I read a Bernadette Jiwa’s blog post about how to put together an ‘about me’ section of a website. It reminded me of a recent pattern that I have observed in conversations with small businesses. Everyone wants to know, where do I start in building my site? What is a ‘must have’ part of that site? My advice is clear. The first thing everyone wants to do is to understand, what do you do and who are you. But the reason they want this information is to understand what is in it for me? Or said another way, they want to know what problem you will help me solve, can I trust you and do you have the right background to help me.
My own discovery/web surfing experiences always start with visiting an ‘about me’ page on any website. When on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook, I seek out the profile of the individual or brand. I want to know, who is behind this brand, product or service. What do they say about themselves? Do I feel that I should let them sneak into my life and busy world?
Talking to web development experts at a recent conference, I kept hearing the same information. Most people start with ‘about me’ before they dive into a site, if unfamiliar with the brand. That means, if your strategy is to grow your business with new visitors and customers, the about me section need to grab the reader quickly.
Here are seven tips to make a terrific ‘about me’ page:
Keep it real. If you are immediately selling, I’m leaving. Don’t start off trying to gain revenue. Earn trust. Build a relationship. Gain a foot into the lives of people. But don’t try and close the deal in the first paragraph. It rarely works.
Keep it human. I want to do business with people I like. I like to do business with human beings not robots. So make sure your language is conversational and sounds like a real person wrote it. Lose the corporate speak. Eliminate words that are pretentious. Talk as if you were sitting at a café drinking coffee and started up a conversation. Let your personality come through so it feels special, just like you.
Keep it funny or lighthearted. In most situations, entertainment is the pathway to education. Think of the great success of John Stewart. We learned from him because he entertained us. The about me section doesn’t need to tell jokes but make it fun to read and lighthearted.
Keep it relevant. People who read my about me page on my website, are there because they are wondering if I might be helpful advising them on marketing issues for their small to mid-sized company. I need to tell stories that illustrate what I can do for them – not just what I have accomplished and how it made me feel. Write for the audience and answer the questions that are probably on their minds.
Keep it short. I’m not reading about me sections instead of War and Peace. Don’t go on and on and on. Find a way to be concise and still achieve your goals. Sometimes 20 words will do and sometimes 2,000. There isn’t a rule of thumb. You want the section to be read by those who might seek out your product or service. So make the section like an appetizer, not an entire meal.
Keep it chunky. Long paragraphs that go on and on will lose me as a reader, so stick to the point. Just like this section with a bold heading and a few sentences, find a way to visually organize so it can be easily digested. Chunk out the copy – make it in sections.
Keep the most relevant information on top. Don’t bury the lead. Don’t have your most important point last. Most people will read or skim through the top few sections. Make sure your most critical point and call to action appear near the beginning as well as at the end. Nothing wrong with repeating it, in a few ways throughout the sections.
Here are a few about me pages I really like and my own about page. They are different but should give you some fresh ideas on how to structure one that works for you.
http://thestoryoftelling.com/about/
http://www.businessesgrow.com/mark-schaefer/
http://www.twistimage.com/about-mitch/
Need a marketing coach to help you unravel the mysteries of marketing? Call to set up a time to chat. 919 720 0995 or jeffreylynnslater@gmail.com – Want to know more about me? Check out my about me page here.
This post first appeared on The Marketing Sage blog. I’m reposting it because it is one of my top posts out of almost 800 posts.
