The “About” page is one of the most important pieces of content on your website. It’s where prospects and customers learn about you and your company’s leadership. Effective “About” pages are often a collection of pages written to connect with prospects. These days, most people want to know about the leadership and values of the companies they buy from. When there is no alignment between prospect and company a sale rarely happens. This article will dive into 6 elements that make your website’s “about” page pull readers in. So if you want to turn your website into a conversion machine, keep reading.
The What | 3 Elements of a website’s About page
The What segment of your About page needs to address what the company does. This should be the shortest segment of the page because all this information should appear on other web pages. For example, products and services should each have dedicated pages found together under a single navigation tab in the main menu. An About page needs to cover what the company does, but a simple listing of products with a short description or bulleted features is enough. Link each product and service to that subject’s primary page. Internal page linking is important for SEO, so take advantage of this opportunity to link the pages.
Contact information is another important element on the About page. A contact form is popular on many websites, but are busy people taking the time to fill out a form? Then wait for someone to respond? A clickable phone number for calling or text messaging is just as good, if not better. Make sure you have contact information in the site’s footer as well. That way, it’s on every page.
The last of the “What” elements should be a collection of staff members. Each staff member should have consistent-looking images and links to short bios. Ideally, this should be a separate page found under the About tab on the main menu, but if you have a small company or are a solopreneur, putting an image and short bio direct on the About page is fine.
The Why | The Most Important Element
The “Why” explains why the company was created and the motivation of the founders. It’s personal, giving insight into beliefs and values that serve as a roadmap for starting the business or project. The why doesn’t have to be to anything epic like “save the world.” It can be about making small changes in the communities served, creating something for the next generation, or creating a team of talented professionals where dedication and courtesy rule.
The “Why” section is the hardest to write but arguably the most important section on the page. According to Businesswire, 65 percent of consumers globally say the words, values, and actions of a company’s leaders influence their purchasing decisions. Those consumers say a company’s ethical values and authenticity drive their purchasing consideration.
The Story | An Overlooked Element of a website’s About page
The final elements in your website’s About page should be an origin story. A lot of About pages don’t offer an origin story, but it’s a great way to engage with readers. An origin story details how the company was founded and the challenges it faced along the way. It’s the story of the company’s founder from early professional experiences and the inception point of the company. Additionally, it should be written in a story format, with classical story elements sprinkled throughout the text.
I’m not suggesting you start with “Once Upon a Time,” but the classical elements of storytelling, including the main character, tension building, action, climax, and conflict resolution, will keep the readers engaged. Storytelling is part art and part science, so working with someone who understands both sides of the storytelling coin is a good investment in your success.
Defining Moment | The Element of Discovery
Defining moments shape everyone’s lives. The character of an individual is made from moments when lessons are learned, both personally and professionally. To truly know someone and what makes them tick, learn about their defining moments. Defining moments has a big place in a website’s “About” section. Primarily because younger generations, who grew up in the social media era, are accustomed to sharing and consuming the details of their friends’ lives.
This has two implications for a business:
- Sharing defining moments helps people better understand the leader’s character and helps prospects determine if their character and values align. If so, the prospects for a sale go from possible to probable.
- Sharing defining moments creates a strong connection with prospects. Many of us have similar experiences and defining moments. When someone reads a defining moment and thinks, “I was in the same situation,” a bond forms.
A Well Written “About” Page Converts Prospects to Customers
The “About” section of your website is critically important to the success of your company or project. It is as important as any product or service page and is now getting its due attention. These six elements of your website’s About page will pull your readers in and drive engagement. And best of all, they will help convert prospects to customers. Read My Story and my Defining Moments to see these techniques in action. Then you can start writing your own versions. But you are busy running your business and promoting your brand. You are so busy that you have little time to write engaging “About” copy. That’s where Sand Key Ventures comes in.
Sand Key Ventures is a website company that creates digital content every day. We have been writing “About” webpage copy, telling brand stories using classic storytelling techniques, and creating websites for years. We invest in the tools needed to deliver a great user experience and sell your products. Give us a call at 727-249-2749 to discuss what Sand Key Ventures can do for you. Thanks for your time, but now we’ve gotta run. We have websites to build and audit, blogs to write, eBooks to create, eCommerce to manage, and photos to edit. Until next time, take care.