How To Create A Great About Page For Your Website

By Mark Brinker 
Updated: February 6, 2024

By Mark Brinker  /  Updated: February 6, 2024

If you’ve struggled to create a great About page for your website, here’s why …

It’s hard.

Today I’ll make it way easier for you and give you a cheatsheet for creating a great About page.

The reason your About page is important is it reminds people there’s an actual person behind your website. It humanizes you and makes you look less corporate/sterile.

When people feel a connection with you, the trust factor goes up, sales resistance goes down and they’re more likely to call for an appointment or buy your stuff.

The Biggest Challenge With About Pages

Two words: writer’s block — what do people want to know?

The quickest and easiest cure for mental paralysis is to use a template. Don’t reinvent the wheel. Use a framework where the hard thinking has already been done. Just fill in the blanks … and you’re done.

8 Steps To A Great About Page

1. Call your page “About”.

In your site’s main navigation, use “About” or “About Us”. This is what people are conditioned to look for. Keep it simple and make it obvious.

Most web pages begin with a title or headline so the reader knows where they’re at. I’d recommend titling your page “About” or “About Us”. Forget trying to be cute or witty. Choose clarity over cleverness.

2. Lead with your elevator pitch.

Dive right in and tell them who you are, what you do and the type(s) of people you serve.

Don’t waste their time with boring mission statements or other corporate babble.

Just summarize what you’re about and give them a reason to say, “Hmm, tell me more”.

Be yourself and talk in friendly, conversational tone.

Use language that describes the problem they’re trying to solve or the outcome they want to achieve.

3. Why you’re different.

This one might require a little digging, but you have to find some points of differentiation between you and your competitors. Otherwise you’re just plain vanilla and you blend in with everyone else.

It’s not good enough to say “we’re the best” or “we’re # 1” (even if you really are). That’s lazy and says nothing.

You want to list things that are measurable and observable.

Here are some examples:

  • Do you offer better prices than competitors? Maybe your prices are the same or higher, but you offer better value.
  • Are you open on Monday when everyone else is closed on Monday? Do you offer evening hours? Are you open on weekends?
  • Do you have tons of positive online reviews where your competitors have few reviews or poor reviews?
  • Do you specialize in any one particular area where your competitors don’t?
  • Do you service any geographic area where your competitors don’t? Is your office or shop in a convenient location?
  • Do you offer a better warranty/guarantee than your competitors?
  • Do you use a unique tool, technique or process that your competitors do not?
  • Do you have a higher success rate than your competitors?
  • Can you get the job done quicker than your competitors?
  • Is your solution more permanent and longer-lasting than your competitors?
  • Do you speak a language other than English?
  • Do you offer financing where competitors require full payment upfront?
  • Do you have a different approach, a different point-of-view or a different perspective than your competitors about your product, your service or your industry?

Even if you’re in a “boring” business or profession, there are always ways to describe how you’re different. Think of your best clients. Why did they pick you over your competitors?

Don’t take anything for granted. What you think is standard operating procedure might be a major selling point to a prospective client. The classic example of this is the old Schlitz Beer ad campaign.

4. How did you get here? What’s your story?

Many prospective clients are curious and want to know, “How did you get into this line of work?”

So tell them.

You didn’t just wake up one day and decide to become a dentist, a custom home builder or start a tool & die shop. What motivated you to go down this path? What was your journey like?

You don’t have to write a novel. A paragraph or two or three will do just fine.

Don’t worry about trying to impress anyone. Just speak from the heart and be yourself. If you have an amazing story, that’s just a bonus.

5. Social proof.

Even if you’re an introvert and don’t like social media, you still want to demonstrate that you’re “social” and part of the human race.

Prospective clients want to know what others say about you as well as the company you keep. It helps validate you.

So enlist the help of clients, colleagues, businesses, organizations, even celebrities to create social proof. The more, the merrier. You can never have too much.

Here’s a list to jog your memory:

  • Testimonials from satisfied clients.
  • Links to positive online reviews on Google, Yelp, etc.
  • Endorsements from respected peers, industry leaders or organizations.
  • Notable people or businesses you’ve done work for or worked with.
  • Certifications, licenses or awards. If permissible, place their logo or certificate on your website.
  • If you’re on Facebook, install a Facebook Like Box to display the number of Facebook fans you have.
  • Audio or video interviews you’ve done with noteworthy people in your industry or local market.
  • Links to respected websites or print publications where you’ve contributed content.
  • Selfies with celebrities or prominent people in your industry.
  • Charitable work you’ve done in your community or with non-profit associations.

6. Your personal bio (aka “fun facts”).

Up to this point everything’s been about your business. Now we want to shift the focus to you as an individual.

As mentioned above, people are curious. So share a little about yourself:

  • Where were you were born? Where you have lived?
  • Where did you graduate high school? College? Trade school?
  • Where have you worked previously?
  • Do you have any pets, hobbies, interests, unusual skills or talents?
  • Are you married? Any kids? Grandkids?
  • Favorite movie, favorite place you’ve traveled, favorite sports team, etc.

A short personal bio gives you another layer of authenticity and makes you even more relatable.

If you’re a private person and you’re not comfortable sharing anything personal, then don’t.

But sharing a little bit about your personal life lets people know you’re a normal, everyday person that’s real and approachable.

7. Your headshot.

The # 1 mistake on About pages is not including your headshot.

You don’t need to look like a movie star. People just want to see what you look like so they can put a name with a face. That’s it.

Don’t complicate matters by hiring a professional photographer — at least not now. The camera on any smartphone is plenty good enough for a quick, high-quality headshot.

Another option is to dig out that one favorite picture of yourself (we all have one) from a vacation or wedding and crop out your headshot from that photo.

Whatever you do, don’t use a picture from 25 years ago when you had more hair or were 20 pounds thinner. That just results in weirdness when people eventually meet you in real-life. Again, just be yourself.

Confession: I hate having my picture taken. But I suck it up and post my headshot on my About page because I know people want to see what I look like.

8. Your call-to-action.

If you’ve done a good job with your About page, your reader has warmed up to you. Before that feeling fades, you want to request an action to try and move the conversation forward.

You could ask them to:

  • Request a consultation or call for an appointment.
  • Join your email subscriber list.
  • Connect with you on social media.
  • Read some of your best material.
  • Fill out a survey.
  • Watch a video or listen to a podcast.
  • Download a free report or white paper.

Whatever you do, you must be assertive and ask. Don’t make the mistake of assuming they know what the next step is. It might be obvious to you, but often not to them.

3 Helpful Tips When Creating Your About Page

Talk in the 1st person. Unless you’re a famous celebrity with a publicist that speaks on your behalf, talk in the 1st person point of view. Everyone knows it’s you who’s writing your About page. Don’t pretend to be someone you’re not. Just be real.

It’s not a fact dump. The best About pages have a conversational tone like a real-live human being is talking. Don’t just dump a bunch of bullet point facts on your reader. They’re not reading a spec sheet for a new lawnmower. Talk to your reader as if they’re right in front of you or you’re sending them a personal email. Be friendly and conversational.

Don’t brag. Yes, your About page is about you, but that doesn’t mean you should boast and say “look at how important I am”. The goal is to tell your story so people get to know you and hopefully like you. Whatever you do, avoid being this guy.

About the Author

Mark Brinker is president of Mark Brinker & Associates — a business website design and development firm in Sterling Heights, MI. He's the author of "The Modern Website Makeover", which you can download free here. You're also invited to Mark's NEW (and FREE!) "Boost Your Brand" video challenge and you can sign up here.

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