Very often, an “About” page is the first port of call for new visitors who land on your website, hence the importance of a clear description of what your business is about and the need to make a good impression.
But what are the features of a good “About” page?
It should exist in the first place
When it comes to navigation, a newspaper front page will follow a certain number of conventions (headlines and titles with a clear visual hierarchy, brief table of content, clearly defined areas with associated pictures etc.) The same goes for a website’s homepage – first-time visitors are more than likely to look for the information they want in an “About” tab or on your Home page.
In some cases, the Home page can be an all-in-one About / Services / Contact page – which has the advantage of doing away with too different tabs and making all your information easy to find.
Be concise
Visitors need to get an instant sense of who you are and what your company does. You can expand and elaborate on your tagline in more detail for instance.
Yet, the page should remain short, concise and to the point.
If your business or company has a long family tradition, avoid a detailed historical account of your business and opt for a timeline infographic or a short video instead. If needed, a separate post or page can be dedicated to a more detailed company description if visitors want to find out more about you.
Solve problems
Many websites assume that an “About” page should put the focus on you only and end up reading like a CV. Why are potential customers visiting your website in the first place? More than likely, visitors are looking for you to solve a problem.
How can you help? Asking questions for instance is a great way to shift the focus on customers.
Avoid jargon
Who is your audience? Is it your alumni, your competitors, your suppliers? Based on the assumption that you need to show off your professional know-how and mastery of a specialised area of expertise, too many “About” pages are replete with technical terms and obscure jargon that make no sense to the general public and potential customers.
Don’t be too technical and use short sentences in plain English. Your “About” page shouldn’t read like an instruction manual but more like a conversation.
Be meaningful
Market-leading…passionate…satisfied customer blah blah blah… Do not mistake your “About” page with a corporate mission statement using bland expressions that no longer mean anything.
Personalise your “About” page with anecdotes or stories that are relevant and that will catch the attention of visitors.
Be authentic
Tell the reader who you are by using your own writing voice and display your own picture. As well as that, testimonials from customers who are happy to praise your services or links to Social Media profiles, projects you took part in or articles you wrote all add up to convey a sense of trustworthiness about you and the services you provide.
Call to action
Where do visitors go from there? Should they fill in a form, contact you by email, give you a call, request a quote, buy a product or visit your premises?
Make these details available so that the navigation of the “About” page is crystal clear to visitors and naturally leads them to what they should do next on your website.
Depending on your line of business, a good “About” page doesn’t necessarily have to feature all these elements. But you still need to make a good impression as a concise snapshot of what you do and what your core values are.
And don’t hesitate to review and update your “About” page every few months – as in real life, it should be current and reflect your activities as they take place today.
