The number one priority for every website is the homepage. Get your bounce rate down, your average viewing time up and get people looking at the other pages on your website. But are you finding that even though your homepage is performing well that a lot of your traffic isn’t converting into leads? This is exactly the moment when you should ask yourself what roles your other pages are playing – and one important and often overlooked page is your About Us page. We’ve recently redesigned and rewritten our About Us page. It wasn’t a quick process, but it was very much worth it!
Your About Us page is almost guaranteed to have a high volume of clicks, and a large majority of your users are likely to look at your About Us page very soon after viewing your homepage. This indicates that the initial impression of your website is working – your users are interested in finding out more information about you! So what you don’t want to do is shove any old information on there.
The great thing is it’s very easy to tweak this page to get the content optimised. Just follow my five top tips.
Number 1 – is it relevant?
The average about us page covers what your company does and a bit about the history of the company. This is all very well, but ask yourself is that information useful to your readers? Are you repeating information from your homepage? Then cut it out – we want extra information here, not the same information rephrased. At the same time, don’t be tempted to fill the page with intricate details about your company history which your audience isn’t interested in.
The trick is to ask yourself why someone would choose to click on your About Us page in the first place. They will be looking for more information to help them decide whether or not to move forward and engage your services, so this is exactly the moment when you need to inspire trust, convince them of your expertise, and of your suitability for the service they require.
What your audience might want to know
- Why they should trust you
- What level of expertise you have (number of years working? Any awards of certificates?)
- How much experience you have
- What areas you specialise in
- Who your customers are (i.e. are your customers based in a certain location? Have a certain background?)
And if it isn’t relevant, or you’re repeating yourself then cut it out.
Number 2 – keep it simple
Buzzwords are not your friend and adjectives make you seem egotistical. Keep it to the facts, think in bullet points, and your points will be made much more persuasively. Saying that your business is outstanding doesn’t actually say anything – give reasons, give specifics, give evidence.
Clear and concise is always, always better. But this is even more important on your About Us page – too much marketing waffle and your reader will leave frustrated that they can’t find the information that they’re looking for.
If you want more tips on making your content crystal clear then check out my proofreading checklist.
Number 3 – be authentic
Don’t pretend to be someone you’re not. Be proud to be who you are – and if you’re a start-up then don’t be afraid to shout about it! This is your chance to state why the way you do things are better – whether you have a fresh perspective, or years of experience.
Number 4 – put your face on it
Using real photographs of your workplace and your staff is an excellent way of increasing trust, creating an impression of transparency and appearing genuine. Lots of people are loathe to put pictures or information of themselves on their website, or indeed the internet in general. But the simple fact is that if you show that you are willing to be a face for your company then you show that you believe in the quality of what you are doing.
Having short bios of important staff member is another option to consider. People like to know who they are dealing with and to put faces to names. It’s also a great way of shouting about the individual experience and accolades of your staff.
Number 5 – test it
Get a friend or a new customer to read through your About Us page and ask them to summarise the impression they get, and the information they know. If it isn’t right then get redrafting, and keep an eye on those useful Google Analytics stats.
Get some advice
More opinions are always better. If you have any questions about what you should/shouldn’t include on your about us page (or any other page) just post it in the comments and I’ll reply. It’s always a matter of opinion and there are no clear cut rules – but this is why opening these things up to debate are always a good idea.
