Why should you take the time to craft an amazing about us page?
Because if done right… it’s one of the most important pages for your business!
We all know that first impressions are pretty important (right?)
Apparently, it only takes 0.05 seconds for a customer to judge whether they like your site or not.
And we better make that first impression pretty nice. Something that can build trust and even form a connection with them.
What Exactly Is An About Page?
An about page is a page describing your business or yourself.
It’s like a sneak peek into behind the person who created the website. What’s his personality like? Who is this person? Etc.
For example, Darren from ProBlogger uses “Start Here”
And then he dives into how you can make money with more blogs and his personal story.
It’s a chance for you to show yourselves to your customers and tell them who you are.
While Seth Godin uses “About” instead of “Start Here” below…
And Seth Godin takes a more formal approach here talking about his accomplishments throughout his marketing journey (which I have to say is really impressive)
It’s really up to you how you want to structure it. You can say…
- Our Story
- Our Personal Mission
- About Us
- About
- Start Here
- Click Here To Learn More About Me On This About Page…
Having a clear CTA directing your viewers is more important than the actual way it is said.
Anyways… why should you bother to focus on creating a stellar “about us”?
Because it’s another opportunity for your customers to get to know you and sell your product!
Customers don’t like buying from people they don’t know. They rather have some sort of connection or relationship with the person before they buy things.
They even say that it takes a customer 7 times before they buy something from you.
Is that true? Maybe… But the more times your customer sees you the more likely he is going to trust buying from you.
And what’s really important is it gives you another chance for you to sell to your readers.
Whether it is to sign up for your email list or just to get them aware of you, it’s always important to have a strategy for your about page.
But before we delve into the specifics on how to make a better about us page, we need to learn how to frame your about us page to get the highest conversions.
How To Frame Your About Page
Your About Page Really isn’t about YOU… but rather about THEM.
I know it sounds kinda weird at first…
But just give it a couple of seconds…and it will probably make much more sense.
All those zero to hero stories (where they went from nothing to being successful) are strategically made to create a personal connection.
Every single story…every single sentence that talks about them…is framed in a way for you to connect to!
In other words, I would talk about my dog Jack to build a human connection with readers who would now view me from a regular “email copywriter” to an “email copywriter who likes dogs.” (Hopefully making me more likable since I like dogs)
You want to make sure that everything that you write in your about page is designed for your readers to have a certain effect.
That might mean if my audience is mainly business owners (which it is…) then I probably won’t talk about that rager I went to last Saturday.
You also don’t need to write your entire autobiography on this page.
So before you start writing, make sure who your audience is and create content from your business or personal life to empathize with the reader.
So who is your intended audience?
- Are they grandma and grandpap from the 1940s or are they 14 years old “Beliebers”?
- Are they business owners who suck at technology or stay at home moms who want to become bloggers?
- Are they recent college graduates or are they still partying at college? (Just like my good ‘ol days)
You want to be clear who this is targeted for.
Like… I wouldn’t talk about how I went from jobless to the best manager in the Bay Area if my blog is talking about people who want to start freelancing and get away from the 9-5 grind.
Unless…you somehow use that experience to talk about how you didn’t have a fulfilled life and went on to become a freelancer…
Think from the reader’s perspective. What are some of their fears, hopes, dreams, and aspirations? What would they want to read about from your experiences?
And write that down.
Once you figure out what to write and get into your customer’s mind…they will feel like you know exactly their problems (cause you do) and will start to trust you.
So let’s learn the elements of how to create an about page.
The Key Elements For Crafting An Amazing About Page
It’s All About That Headline (‘bout that bass)
Your headline is the most important thing for any page. It’s even more important nowadays since our attention span is only 8.25 seconds. (That’s freaking less than a goldfish!)
So if our attention spans is less than a goldfish… you better make sure that out of the bajillion about us pages out there that it stands out.
So how do you start crafting a great headline?
A good place to start is you should focus on the main things you want to show in your headline like…
- Showing Benefits. Benefits. Benefits.
- And Being Clear.
Let me show you some examples of how I would change my personal about us page headline depending on the outcome I wanted:
- “Learn More About Anthony Nebel” (This is pretty formal for me. I personally don’t like it but it would work for a company though.)
- “Who the hell is Anthony Nebel?” (You want to add some Pizazz to your headline? It’s a really strong grab-them-by-the-neck headline that shows off your ballsy attitude.)
- “Why In The Barnacles Should You Hire Anthony Nebel As Your Email Copywriter” (Adding a bit of humor yet being clear on what they are going to expect from this page which is… why they should hire me!)
- “How XYZ Dog Food Made James The Happiest, Healthiest, Dog On Earth” (Let’s really hope James is a dog…)
You get the point…
You want your headline to showcase whatever you are trying to do.
Sure… you can get away with an “About Us” but that’s pretty boring… (and people do not like boring.)
Hint: You can also optimize your headline for SEO. For example, if I am trying to get people to search up “email copywriter hire” I can write in my headline “Why You Should Hire Anthony As Your Email Copywriter To Boost Email Sales…” and adding the keywords I am going for.
Here’s what Apptopia did for their about us page…
They were really clear on what they are doing (which is giving better app store data.)
Or here’s one from Nike…
You can clearly tell the audience is for people who want to be fit “like an athlete.”
Being creative is nice, but being clear so that it doesn’t cause confusion is even better.
So take some time crafting your headline.
Tell Me The Benefits! (What’s In It For Me?)
People are always looking for solutions for themselves.
And the main reason why people would stumble onto your about page is that you may have a potential solution for their own problems. People are looking at how to benefit themselves… Which makes it a lot easier to structure our about page.
For example…
- I write emails → I write emails that help make businesses make money online
- I won the Best Marketing Award → To help you learn how to apply marketing principles in your life
- I like dogs → …because they are fluffy…(that gave me a ‘lil chuckle)…
Whether it is entertaining or a tangible benefit you want to provide value to the reader.
It’s even better when you are talking about yourself that you want to showcase how you helped other businesses.
Then this would allow you to place yourself in the reader’s mind of “this is how he can possibly help me…”
Or a product that could benefit them.
Just demonstrate to people how you can help them with their problems after talking about yourself. And make them really understand the benefits.
Make your benefits strong (like Hercules!)
Like…
- Are you tired of the 9-5 grind… → Are you tired of the constant, sleepless 9-5 grind where you are just a replaceable cog in the machine?
Stir up their desires when you are explaining the benefits in your about us page.
And even though a lot of this advice sounds made for a landing page…
Your about us page should be a landing page for your readers to take action!
Having A Clear Crisp Image
People enjoy images.
You know the ‘ol saying of a picture is worth a thousand words…
Well, people like looking at pictures…
So you should probably add a picture.
Here’s what Neville did with KopywritingKourse…
It’s three solid, clear images of Neville (with a happy, smiling face in each of them) to show people who is behind KopywritingKourse.
Although they may never meet him, it gives a more human touch to his website now that they personally know what they look like.
Tell Me A Story. I Like Stories.
Storytelling is where it’s at!
I’m telling you, people loooove stories. I mean… it’s literally ingrained into our society.
Books, movies, TV shows, gossip, the news…
All of these have a story element that draws us in.
That’s why learning how to craft your about us page into a story not only can the audience empathize with, but also find it captivating.
Using storytelling correctly can potentially boost your ROI by 4x.
Remember that time when I mentioned your status from going zero to hero… well, that’s a popular cliche story pattern that works.
It could be a story from your experiences or anything that would provide value to the readers.
Because when we turn our about page into a storytelling machine…
People start to read more because it’s entertaining!
And when they read more… they can read more of your message and by the time they are done, it feels like you are best friends forever.
Storytelling also works really well when you want to teach someone a lesson or a new tip.
This is what Yellow Leaf Hammocks did to turn their about us page into a story…
Their story is based on how their products help people in extreme poverty and build a brighter future.
Their story compels you that buying their product helps other people!
Now you don’t know how to create a story? I shall go through the basics together with you.
How to create a story for your about page…
- Set the scene
- Introduce the problem
- Rise to the challenge
- Act out a solution
- Envision what’s next
Here’s an example of what you can use.
Set the scene: I was walking my dog Akamaru on a regular sunny afternoon feeling pretty dejected.
Introduce the problem: I knew that starting a business was hard…but I didn’t realize how hard it was until I failed 3 businesses already. And to make matters worse, even though I had a college degree no one was accepting me. I even got rejected from a door 2 door sales job (true story by the way).
Rise To The Challenge: That’s when I realized I needed to change something. I decided to become an email copywriter because I had absolutely nothing to lose and started working my butt off to find clients.
Act out a solution: I was able to find a client and then I was able to leverage that for another job. And another… And another… Until I was making a stable living. Fast forward today and I’m living a pretty decent life.
Envision what’s next: I know what it’s like to feel at rock bottom. You don’t have to be the perfect email copywriter to find clients. Let me show you how… {Click Here Pitch}
Now that isn’t the best story in the world, but in the beginning… it gets the job done.
Plus…writing more stories will help you to write better stories!
Have A Clear Call To Action
At the end of your about page, you want to have a call to action. Something that leads them to somewhere.
Did you know that 70% of businesses do not have a clear call to action?
Which is a big no-no in my opinion.
You want to lead them somewhere after talking about yourself and how you can help them!
Some possible call to actions are…
- Lead them into your blog
- Buy your product or service
- Follow us on Social Media
- Have them sign up for your email
- How to contact you
And anything your little heart desires.
But make sure that there is some sort of CTA for your audience to follow through.
I really like how he says “High Five” just to make it a little bit more fun.
Having a way to contact him is a great CTA where you can make people who read your bio have a seamless way to contact you.
Here’s what Marc used instead…
His CTA was to follow him on social media. By building his social media he can build upon his brand and authority.
There are a million ways to use as a CTA and just pick one that aligns with your business.
Tip: You can also add the state of where you live so that people who live local can create another connection. And if it’s someone well known who stumbles upon your page… you can invite them out for a coffee and pick out their brains!
Here’s Why You Want To Have An Awesome About Page
It Positions You As An Authority
When people jump into your content and they are wow’ed by the sheer amazing content or service you have (you do…right?)
Then… you want people to recognize who the person is behind such an amazing product.
Whether people join in from your…
- Referrals
- Podcasts
- Blog
- Ads
- And anywhere else you can imagine…
You want to position yourself as an expert in your subject.
And an about page is a great place to position yourself as an expert. You can strategically brag about yourself in a way that doesn’t come off as bragging and get people to think “Wow… he knows his stuff…”
For example…here is how Sara wonderfully does so on her page…
She mentions that she has over 525,000 subscribers which shows that she knows what she’s doing as a YouTuber.
Free Organic Traffic
When you have an awesome about page, there are going to be random people who stumble into your about page from time to time.
Sure…it may be a measly 10 or 20 people at first…
But that’s 10 or 20 potential customers for you to convert!
…Without doing any extra work.
‘Nuff said.
Sell Your Services/Products
It gives you another chance to sell your services and products to your customers.
Now it may not be the best place to hard-sell them onto a service (you can always test it out) but it gives you another chance to make a viewer take an action.
Something that can provide them value.
For example, I am an email copywriter and I want to show them that I write good emails. And in my about page I could just give them a tiny nudge why they should hire me to write their emails.
Here’s what Made By Band does by explicitly telling them they are available for hire…
Capture Their Emails Instead
If soft-selling your service or product isn’t your thing…
You can always just capture their emails instead!
People tend to like free things so you can give them a lead magnet. Or not.
But… it’s a lot easier to convert someone into your email inbox than to get them to outright buy your product.
Just like what Copyblogger does below…
They even write another headline and phrase their subscribe button with “Get the free training.”
How To Increase Conversions On Your About Page
Choose The Colors On Your About Page Carefully
Did you know that there is color psychology for your business?
Where different colors give off a different feeling for your business and that many businesses spend thousands of dollars just to get their colors right? (I know it’s crazy right?)
Anyways…
Apparently red means you are an energetic, passionate business..
While purple would represent royalty (for luxurious brands).
People even associate emotions with different colors.
For example, 34% of people associate blue with trust and 76% of people associate red with speed.
And green means nature, peace, calm… (and on and on and on…)
Why am I explaining all of this in-depth?
Because people buy based on emotions!
And if you can nudge your customers into feeling a certain way when they land on your about page… then it will be easier to convert them and they will feel much more at ease (not knowing that the colors slightly affected their decision.)
Have A Navigation Clearly On Your Website
You want an about page that is clear and easy to find which people can learn more about you.
Like what Moz did…
Something that is clear for your readers will be highly appreciated as they don’t have to search everywhere for who you are.
Choose Your Words Carefully
Words have different effects on people.
If I write “To whom this may concern,” vs “Yo, wat’s up homie…”
You are going to get a different vibe from each one. Now I am an advocate for making your copy less boring because…
If it’s boring then people are less likely to read it!
But you should also make it clear on what type of business you are trying to set off.
For example, Gummisig takes a whole different approach and talks in the third person for his brand…
It doesn’t hurt showing a little of your personality in your about page. In fact… people would like to read about your unique personality on your page.
Make Sure All The Good Stuff Are Above The Fold
You want to make sure that the most important stuff is the first thing viewers see.
When visitors pop up to your website the very first thing they see (without scrolling or anything) is considered to be “above the fold.”
So this means that in desktop you want to have a headline, maybe a photo, and a hook to grab them in.
Tip: If you have a photo, people read the captions more than they start reading the first sentence of your first sentence according to David Ogilvy (one of the greatest ad men ever)
Look at Google…
Their main focus is their message (the headline) and their company news. And you can check out the products in the top bar.
Focus On Your Unique Selling Proposition For Your Page
Another thing you want to consider is that you want to eliminate objections from their minds as they read your page.
For example, they might have questions like:
- Why should I hire him as my email copywriter vs. anyone else?
- Can I trust him?
- Can he actually get me results?
- How will he send me work?
- Is this person reliable?
- Can this company actually solve my problems?
You want to dive deep into your viewer’s mind and talk to them in a way that addresses these questions naturally.
For example, to answer “Can he actually get me results?” you have a paragraph showing detailed work of the results your email campaign brought for one client.
Or show a list of clients who worked with you to show that you are reliable.
Start Adding Testimonials To Your About Page
The best way for you to get trust is by someone they know.
The second best way is through testimonials where other people risked themselves to try out your service.
Of course… you don’t want fake, spammy testimonials which could actually hurt your business.
Plus it’s easy to tell when they are made up.
Hint: The best way that I found is having a short video clip with quotes underneath the video in which the customer who tried your product agrees to.
Now for the next step, this only works if you have a lot of testimonials to choose from.
But what I want you to do is to strategically choose your testimonials that answers your customer’s pain points.
For example… if I am writing about how I can turn you from a nobody into a well-paid freelancer in 6 months, then I want to pick testimonials of common problems that your viewers have.
Some testimonials examples would include…
- “I used to be working content mills until I found out about this program” (For people who used to do content mills.)
- “I only used his tactic 1 hour per day to get to where I am today.” (A common concern for people who think it takes up a ton of time.)
- “I used to be a college dropout with no future. With nothing to lose, I decided to try out this program and what can I say I am now making 2,000$ more money this month” (Young, dream-seeking entrepreneurs or people with no cash
And how do you get testimonials like this?
By creating such an amazing product that does what it’s intended to do and asking a customer for a testimonial of how they really felt.
Here’s how John McIntyre uses testimonials in his about page.
His testimonial shows other clients he can get results with his emails.
Give Away Valuable Materials In Your Email Opt-Ins
Everyone likes free stuff.
And everyone especially likes perceived valuable stuff.
Give them something really valuable for free when they sign up for your email opt-in list.
What this does is that it is your first impression when they sign up for your mailing list. And if it’s something truly helpful to them, well they are probably going to stick around in your subscriber list for awhile.
Include a video (And Maybe Focus On Teaching)
You want to focus on having a wide range of media for different people as having different mediums for what they like since everyone likes viewing stuff in different formats.
You may also want to consider teaching your audience if they don’t know much about your product.
This may sound a bit weird for your about page but if they can learn something learning about you (learning-ception) and you teach them something valuable they didn’t know before, well you just positioned yourself as an authority right there.
And people who perceive you as an authority are more likely to buy from you.
Neil Patel uses a video to describe his journey as well as what he does to potential clients below…
And according to him, a video landing page converts like crazy! (Maybe something worth testing on your site)
Test Multiple About Pages And See What Works Best.
When people think of testing they think of A/B split testing for landing pages.
Except your about page is a landing page for your CTA.
You can try an about page for one month and then switch it another month and measure the results of each about page.
Maybe longer copy works better for your about page…
Maybe video works exceptionally well for your business…
Maybe it’s better to talk about how your dog Jack can rollover 3 times in a row….
Test things out and see what happens. You may even be surprised by some of the results.
And always continue to update your about page to see if there is something better that converts extraordinarily well.
Ask other people’s opinions
You can ask your family, friends, or coworkers what they think about the about page.
It’s more important to look at the data (in my humble opinion…)
BUT…
It’s also nice to get another perspective on your about page to help generate you more ideas.
Make Sure The Page Is Accessible To All Devices
This one is especially important for our current generation where people are able to visit the internet on iPhones, iPads, watches, and probably potatoes.
If you have a WordPress theme, make sure that it is mobile-compatible.
Readership on mobile phones has increased by 70%. So it’s especially important to optimize for another portion of your readers.
Hint: Alos make sure to test this on a mobile screen so that people who go into your website aren’t just desktop but also through their phone. Now you don’t have to go crazy with every single phone model but it should be mobile compatible.
Pro tip: You can see if they are mobile-friendly if you minimize your screen into a small box.
If You Are A Company, Use It As An Introduction To Your Team
People like knowing who is behind the curtains of the business and to see the actual faces of the business.
Give a brief introduction for each team member to not only show pride for working at the company.
Like what Kickstarter did below…
- Inspire Trust By Being Specific
For some weird reason…
Being specific makes your message a lot more trustworthy.
Like, take this for example…
“These batteries have pretty good juice and should last you awhile” vs “These batteries have 15 Vh capable of handing a 144 Hz device for 24 hours straight on standby” (I just made all of that up and probably makes no sense)
BUT… if you heard that from a sales rep you are instantly going to think he knows what he is talking about only if you know ABSOLUTELY nothing about batteries.
Now I’m not saying you should be telling wrong facts to your subscribers… but you can be specific like the dates of a certain story or when you won a certain award. Describe the details. And make sure it’s interesting!
Use Subheads, bullets, graphic
Just make it nice and easy to read your about page.
People also like looking at the list because it’s easier to digest 🙂
Like what Susan Greene did with her copywriting about page below…
Make it Multilingual For Your Audience
Kero One did something that I never even thought of until I researched different about pages.
And I thought this was really cool so that his audience from different countries can actually understand his story.
Then in Japanese…
Get Creative By Putting Your Own Song
Doom Tree decided to put a recording of their song.
That’s their CTA. And I thought that was smart and creative.
Now you don’t need to make your own song…but…you can get a little creative.
Proofread And Read Outloud
Your final tip is to make sure that you actually proofread your about page and make sure there are no typos (The best way is to read it out loud. It works wonders!)
Having a typo yells you don’t care or pay attention to details.
So read it out loud!
Here Are 6 Mistakes I see People Do With Their About Page
They Don’t Have An About Page
Although people may have their reasons, not having an about page is hurting them more than having one.
When people are interested in what you have to offer and want to learn more about you, not having an about page creates this gap.
And that gap gives you a lack of trust where they can’t find more information on this person…
And when people don’t trust something… they aren’t likely to buy from it either (or join your email list or whatever)
They Don’t Have Their Name or Picture
An about page is a place to describe who you are to your audience. Now it makes sense for people to have some sort of name.
Having no name or picture is okay in some cases (in case you don’t want to get too personal with your business) but you should have at least something.
Whether it’s a pen name or a picture that they can associate with the company, just anything for them to associate to.
Your Writing Is “Snooze-Inducing”
Let’s face it. There are a million other things trying to steal our attention. That current Netflix series or that meme cat video on Facebook is probably waaay more interesting than your about page (sorry bud, but that’s the power of meme cats).
If you start talking like how you do in your resume starting with…
“Hello, I am Anthony Nebel and I have been an email freelancer for 2 years. I hope to strive to create the best compatibility to ensure your success in your email endeavors for your online business and blah blah blah…”
Okay, I might’ve gone a bit over the top in sounding robotic but you get my point.
Don’t write boring!
It’s okay to be a little funny. It’s okay to showcase how you are a dork.
What you should do instead:
I like what Joseph Payton does with his copy where he uses a casual tone and even throws a joke below…
Using Only Video With No Text Underneath
It’s great that you are using video to showcase yourself or others but people like to read in different formats. I myself like to read things than watching a video while others would be more prone to watching someone in a video.
You want to at least have a CTA underneath the video.
Then that makes it okay.
Just Rambling On And On And On
Now there’s a difference between rambling on and on with unnecessary information and writing long copy that strategically has a purpose.
No one really cares that you might have 2 dogs (although they will think you are a cooler person) or how you went to Cuba last summer to try out some authentic Cuban food.
You want to make sure that you don’t bore the readers into rambling everything about yourself.
The main reason why they checked your about page was to learn more about you for a potential problem you can solve.
…Or maybe you are just handsome like me and people just want to check out…
Although I prefer shorter copy for my about page, having longer copy for your about page is okay as long as it’s not boring.
Thinking an About Page Should Be All About Minimal Design
Now as a copywriter, I prefer minimalistic designs because my purpose is for people to focus on my copy… not on my design.
But…(and there are always exceptions)…
If you are someone who wants to showcase their design skills to potential customers then it’s alright to go all out with your about page.
Have a javascript Galaga game for your about page (where they shoot your about page to get a high score) or a futuristic funky design that SHOWS your personality.
Like for instance the award-winning creative agency Toy Fight who has an amazingly cool and unique interactive design below…
6 About Us Pages I Personally Like
John Carlton’s About Page
John Carlton is a famous world-class copywriter and that headline really made me want to read more about him. It was just so edgy and different I just felt compelled to read it, especially with his headline.
Molecube’s About Page
I just really liked the design. It’s simple and I just like the pictures. The text is also pretty clear and apparently their about page is their whole website.
Amy Lynn Andrews’ About Page
Amy Lynn Andrews is incredibly simple. As a copywriter, I really enjoy the minimalistic design because all the focus goes into the message. And the first sentence is how it can benefit other readers.
Double Your Freelancing’s About Page
Double Your Freelancing uses quotes as a headline (which apparently works really well for grabbing attention) and their CTA is above the fold. It’s simple, clear to the point, and hits the pain points of people in this target audience.
Punchline Copy
Punchline Copy has a clear message for his audience and she differentiates herself with humor. I also really like the design that goes along with its message.
Creative Revolt’s About Page
Jorden also has a very clear headline and has a CTA above the fold too…
I think you can tell that I enjoy about pages that seem to be incredibly effective with CTA’s “above the fold” and a very clear headline for their specific viewers.
You can model after their about page…or just come up with someone completely unique.
Conclusion
We went through a lot.
From learning how to maximize conversions on your about page…
To even learning how to frame your about page so that viewers will even form a connection with you.
Let me know in the comments below if you found this article helpful!
Which tip did you find the most helpful?