Have you ever gone to someone’s site, but there was no information about who they were, so you either didn’t buy at all (services or products) or didn’t sign up on their list? Many professionals and business owners ignore about the importance of this page and do a big mistake because a good percentage of potential buyers, in special first visitors, usually check this page before taking any action.
An About Page is the one page when someone lands on your site where they expect to see what you are all about (or your company’s mission). They know it’s not a sales spot – they want realism. Your About Page should be all your own style – not anyone else. But there are some guidelines we can give you on what we think would make a good About Page.
Your promise statement should be somewhere prominent on this page. It’s not “all about them” as some people say – and it’s really not “all about you,” either. If you think about it, what they want to know is: will you be good for them? Will you be fair, honest, and worth their time? The last thing we want you to do with this branding is to write some sterile unique selling proposition.
Better NOT:
- List your experience (maybe yes if not in a cold way)
- Add links to your other websites or blogs
- Add your contact information
All impersonal and not all of what your visitor is after. There are contact form plug-ins for contact information. There are sidebars and other places to include links. People related to stories. So tell yours on your About Page. Start with a picture. Yep – time to get out the old JPG! It can be a thumbnail. It can be anything, but it needs to be you or your team. After the picture, give a quick snapshot of who you or your team are. Give your backstory then – what led you to be where you are now?
Give information about how your path has altered over time. Explain the transition. Most importantly, talk about what you think makes you different than your competitors. What will they gain from you that they can’t have with anyone else? (Or at least not many others).
Work your promise statement in there and expand on it. Weed out your Non-Audience. Invite people to connect to you. And by that, we don’t mean saying, “Please feel free to contact me.” Be a little more personable. Set their mind at ease about reaching out to you – so many people feel like it’s an inconvenience.
You want your visitors to build trust in you! We make it ease doing a brief summary:
What Makes a Good About Page?
1. Use a picture and make sure it’s friendly and smiling.
2. Tell your personal story.
3. Show some empathy with your audience and what they’re seeking as a solution.
4. Talk about how they’ll feel once they have the answers they need.
5. Invite them to join you in this journey.
Speak from the heart. Don’t sell to them on your About Page. Good business.