Your ABOUT PAGE Sucks. (Let’s Fix That.)

That’s right. I said it.

It’s no worse than what I heard in my head the entire time I was writing my own ABOUT page.

How’s your experience been?

Let’s see if I can help.

There are a number of ways to write your About page. Ask five copywriters and you’ll get five different bullet point lists of what to include, what to leave out and what the order should be.

No matter who you choose to follow, two truths cannot be ignored:

1. You want all visitors to read it.

2. You want all ideal customers to take an action*.

(*You want your ideal customers to follow your suggested call to action (or “CTA”) and you want everyone else to move along.)

Beyond these two truths, you can learn rules, break rules and try to enjoy the process.

I’m here to help you get your page written (or help you fix what you have) by sharing a list of key elements I think are necessary to include.

By the time you finish reading this post, you’ll know what you need to do to write or fix your page and be proud to tell people you have a website (without hoping they never actually see it).

Before we dive in, I want you to know:

• You’re not alone. Nobody enjoys writing about themselves. Not even writers.

• You must ignore that judgmental brat in your head if you want to write anything at all.

• Your About page is not about you. (Whoever told you that was lying. Sorry.)

Ready?

If you’re an entrepreneur selling a service, you might consider having a website. This is not required, mind you. But if you do decide to have a website, you must have an About page. Anyone who makes it to your website will visit this page pretty much 100% of the time. There’s an art to making sure they read it and, if they fit your target market, take action.

Goals of the page:

• Tell your visitors who you are

• Explain what you do and why

• Show your value

The NUMBER ONE reason people are reading the page?

It’s the WIIFM factor. (or: What’s In It For Me)

They are there to figure out what you can do for them.

Once you’ve communicated that part, you want to make it super easy for them to get it.

That brings me to…

5 KEY ELEMENTS TO INCLUDE ON YOUR ABOUT PAGE

Key Element #1: A good headline.

I’m referring to something other than “About Me.”

You want your headline to be eye-catching (again, in a WIIFM kinda way) and inspire your reader to read.

Either speak directly to him/her/them or say something unexpected. You can ask a question or make a statement. Or tease something.

EXAMPLES:

When’s the last time you drank a glass of water?

I love eating kale (said nobody ever).

Food connoisseurs hate cilantro. But enough about me…

The sky is the limit here, as long as you’re grabbing attention and getting a relevant someone to keep reading.

It’s much easier to write a headline after you’ve written your page, so let’s pause on this for now.

Key Element #2: Your name.

People constantly skip this!

It’s easy to create a website and forget that your visitors (as in potential customers) have not read every single word on every single page.

This might be the first page they land on. Or the first page they read.

Make it easy. Say it up front.

“Hi. My name is Marnee. I’m glad you’re here.”

Key Element #3: Your title.

This is your first opportunity to show some of who you are. The title that you’ve chosen — is it industry speak? Do people’s eyes glaze over when you tell people what you do?

Okay, don’t drop it here and walk away.

Unpack it a bit.

Explain what it means.

Is there another title you’d use if you had more time? You can take this opportunity to make up a fun title. You don’t have to use it on your business card.

Take a second to say what you do, who you do it for and how you do it.

This gives much more context to the words and, cracks open that WIIFM window.

EXAMPLES:

I’m an Integrative Nutrition Health Coach

BECOMES: I’m a Health Coach. I help busy women with low energy improve their quality of life with simple, easy to implement, 1% shifts.

Or…

I work with busy professionals

BECOMES: I help busy women go from I need to spend the entire weekend in bed because I’m too tired from the week to Oh, is it the weekend already? Let’s party!

See the difference?

Instead of plopping down the actual name of what I call myself, I’ve mentioned specifically who I work with and the outcome they get by working with me.

If you’re THAT woman, you keep reading. If you’re not, you move on.

Key Element #4: Insight into you as a person.

Here is where I see people going off the rails. They tell their entire life story, perhaps with the intention of being relatable to everyone.

But don’t forget the WIIFM factor here. Tell the parts of your story that are relevant to your target market, not to everyone.

Start with how you got here and why it matters.

This is especially important if you’re offering a service (say, you’re a Coach). Ultimately, people hire you for being YOU. Make sure you’re communicating who you are (as it relates to your target market) on this page.

Key Element #5: Your credentials.

This is where you can throw in a fact or two about your credentials and explain why you are the best one for this job.

Think you don’t have any credentials? Ya do.

Whether you’ve been interviewed on a podcast about something your target market should be interested in or you’ve already been where they are today, you’ve got credentials.

What makes you special? Why should your target market listen to you?

Did you help someone like them get an outcome your target market is after?

(Did you help Jane, busy professional, find a workout plan she now sticks to? Leave her testimonial here.)

BONUS Key Element: Call to Action.

If you want to get fancy (you should!), every single page on your website should have a call to action. What do you want the reader to do next? Mind you, they might simply be clicking around. But your goal should be to have them do something: Take an opt-in, book a call, shoot you an email, etc.

Your about page is a sales page that leads people to this final step. What do you want them to do here? You are selling why you are the best person for them to [call to action].

If you’re doing it right, after someone in your target market reads your About page, they want to do whatever you say to do next. Make it easy for them. You’ve got a captive audience.

Use that power.

Call to Action Samples:

Book a free consultation

Grab my freebie (and join my list)

Take this quiz (and join my list)

Send me a note with [this information].

Optional Elements to include on your About page:

Make a list of random (or not so random) facts about you. This is your opportunity to connect by relating on a deeper level.

Would your target market remember watching Happy Days? Do you still love that show? Mention it!

Does your target market hate online shopping (like you)? Mention something about your favorite pastime of going to Whole Foods or Target — because you can touch products in person.

Throw in a fact or two about you that might be important to your target market.

For example, let’s say your target market includes busy women who want to make healthier meals for their family.

You can say something like: I’m obsessed with finding the fastest way to make a roast chicken.

Sample list titles:

4 THINGS YOU’D NEVER KNOW BY LOOKING AT ME

10 THINGS ONLY MY CLIENTS WOULD CARE ABOUT

3 THINGS I’M SUPER EMBARRASSED TO ADMIT

Conclusion

Your About page isn’t about you. It’s a page you use to take someone on the journey from a curious peruser to an eager client (/fan).

Aaaaand… Now that you know what to include (let’s call them the rules), go ahead and break them.

Want more support?