, and how you're teaching people about Reels?

So, I... When I was working behind the chair, I had just gone independent and Reels were still super new, and so I was just trying out all these different things with marketing. I was really trying to put myself out there 'cause I... When I moved, it was kind of a bit of a rebuild for me as well, so I'm like, "Let me just get myself out there, let me test out some things."

And I initially started with Reels just for funsies, like I was like, "This could be a fun thing to add just to, like, show my personality a little bit." And super quickly, they started doing very, very well for me, and they were getting all of this reach, and I was bringing in lots of new guest requests each month, like anywhere from, like, 10 to 15 new guest requests each month. And everyone was like, "Oh, my God, I love your Instagram." Like, every time they would come in, that was always what they said.

And so I had that, like, pivotal moment of like, "Oh, my God," like, the, "I'm really onto something here," like, "I, I need to keep going with this." And I... Unfortunately, like, I did end up moving to England, like, a year later, so, like, it was a quick experience for me, but I learned so much in that year's time with Reels that I just want so badly to share that with other stylists because it is such a powerful marketing tool. I love that.

And so let's talk about why it's such an impactful marketing tool. Like, why do you think the vehicle of Reels right now, and when you were growing your clientele as well too, why do you think the vehicle is so powerful for helping hairstylists grow their clientele? So, I think we all kind of know at this point that, like, video marketing is just favored on Instagram because they're trying to compete with TikTok, like, that's just i- what it is at the end of the day. They will ju- reg- reg- regardless of what kind of Reels you're putting out, they're pushing it to more people.

Like, they want people to be watching Reels as much as possible and, like, continue... That at least, that's how it started for me when I was still early on in my Reels days, is they just wanted to get as many Reels out as possible, so, like, that's what they favored. Now, they're still favoring video content just because that's what people typically like is video content, 'cause it's more interactive, it's more engaging. And so the reason that...

Especially even still, like, even though Reels have been out for a while now, it's, it's such a powerful tool for stylists because there still aren't a ton of stylists that are actually using this to market their businesses. And don't get me wrong, there are shitloads of stylists that are marketing as educators for themselves. I won't, I won't, like, deny that, but as a hairstylist marketing to a clientele behind the chair, it is still not very common. So, if you can use that tool and be that, like, different brand, so to speak, on Instagram, you're gonna stand out so much more than the random person that's just p- constantly posting Canva graphics and behind-the-head shots of hair that they've done.

I think that's such a brilliant point that I didn't even think about. I, I truly do believe that it sets you apart, and I would beli- I would, uh, uh, tell me if you agree with this as well, too, it, it is the easiest way to show your personality and get somebody to relate with you right off the bat, you know, when, like, a new potential client is looking to do business with somebody of any sort, um, especially if it's a personal brand, right? 'Cause that's what the majority of us are creating, is personal brands. You know, pictures of yourself and a good caption, right, or pictures of the back of the head, they may be able to show a little bit of your personality, a little bit of your work and your expertise, but nothing will hit the nail on the head like a video.

Would you agree with me? One thousand percent. That was actually why I really wanted to continue with Reels initially, was, it was like, this was, like, the perfect outlet for people to understand what I'm like as a person, 'cause, like, I'm a weird fricking person, like, I'm just... I'm quirky, I'm weird, I'm bizarre, I'm a nerd.

So, like, being able to relay that in a way that still was, like, entertaining for people, I was like, "This is, like, such a cool thing." So, 100%, personality, all the good things. Yeah. I think that's really, really powerful for sure, and I think that today what will be really great is, uh, for people to understand that...

You don't have to be, like, one thing or another to be, to get started with Instagram Reels. Like, if you wanna harness the power of this strategy, I don't think that people realize that they don't have to be anything besides themselves, which we'll talk about in a little bit, you know. Um, and maybe, I don't know if you're able to, if you, if we can share this as well too, for people who are listening to this who are like, "Oh, well, I don't wanna show my face. I don't wanna show my personality," whatever it may be.

Hopefully we'll be able to attack that as well too today. So we have a list of, uh, I have a list of questions for you, Caitlin, today from common things that I hear from hair stylists when it comes to Reels, and I would love if you'd be down to attack them with me. Are you cool with that? Hell yeah, let's do it.

Okay, so first off, I know the person listening to this right now is like, "Okay, I get it. Like, Reels are cool. Video marketing is in, like, this is what's gonna set me apart and help me grow my clientele quickly. But I don't have the time.

I already am doing all this shit. I'm invested in all this education. Um, I, I'm already working so ha- I've already got down a system when it comes to posting static posts and writing captions. Now I have to do this freaking video thing.

Like, I don't have the freaking time." What would you say to that person who says that they don't have the time? I wa- I mean, I'll validate your feelings. Like, it definitely does take time to make Reels, but it takes time to make any other t- kind of post as well.

So like, f- prime example, if you're making a Canva graphic for a post, I guarantee you can make a Reel in the exact same amount of time. If you're m- crafting something from scratch, same amount of time, I promise. And just understanding that like, one, you don't have to post every single day. I feel like this is something that really gets hung up with people, and that's why they feel like they don't have time for this, is they're like, "Oh my God, I have to make something every single day.

Like, I need to constantly be recording, like, la, la, la." Like, you could literally post once a week, one Reel a week, and make that your only post for the week, and that would still be enough. Like, you're still nurturing your platform. So really understanding that, like, it's not about the amount that you make.

It's all about just doing what you're able to do. I love that, and I love that you said, you know, if you're taking time to make a post of any sort and writing the caption for it too, then you probably also have the time to just be pivoting to video. And I think maybe the block between doing that is just the uncomfortability of learning something new and starting a new routine, and I think when people talk about time as their, their objection to starting something, that, that might be ... It, it, it all comes back to uncomfortability.

It's not the time spent actually doing th- the thing. It's also the time spent feeling uncomfortable and learning something new and trying. I, I don't think that it, it's all about the time for, for most people when they bring this up as, as a thing, because like we said, like, you're already on social media. You're already creating these, like, these posts every now and then.

The same amount of time could be taken to do a Reel, and I actually can even say from my own personal experience that whenever ... I, I find filming Reels, like when you get into a routine and like, when you've done it a couple times, like, I find picking up my phone and, like, voicing over a trend or just like, talking to the camera once you, once you've done it a little bit is a whole lot easier and a lot faster than editing a hair picture, choosing the one out of 100 that is gonna work for you, writing os- pa- like, paragraphs longs of captions, right? It really does take al- the same amount of time, if not less, and you can batch videos out so much faster, so much faster than you can with s- with social posts. In my personal experience, and I know that right now I have a team who helps me, but I'm saying even before that, like even before I had anybody who helped me, you helping me, I, I was able to just pick up my phone and record a Reel, a- add the captions and the edits really quickly, and then just post it.

And it really did not take me too long, and I think the majority of people listening to this who are saying that, "I don't have the time," think about is it you don't have the time to actually do it, or i- is it just you don't have the time to actually try and learn and be uncomfortable for a little bit? Would you agree Yeah, definitely, and I mean, just to even, like, uh, confirm, like, what you're saying, like, I, I work on most of Hunter's social media. So like, I can tell you hands down that editing his Reels versus making his carousels, I f- can, I can do Reels so much faster than I can make all of these different posts for him. So like, yeah.

It's, it's all about just, like, finding the time to, like, test it out a little bit, and I know too, like, like you said, the uncomfortability is there, so like, I, I know the first thing that you'll probably think to yourself is like, "Okay, I, I don't have the time," or it's like, "I ... But I still don't wanna put my face on camera." Like, it's either, "I have to be constantly videoing the hair that I'm doing, which I don't always have time to do that behind the chair," which I completely get, totally get that, which is why putting your face on camera is so useful, which is a big reason why I started doing that was because it was like, "I don't have 30 minutes in between my clients to do this whole freaking photo shoot." So I'm like, "What kind of content can I make that I can just make by myself?"

And that was what it turned into. So it's, it's not comfortable initially. Like, I will absolutely validate that as well. Like, you're gonna have to step out of your comfort zone a little bit, but with all things, like repetition, it gets a little bit easier every single time.

I think that's so brilliant, and so can we go a little bit deeper into the not comfortable showing face, not comfortable showing personality? Is this like something where people have to dance or people have to be funny or people have to be entertaining? Is this something where does, does somebody actually have to show their face or can they get away with using video and not showing their face but be able to maybe exemplify personality or expertise at the same time? Like, what's your opinion about that?

So it's actually something that I, that's something I really love about Reels, is that you can be so creative with how you make them. Like, you don't have to put your face on camera. It's just, it's an easy way to go about it. So like, you could do a voiceover.

I know no one loves the sound of their voice. I hate the sound of my voice, but I mean, we gotta get over that. But you could do a voiceover of you, like, painting, like, a mannequin if you wanted to, like if you're doing like some random shit on a mannequin. Like, get creative with what you're doing, or like, maybe you're shampooing a guest or something like that.

It doesn't have to have your face in it. It's just the putting your personality in it in some way or another. I've seen some killer voiceovers that, like, really exemplify somebody's personality just in the way that they talk, and it, so I mean, and to answer your question, I...It's something I get a lot, is like, do I have to dance, do I have to be funny, like all of that shit.

Like, no, absolutely not, unless you want to. Like, I am somebody that like, I really l- I lean into humor because I am just kind of a weird person. So I, I love being funny because I love making people laugh. But if that's not your thing, then don't do it.

Like, you wanna be authentically you 100% of the time, so even if like, not being like super cheerful, like if you're like, a very like, straight-faced kinda person, like be straight-faced in your reels. Like, you don't have to be like, "La-la-la-la-la" the entire s- entire time. Do you, off the top of your head, and you can take a second if you need to, do you have any, do you have anybody who comes to mind, and specifically a hairstylist hopefully, that you think does reels really well, and possibly also like doesn't do it with their face in it? One does come to mind, but I can't remember.

Let me actually look it up really quick. One person who I think does reels really freaking well, and it's a mix, like she does, she shows her face, but she also has posts where she doesn't, is Michelle Sanders. And the great thing about Michelle, I love Michelle so freaking much, Michelle is such a, like, go-getter person, and like will want to work through the uncomfortability and the fear and do it anyway. And although it may take her a little bit, like she does the damn thing.

And I think that she does reels really freaking well in all the ways, like not just showing her face, but also sometimes doing voiceovers and sometimes doing hair as well too. And I know that it's taken her definitely a little bit of uncomfortability and time to get there, but I think that she does such an excellent job and I think that people should check her out. It's @MichelleSandersHair. Um, how about you?

Did you, did you remember the person's name? I, I can't remember the account offhand, so if this sounds like you and it's you, I have s- I'm so sorry that I can't remember what your handle is. But basically what they do is, I think most reels that I see from them actually, it's this, this stylist, it's just her hands and she's like balayaging a mannequin. And she's talk, but she's talking about something completely different.

And that's what I love about it, is it's really, it's, it's ca- eye-catching because, I mean, balayage is just so satisfying to watch, obviously. But she's also talking stuff within the industry, like different, like the recession, and like different like product pricing and stuff like that. And like, I think that that is such a genius way to market yourself, and it doesn't have to even be like related. Like, the two things aren't related at all to a certain degree, so I really like that person's marketing specifically.

I love that so much. And you know what? I'm gonna say that that's really great for stylists specifically, who are speaking to clients, because how many times have... I know that I've heard my clients so many times telling me, like, "Oh my God, this is so satisfying to watch."

Right? I know that especially like pandemic, like when everybody was scrolling TikTok, TikTok endlessly, like people got into like processing like pictures and like videos and like technique and stuff like that. And so, I would love to hear your thoughts like, I think that getting technical every now and then I don't think can hurt you, right? I don't think it can, it can hurt you when it comes to speaking to a clientele versus speaking to a hairstylist and using hairstylist language.

I don't think it can hurt you. I think you can throw it in there every now and then, and I think that it can actually elevate your, your perceived value because you look like an expert because you're speaking this crazy language. However, I don't think that you should be doing it all the time. I, I think the majority of your posts should be, if your, if your goal is to get clients in your chair, the majority of your posts should be speaking to a client.

But you could still have like that balayage video, and then voiceover, and just talk about like what, why balayage is great, like w- what, what it actually is and, and whatever. You know what I mean? You can still make it relevant to a client. Would you agree with me?

Yeah, completely. I, and honestly like, I'll even say I genuinely think that all of your posts should be geared towards your ideal client. Like, I wouldn't, I wouldn't put anything marketing to hairstylists unless you are like an educator, because your marketing's gonna be confusing then to the people that you are trying to attract to your behind-the-chair business. So, what you could do, like you were saying, Hunter, is like, if you were doing like, uh, like let's say you're applying a toner or like you're like curling somebody's hair, like the video itself, fine if it's like the actual like process, that's great 'cause people still love watching that.

But like voiceover, talk about like, um, "This is how you can maintain this," or like, "This is like the products that I've used for this," or like, "I do this because this to help you with this." Like, always bring it back to the client. That's a genius way to go about it, I think. Yeah, and it brings up also, I feel like this is just a good rule of thumb for anything across social.

I think people get really caught up with like, the picture has to match the caption, the video has to match the subject and the theme. And it's like, it really doesn't, you know? You just, uh, the point is get people's attention, right? Get people's attention, and then, and then use that attention, like take that attention and use it to your advantage, and make yourself the authority, make yourself somebody who is a go-to for whatever you're trying to be, to be the go-to for.

I love that. Thank you so much for sharing that. Um, what about people who are like, "Okay, this is cool. This is great.

I'm like, down with like, a different way of doing it without having to show my face," or maybe people are down to show their face, get on camera, they're like, "Okay, maybe I will have the time, I just have to get a little bit uncomfortable," but they don't know what to post. They have a hard time coming with ideas, or maybe they're nervous about taking inspiration from other people and nervous that they're gonna look like they're copying other people. What would you say to those people? Oh, that's, it's something that I hear like literally daily, is people are so concerned about creating original content and not copy, copying other stylists.

And I, I definitely understand wanting to have your own uniqueness to something, but a couple of things. One, you need to realize that the people that you are marketing to aren't following 5,000 hairstylists like you are, so they aren't seeing the same content over and over and over again.Unless it is the same stylist in your local area. Like, if you're, if you're doing the same shit that people in your same town is doing, then yeah, I mean, there's a good chance that your clientele might see multiples.

But if you're just creating stuff that you've seen other stylists from God knows where creating, and you put your own spin on it, that's not copying. It's, it's having your own unique take on something. So, I, I would challenge you to look at copying in a different sense. Like, I mean, unless if you are literally, like, motion-for-motion doing the exact same thing, wearing the same thing, the same, like, facial, uh, emotions as somebody else, then yeah.

I mean, that's definitely copying. But putting your own spin on something is not, so. And then, so with coming up with original content, uh, something that I really try to coach stylists too is just really leaning into who your ideal client is 'cause you might have a similar cl- uh, ideal client to somebody else, but you, if you speak so directly to them, you don't have to worry about finding inspiration from other stylists because you already have such a laser-focused idea of what this person's limiting beliefs are, what their pain points are, what their shoe size is, what their Starbucks order is. Like, you know everything about them, so like, any type of content that you create, educational, hair, hair-related, specialty related, et cetera, like, you can make it so catered to them.

It doesn't matter what kind of content it is. So, that's, that's my little spiel on that. Yeah, no, I, I love that so much. Like, lean into who your person is.

Like, what do they want to hear? Like, what do they need to hear? How can you make that person give a shit about what you're saying? And that is why it's so important to really fully understand who this person is.

All too often, people do not actually understand who this is. People go through programs, people Google it, and people create their own ideal client profile, and it's all too often not comprehensive enough. Because if it was comprehensive enough, you would have a deep understanding of what you needed to say and how you needed to say it, and you would not have such a hard time coming up with ideas. It's the same things that you would be telling this person if they were in your chair, right?

Throughout appointments, right? So, so, I love that you said that. Like, like, the original ideas and those concepts, they come when you actually have an understanding of who that person is and what their struggles are, 'cause you can consistently speak to those struggles, and you can consistently do it in different ways too. I think that people are nervous about, like, thinking, like, "Oh, well, I posted a similar video, like, like, 30 days ago," or, uh, "I talked about this topic 30 days ago, so I can't do it again."

What do you think about that? Um, so this is, like, my favorite quote when it comes to that. So, I hear that a lot, and I definitely understand how you might feel like you're, like, beating a dead horse with your content when you do stuff like that. Like, "Oh, my god.

I can't do the same thing over, like, more than once." Like, you absolutely can and you absolutely should. You should be c- You should be posting about the same things over and over and over again so that way you really look like an expert in your specific niche. So, the quote that I wanna share with you that I love and I always refer back to is, "You need to get comfortable talking about the same thing over and over."

I am obsessed with that quote. It's so freaking good, and it just, like, it embodies everything that I believe when it comes to your content. Like, you don't have to reinvent the wheel every single time you post. Like, you can literally pick, like, three to four topics and only talk about those in, like, slightly different ways every single week, and it will never get repetitive.

Like, also, I mean, take into consideration that, like, your followers, even a non-follower isn't gonna see every single thing that you post, because not everybody lives on Instagram, and even if they do, the, your content isn't constantly being pushed out to them. So, there's a solid chance that they haven't even seen that post that you've, are wanting to remake. 100%. I love that so much.

Thank you for sharing that. Dude, this has been so good. Um, I want to give you a space to share if somebody, like, wants to get started with Reels right now, or, I don't know. Like, is there anything else that you'd wanna share with some, with the hairstylists who wants to get into Reels or who wants to bring their Reels game to the next level?

Is there any mistakes that they should avoid, or is there any advice that you could give them? Um, so my biggest advice is to just go for it. Like, if you're on the fence about making Reels, I wanna empower you to just rip off the Band-Aid and do it. It's gonna be uncomfortable the first couple of times, but I promise you, the more you do it, the easier it will get.

You can head to my Instagram profile. I'm there almost every single day, but I do have a free resource if you wanna download it. You, it's the Ultimate Reels Starter Pack. I've got a bunch of content ideas for you.

I've got some guides on finding trending audios and all sorts of goodies in there for you. And if you are interested in leveling up your Reels and marketing game in general, I am, at the time of recording this, I'm actively in my first round of Real Stylist Academy. I believe when this comes out, I won't quite be relaunching a second time yet, but if you want to get on the wait list, uh, we'll leave it in the show notes if that's cool with you, Hunter. It is realhairstylist.

com/waitlist. Stunning, dude. Yeah, definitely check Caitlin out on the Instagram. It's what, caitlinmgranger?

Yes? Okay, gorgeous. And we'll leave all Caitlin's information in the show notes. Caitlin, thank you so much for being here and spilling all this tea about Reels.

I know that you have helped me so much in my own business with Reels, and, um, we would not be able to survive without you as a business, and I wouldn't be able as, as well. And we love having you on the podcast, and I'm so glad that we're able to, um, tap into your brain today. It's been beautiful, and I know that the person listening to this appreciates it. So, my friend, thank you so much for tuning in.

We appreciate you so much. We cannot wait to see you in the next episode of the Modern Hair Stylist Podcast. Peace out, girl scout. Bye-bye.

End of transcript. © 2023 Hunter Donia LLC.