This post is all about how to create a profile picture for your skin care business…if you decide that you want one!
We’ll cover what a profile picture IS, if you actually NEED one, tips for creating an AWESOME one, and how to easily CREATE one…for free!
This can be a super fun business detail that can provide a personal connection with your customers and audience – be sure to save this article for easy access when you have that camera ready to capture all of your glory!
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What is a Profile Picture?
A profile picture is simply a headshot of you that you can use across all of your accounts, social media platforms, and online marketing efforts.
In case you need a visual reference, the picture of me below in this screenshot of my Instagram account (@diyskincarebusiness) is a profile picture:
Do I HAVE to Use a Profile Picture for My Skin Care Business?
There are a handful of small business coaches who say you should absolutely use your profile picture anywhere you can (as in, an actual picture of your head).
I’ll go against the grain here and say it is 100% up to you.
If you have already created your logo and it includes a simple, recognizable, memorable icon graphic, you may decide to use that instead.
What you decide to use depends on your target market.
If your target market is shopping with you because they love supporting small-batch, handmade, indie businesses and they want to see the face behind their products, then it would make sense to use a profile picture for your skin care business, as @mahalo.care does:
If you would rather portray your business with a graphic for recognition and consistency from marketing to label (and soap stamp!) and you know that your target market would appreciate that as well, then by all means use that logo graphic anywhere that calls for a profile picture.
The inspiring @ashhopperbotanical has done just this – and when you look at their Instagram account, you’ll see that this brand is not shy at all about putting their faces in front of the camera for their posts…this is simply a brand identity decision!:
Only you know your skin care target market – let your understanding of your customer avatar choose for you!
5 Tips for Creating a Professional Profile Picture for Your Skin Care Business
Profile Picture Tip #1: Take an Intentional Photo
Make sure you’re taking a photo specifically for this purpose.
No shadowy bathroom selfies, PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE!
Make sure you’ve chosen a space and/or time of day that has lighting that matches your brand.
Do you want it brightly lit for a warm, inviting, upbeat vibe?
Or do you want it to be a little darker for a more serious, moody, emotional vibe (while still allowing us to see your face)?
Think about these details – this is not the time to go through your phone looking for your favorite picture of yourself. Take the time and energy to take a new photo for this exact purpose.
Phone cameras are AMAZING these days, so this shouldn’t cost you a dime.
If you can’t take a decent photo yourself, find a friend or family member who can!
As you can see in the pictures below, my husband took on the assignment of taking the profile picture for DIY Skin Care Business.
This was done in my basement workspace, without a whole lot of fancy going on.
In the first picture below (showcasing my youngest daughter itching for a chance in the spotlight!), notice a large photo lightbox* in the upper left-hand corner (just the edge of it shown) and a super fun glowing video light stick* in the bottom right-hand corner.
The second photo below is me standing in the same spot my daughter was in the first photo, but with the main overhead lights turned off.
Talk about a difference just with lighting, blurring out the background, and shooting from slightly above!
*We had these lights on hand thanks to my husband’s business, and you certainly don’t need to buy things like that, unless you’re trying to grow your product photography tools. Simply consider the resources you have on hand to take an intentional photo!
Profile Picture Tip #2: Smile…or Don’t…Purposefully!
Next up – think about your target market and overall branding before you say ‘CHEESE!!!!’ to the camera!
If you have a more uplifting, carefree skin care brand, make sure that feeling of lightness radiates from your face and your eyes (how can you not smile when you see the example below of Elle from @homebodycandle.company?).
If your brand has a deeper, more intense/powerful vibe, don’t feel like you have to smile at all!
The example below of Arlana from @thee_glamoligist is a perfect example of how you can take a very purposeful, effective profile picture without having a big toothy grin:
While Arlana absolutely nails this profile picture style, it can be tricky, tricky, tricky to not look ‘blah’ or dull when not smiling.
Who better than the inventor of THE SMIZE (smiling with your eyes) to teach us how to pull this off, the one and only…Tyra Banks!
(Full-stop confession: There are SO many videos on YouTube with Tyra Banks explaining how to ‘Smize’…I got lost for HOURS trying to pick the best/most direct one…if this is intriguing to you, just keep clicking through after watching the video linked here!):
Profile Picture Tip #3: Add in Brand Colors
You can easily ‘up’ the cohesion factor of your skin care business branding by including your color palette in your profile picture.
You can do this by wearing your brand colors, using simple color props, or changing out the background color (I’ll show you how to do that in the Canva tutorial that is a bit further down).
Dulce from @sweethopenaturals does a great job of this with her butter orange cardigan that matches her labels, business cards, packaging details, and social media posts:
Profile Picture Tip #4: Have a Simple Background
If you’re going to leave the real background in your photo, keep it simple. The attention should be on YOU (which is very well done in every example we’ve already seen above).
And the great news is that you can still make a simple background match your branding!
For example, if you have more of a straight-from-the-earth vibe, consider having trees or nature in the background.
If you have more of an urban feel to your product line, consider having a concrete or brick wall behind you. Still simple, but two very different vibes and nonverbal communication about your brand.
If you are going to remove your background with a graphic design program, your job will be MUCH easier if the background itself is simple to begin with.
In this profile picture by @fernvaleybotanics, Elan is outside and captures an earthy vibe by taking her photo in natural light with a wooden door/building behind her. Simple, yet effective:
Profile Picture Tip #5: Use Your Picture Consistently
USE THE SAME PROFILE PICTURE ACROSS ALL ACCOUNTS. Remember, the goal of branding is recognizability (and that means consistency from platform to platform).
- Social media accounts
- Marketplace profiles
- Bottom of your newsletter
- The ‘About Section’ of your website
- Your Gravatar
If you’re not familiar with Gravatar (which stands for Globally Recognized Avatar), this is a free online service that allows you to pop in your profile picture, a quick bio, and connect your business accounts.
After you’re all set up and verified, these details will follow you around the internet, helping you spread your image far and wide.
This is how individuals’ photos pop up when they comment on a blog post, send an email, or on WordPress.
If you’re interested in this, set up your free Gravatar account here.
How to Create a Profile Picture in Canva
Canva is a free graphic design program that you can use to edit your photos for an infinite amount of uses.
If you’re not signed up yet, get your free Canva account here.
Once you’re all signed up, click on ‘Create a Design’ (purple button in the upper right-hand corner) and go to the bottom of that menu to click on ‘Custom Size’.
A good go-to size is 400×400 px. Type that in the ‘Width’ and ‘Height’ boxes and click on ‘Create a Design’.
Upload your preferred picture to Canva and add it to your blank white canvas simply by clicking on it once it loads into the sidebar.
Next, I resized it by dragging the small white dots on the corners of the picture.
I could either download it just like this (since the background is pretty simple) or remove the background entirely (with a Canva Pro account) and sub in my dominant branding color.
If you have a Canva Pro account, click on ‘Edit photo’ in the top white menu, and then on the ‘BG Remover’ in the left menu and it quickly removes any color if there is enough distance and/or definition between you and your background.
If you don’t have Canva Pro and would like to remove the background of your profile picture, phones are faaaancy these days and can do the trick for you!
Simply follow the quick tutorial below, text (or AirDrop) the picture, and upload this version to your canvas just as you did above.
To replace the white background with a hex number from your color palette, go left sidebar and click on ‘Background’.
Next, click on the icon of the painting palette in the upper left-hand corner, and then again on the ‘+’ sign to add your desired hex number.
Click on the desired color and it will change the background immediately!
If you scroll down on that white ‘Document colors’ menu, you’ll also see options for a gradient background, which is super fun and unique.
Alternately, click on the ‘Background’ option again in the black left sidebar and play around with adding patterns, textures, photos, etc.
Just make sure the end result keeps the focus on YOU and is true to your skin care brand!
Once you’re a happy camper, be sure to name your design in the upper right-hand corner (purple bar at the top) and click on ‘Share’ to download your photo as you’d like.
Now go and share that lovely, branded profile picture everywhere you can to create consistency for your entire skin care business:
- Etsy profile picture
- Shopify/Squarespace/GoDaddy profile picture
- WordPress profile picture
- Instagram profile picture
- Facebook profile picture
- Tiktok profile picture
- Pinterest profile picture
- Gravatar profile picture
- ALL THE PROFILE PICTURES!!!!
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