Your ‘About’ Page – How Effective Is It?
On Marketing Profs site, this article, "Is Your 'About Us' Page Effective?" author Kevin B. Levi shares "four must have components of an effective About Us page".
Here's the break down:
Your about us page needs to have an elevator pitch – short enough to read quickly, but long enough to convey the "value you provide".
It needs to differentiate you from your competitors. One key recognition is that you have competitors. No matter what you do or what you sell, someone else is either doing the same thing, or attracting your would-be customers – which makes them a competitor, even if they aren't selling what you're selling.
You should also have contact information. How does a visitor actually ask you a question? Forms are okay… a lot of people use a pop-up form. But, email is best. When I land on an about page that requires me to fill out a form to contact the blogger or author, I sigh and move on. I don't have time to fill in forms. And, I'm never sure what happens to my message, after I click 'send'. Generally, I never hear back.
It helps to share your address, also. People want to know where you're located.
Your about us page should also inform – tell me something about yourself. Not your pets – yes, that's a fun task, writing about your pets – but, I want to know about you. Don't use third person, "Laurie was top salesperson at her previous job. She 
Be personal – "I am a 20-year sales professional. I started this blog to …whatever… and work with brands on teaching bloggers how to do product reviews. Before blogging, I was a stay-at-home Mom. This is my cat, Booger – he makes all this worthwhile!"
Make your about page uplifting. Give folks a way to engage with you. Don't leave them wondering what you're about or how to contact you. Friendly, funny, inspiring works every time. If you can't write an about page that reflects the best of you in a way that makes people enthusiastic about working with you, hire a freelance writer.
How effective is your about page? Share it here…and let folks tell you. Don't forget to visit the Marketing Profs article – he has great content on how to test your effectiveness, too.
Here is my “About Us” page. I did it on the fly but am pretty satisfied with it. Feedback is welcomed!!
http://furkidfosters.com/?page_id=212
Crystal, that’s a really good about us page. I learned what I needed to know and also what I wanted to know. One thing that was missing is a way to contact you if I have something to share, or if I have a question. Even if you have your contact info elsewhere, it should also be on the about page. Nice job!
I love the Q&A style of “who, what where when and why” — and the energy & warmth behind the words pops out which is great. In marketing parlance, there’s supposed to be a “call to action,” – a step that you’d like a 1st time visitor to take so that they stay with you over time. Invite them to subscribe to your blog? – something so that you’re capturing their email address. Other than that small detail – I really like it!
Turn about is fair play – here’s mine:
http://healingrescuedogs.com/about-me/
I did just set up the email address; it won’t be “live” for a few hours yet & I have a couple of Social Media icons to get up in the sidebar and, I need an up-dated pix that shows me and at least one of my dogs.
Feedback is always welcome!
http://houndgirl.com/about-us
I wrote my about us page quickly and I love it. I do use the words “I”. I dont have my contact information on this page – its located on the contact us page. I use a combination of form and I also provide my email address on that page. great article.
Crystal, I did like your about page. I like the way it is set-up as a question/answer. Good job!
My about page has changed once (and probably will again) as I am re-discovering my goals as I blog. I would welcome any feedback on this page.
You can find it here: http://jodistone.wordpress.com/about/
Thank you~~
Kari, I like your page too, somehow I could never sit down and write mine that way, but I am envious of those who can. 🙂 Great job.
Great post and Crystal, your About rocks!
Me thinks me will have to update mine!
Nellie
Kari – I LOVE yours! Kind of like “what you see is what you get,” “take it or leave it,” and “y’all come back” undertone — with a soft touch. The black and white photo of the hound is priceless. Thanks for posting here.