10 ways to grow your column with social media

You don't have to spend a fortune on advertising to attract new clients - here are ten ways to grow your column with social media, suggested by Jack Howard. 1. Make sure you have the same name across all social media platforms to keep things uniform and help people find you more easily. 2. Engage your audience - talk to other people, even if they don't follow you and respond when brands or publications ask questions or for opinions. 3. There are two types of content that you should be publishing; general commentary about what's going on in the world and talking about your work. Try to do both to make yourself engaging and create a rounded profile. 4. Show before and afters on Instagram; they have a great impact and show people what you're capable of. 5. Post on a regular basis if you can; schedule posts if you don't have time. On Facebook you can use the dropdown menu next to the status update box. Alternatively, use a free social media management site like Hootsuite to schedule posts across Facebook, Twitter and more. 6. Follow your clients and local bloggers and engage them in conversation in regular basis. Again, Twitter is really good for this. 7. Know the power of the hashtag. Be consistent and clever with it; use your city (e.g. #leeds) as well as what you do (such as #balayage #hair #haircolour). People search by hashtag and this is how you become more visible to people who don't follow you. This is also a good way to find local bloggers to reach out to - for instance, #leedsbloggers will be used by anyone in the area who people in the area who want to engage in conversation. 8. Use Pinterest; it's the ideal search engine for hair inspiration. You can pin what you like, not just your own work. Use it to showcase your talent and taste and to create mood boards for specific shoots or clients. 9. Look for bloggers in your area who fit your brand and see if you can work with them. A free appointment for a blow-dry or styling session, or even blogger night with a bunch of local bloggers, will usually be rewarded with glowing reviews and consequential increased social media audience. 10. Have fun, retweet and repost things that interest you. It doesn't have to be all hair and business, make it interesting and fun to show off your personality. Jack Howard at Paul Edmonds is social media ambassador to The Hairdressing Council. You can follow him at @jackhoward_srh.