What's your About page all about?
When it comes to most things in life, we tend to think of second place as falling short of the effort needed for first place.
But what if I told you in web design, second place is actually a good thing? Your About page is the second-most visited of all the pages of your website.
In B2B marketing, 52% of website traffic visits the About page after your main landing page. Think about your own browsing habits when you stumble on to a new website. You want to know the 'why and who' behind the business, and that's why you click the 'About us' or 'Who we are' button.
So when it comes to your own site, just what can your About page structure do for you?
Well, for starters, it can build brand credibility and improve SEO. If you run an online store, you may be paying attention to the product pages where there is most potential to actively convert traffic into sales. However, if website visitors arrive at your About page and find nothing engaging, they get off the page without interacting with it. This affects your bounce rate and consequently, your SEO rank. Lower SEO rank means less online visitors who find you by chance on search engines.
It's only natural to think that your About page is where you get to infuse your personal touch, and talk about how you got started on this idea, and what your vision is going forward.
But if you want potential customers to spend more time on your About page, it should focus on why they should choose you.
So is the About page about them or you? Well, it's a bit of both. You can talk about who you are, but keep your ideal clients in mind. Let's dive into layout options for your About page.
Here are a few tips for your About page, think of this as a buffet where you get to pick and choose what you want on your About page structure. Don't pick everything for your website, it may be quite a mouthful for your customers.
Above the fold
First, we draw attention with a visual that is called 'above the fold' content. It's simply the top of the website, and what visitors see as soon as the page loads. You have mere seconds to catch their attention, so do it by expressing what your company can do for them in a glance. I recommend using 'you' language if possible. Every marketer's favourite pronoun is 'you'.
Think of your 'above the fold' content as a 3-second elevator pitch in written content and visual form, and it answers the basic question, 'What's in it for me?'.
Why us
I'm a huge fan of Simon Sinek's Start With Why. Tell the audience the 'why' behind your products and services, this is a way to establish why your company stands out from your competitors. When talking about your 'why', make it easily digestible and clear.
Make sure it broadly answers how your 'why' fits with the clients' 'want'. Figure out which are the parts of your 'why' the audience can relate to, and create meaningful content to express it.
This is a content feature that I would endorse as an absolute 'must have' on your About page.
Who you are
This is where you get some real estate to talk about yourself and the origins of the company. Even if your company doesn't have a long history, its story is still an important one to tell. Talk about your future plans and how you want your brand to achieve for the reader.
Telling the world your story humanizes your brand, and generates a warm vibe. But don’t leverage this as if you’re on an episode of Shark Tank. No one cares if you have a Commerce degree or have a record number of sales. This is not your resume. Readers can smell your pitch from miles away, so don’t position your message in that angle.
Just talk to them casually as if you happened to meet them in person. The reader should be able to feel the person behind the professional brand.
You could even create a video to make your story appeal in a more engaging way.
Meet and click
If you're backed by a team, introduce them. Use large images when featuring your very own people. Depending on your brand, make the content warm, personable and maybe even include quotes from the team. You don't have to always showcase people in a professional element. The more candid human faces you can feature on your site, the friendlier and approachable your brand seems. In my case, I'm a solopreneur, but I still have a photo of my dog, Toby on my About page. You may be selling a product or service, but people buy from people.
A strong call to action
An effective About page should help you make the reader take action. Include a compelling 'CTA' that gets them to contact you or browse through your products. You can use your About page as a lead magnet. We already know over 50% of website visitors come to this page, so have your email sign up or free guide placed on this page.
Case study, testimonials, credentials
Not every website needs either or all of these features.
Take a call and see if a case study aligns with your brand tone.
Customer testimonials support your why and showcase what potential clients get when they should hire or choose you. If you have specific accreditations or awards, put them on the page. Don't just throw in the logo of the institute, but link to them.
As a web designer, I craft every page I design with love and utmost attention. But yes, I understand the pressure of an About page. Your brand may live on the product or services pages of your website, but your heart lives in the About page. This is where the world forms an opinion or idea about you, and not your company.
It's about the parts of your why that relate to the reader. You want to come off as a relatable human, but still be professional. But remember your About page is not your mini-biography, a written vision board, or a cover letter. The About page should build trust and a human connection between you and your potential customers.
The content
The written copy on your About page need not sound like marketing copy, or a white paper. At the same time, you should talk to customers who have some idea of your industry and process in an easily digestible way. Imagine you're talking to your ideal clients and capture that essence. This article delves into the tone of your About page.
The look
While other pages of your website need to tie the brand together by look and feel, the About page needs a well-planned layout that represents the brand. Don't feel compelled to fill the page with lots of images and more content to justify the web visitors' time spent on it.
Plan a clean layout that plays with both white space and the warm colours of your brand. Use these elements to direct the visitors' eye to the most important messages, and your contact information.
As a Squarespace web designer, I'm always studying About page examples, and there is no 'one and done' layout to it. There are so many ways you can make a custom About page layout and content to make your brand personable and authentic. Whether you have an existing site or are planning a new website, look at your About page with fresh eyes and ask yourself if it forms a connection with your ideal client.
Your About page is important and so are the rest of the pages on your website. Download my free website checklist to make sure your website ticks off as many boxes as possible in terms of optimization.
