Stories on Skin: Content Strategies That Build Trust With Tattoo Clients

Every tattoo tells a story — in fact, a survey of tattooed people reported that 69% have a tattoo “to remember or honor someone or something,” while 47% have a tattoo “to make a statement about what I believe.” These reasons are all about stories: remembering them ourselves and communicating them to others.

Storytelling is a valuable marketing tool for a tattoo studio or an independent tattoo artist. Every element of your tattoo marketing strategy should tell a story about who you are, your professionalism, and your art. 

We’ll cover how you can integrate compelling stories into each element of your tattoo shop marketing to bring a steady stream of new clients to your business. 

Content Marketing for Tattoo Businesses

Content marketing simply refers to the large collection of marketing messages that exist on your website. In traditional marketing, this would primarily include business cards, brochures, signs, and flyers. Today, though, everything on your website, social media channels, ads, and online listings — such as Google Business Profile, Yelp, or BBB — counts as content marketing.

When you start to look through it, that’s a lot of writing! Many small business owners struggle to generate consistent content because they’re busy with the day-to-day operations of their businesses. That’s understandable! At SEO Design Chicago, we create customized marketing plans designed around your unique business offerings and the content we know performs best. This helps to deliver a steady stream of new inquiries and bookings to your business. 

Blog Writing for Tattoo Artists

You might not think you have a lot to share on a blog, but as a tattoo artist, you possess a tremendous amount of expertise! Your knowledge about the tattoo process, cost, trends, aftercare, and the decision-making process can help soothe the concerns first-time clients have about getting a tattoo.

Maintaining a blog about your tattoo work is also a great way to bolster your marketing efforts. When people search for examples of tattoo artistry online or ask their questions about the process, a properly optimized blog can direct them straight to your website. When they’re ready to book an appointment, that positions your business as the logical choice. 

Email Marketing for Tattoo Parlors

Marketing a tattoo business is a little different than other industries. While you absolutely do have repeat customers, you won’t have as many as, say, a coffee shop. 

Email marketing can be an effective way to nurture connections with previous clients while building your reputation with people who aren’t yet sure if they want to get inked. Email marketing is a great way to advertise your friendly, accessible studio, upcoming events aligned with holidays (Halloween, Pride Month, etc.), or just share stories and trends from around the studio.

Remember, while people may not be getting a new tattoo every single month, the tattoo community is highly interested in others’ artwork. Maintaining these connections is a great way to nurture community and ultimately secure more word-of-mouth referrals. 

E-commerce Product Pages for Tattoo Shops

E-commerce sites like Shopify are a popular mechanism if you want to showcase your best offerings in a catalog-style presentation. This can serve as a digital portfolio, similar to your in-studio print book. 

Now, the key to increasing bookings for your tattoo shop is to design a product page that gets a client’s attention and makes them say, “This! I want something like this one!”

To accomplish this with an e-commerce site, our team recommends a conversion-focused design for each product page within a broader catalog that’s easy to search. We optimize for elements like:

• Keyword integration on all pages
• Optimized product titles
• Breadcrumb menus
• Image optimization
• Mobile-first design
• Clear calls to action on each page 
• Improved load speeds

You create the art; an experienced marketing team can bring it to life with fully optimized online portfolios.

SEO Content Writing Services for Tattoo Businesses

As you know, creating a tattoo can be a multi-day process for many pieces. Design consultations, sketches, inking, aftercare, and equipment maintenance take a lot of time. 

Outsourcing your content writing can be an easy way to communicate your art to the world and get more bookings without having to take hours away from your main job every week to write blogs or create social media posts.

Our SEO content writing specialists are 100% U.S.-based and will work directly with you to create content that feels and sounds just like you. Even better, SEO is baked in, meaning that your marketing will serve multiple purposes simultaneously. 

Content Optimization for Tattoo Shops

Sometimes, your website is doing a pretty good job already, but just needs a little boost to really start bringing in more consistent inquiries and bookings. Small business owners often forget how many questions first-time clients might have about the business, and fail to include vital information that would get them to the next step of actually booking an appointment with you.

Making just a few changes, like incorporating keywords or optimizing image size, can often have a significant impact on your rankings and visibility. 

A content optimization plan can be a good place to start when you want to get more clients. First, we conduct a thorough audit of your existing online presence to determine what is working well and what can be improved, then we develop a customized plan that focuses on the highest-impact changes. You can implement them yourself, or trust our team of skilled marketing experts to make the changes. 

Social Media Content Creation for Tattoo Artists

Finally, we all know that social media is often the preferred choice for tattoo studio marketing. Platforms like TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram can be a fantastic stream for tattoo advertising, as people browse and save aspirational content while they work through the decision to get inked. 

Tattoo conventions dictate that most of your content be highly image- and video-focused, since tattooing is, of course, a visual art. We recommend getting organized about your ideas for tattoo content on social media. Do you want to showcase a particular style? Promote an event or deal? Encourage first-time clients to take the plunge? Your goals will determine the best kind of posts to make.

To get the most out of your social media promotion ideas, it’s best to integrate them with your multichannel tattoo studio marketing strategies. Make sure that the link to your website is prominently featured in your bio, and that your social handles are prominently displayed on your Google Business Profile and main website. You want all your content to lead directly to a “book now” or “schedule a consultation” link. This is how you will maintain steady bookings. 

FAQ: Best Tattoo Digital Marketing Strategies Today

Building your career as a tattoo artist requires you to wear many hats — you may be a solo artist or might run a full studio with employees and multiple services.

To market yourself as a tattoo professional, you need to navigate the digital world. We’ve rounded up some of the top questions we receive about marketing strategies for tattoo studios, with our best tips for boosting online visibility as a tattoo artist or tattoo shop owner. 

Why is content marketing important for tattoo artists and studios?

Content marketing is a great way to get your story as an artist out there. It builds trust and relationships with your ideal customers, helping them trust you with their ink. This drives bookings, which is, of course, what successful tattoo studios need to grow. 

Effective content marketing also boosts your rankings on search engines and map-based searches, generating more leads and inquiries your way. 

What type of content should tattoo studios create?

Since tattoo art is personal, story-based, and relational, the sky is the limit when it comes to the creative content that you can make! 

Types of content that tend to perform well to market your tattoo business include:

• Aftercare how-tos, FAQs, and demonstrations
• Artist stories that showcase your favorite finished tattoos or personal journeys
• Flash announcements — these marketing tactics help promote deals or events
• Blog posts created around a style or topic
• “Planning your ink” video marketing content
• Testimonials from customers with a great tattoo experience 
• Interviews with clients with lots of ink or first-timers

And of course, don’t forget your portfolio! This is the cornerstone of effective marketing strategies for your tattoo business. No one wants to trust their permanent ink to someone without seeing many examples of their previous work. There are many creative ways to display this — consider options that showcase one style, a unique challenge (like hand tattoos), or suggestions for personalizing tattoos. 

How does content help tattoo studios show up in Google?

Content increases the number of opportunities your site has to be found for relevant keywords. This helps grow your tattoo business by making it easier for customers to find you. 

People put a lot of thought into the tattoo process. You can post content concerning technique and popular tattoo styles, like fine line, watercolor, realism, or blackwork, which will help you rank more highly with customers searching for those styles.

More generally, people often search for aftercare topics when planning their process or caring for their new ink. By offering clear answers to these FAQs, you can grow your business by getting more clicks on these topics. 

Can content marketing help an artist build a personal brand?

Consistent content creation helps artists define a signature style, which helps convince new clients to choose you as their artist.

Consider how you want to showcase your personal style, experience, qualifications, and the specific kind of art you create. When it comes to artistic businesses like tattooing, you promote your tattoo business by promoting yourself as an artist. 

How often should tattoo artists post new content?

The key to content marketing strategies for tattoo artists is consistency. You can see good results with weekly or quarterly content, but it’s important that you have a plan. 

For busy tattooists, we recommend setting a schedule for yourself with reminders to post at certain intervals. This will keep you from forgetting and make sure that you see the SEO gains from frequent posting, rather than unloading six blog posts in one month and then forgetting about it for a year. 

A general rule of thumb is that social media marketing posts should be made weekly, blog content should be posted monthly, and portfolio additions with new tattoo designs should be made quarterly. 

Request a free consultation today to learn how we can help your tattoo business grow!