5 Key Ingredients in an About Us page That Get Results

April 12, 2018 - 11 minutes read

Make your about us page work for you with our guide Source

“If it doesn’t sell, it isn’t creative.” – David Ogilvy

In an age where brand storytelling is more important than ever, squeezing out every drop of value from your About Us page should be a top priority.

Ecommerce is all about showcasing your brand, communicating your values and building a rapport with your customers. And, if produced well, your About us page will help you do just that.

Once they are on a company’s homepage, 52% of users want to see the About Us information. But, a staggering one in three consumers will abandon a purchase because they can’t find the right information.

Now, many online retailers associate content marketing with blog posts and social content or outreach. But by reducing your content marketing efforts to narrower parameters will significantly reduce your chances of expanding your audience and boosting sales.

That said, the About us page is one of the world’s most overlooked website assets. To help you improve your About us page and benefit from better brand awareness, as well as increased profitability, here are five essential elements you need to consider.

The why, how, and what

On a fundamental level, your About us page is a chance to introduce yourself to your target audience – sharing your story, mission statement, and everything that makes you unique.

If you’re too vague, too generic, or plain uninspiring, all your About us page will do is serve to increase your website’s overall bounce rate – and no business owner wants that.

To form the foundations of your About us page, you should first set your Golden Circle.

In a nutshell, your Golden Circle is a precise definition of why your brand exists, its lifeblood and what it’s ultimately looking to achieve. It’s the story of your brand. Today’s consumers respond well to narratives, especially millennials – and as this demographic is expected to outnumber Baby boomers by 2019, this is one valuable target audience.

To map out your Golden Circle the right way, you must dig deep, asking yourself the correct questions, in the correct order:

Why: Why does your business exist?

How: How will your products or services improve the lives of your audience, and how will you achieve your goals?

What: What are you offering to your target audience, literally?

Take the time to answer these questions, and once you’re 100% happy with the results, you’ll be ready to craft the core of your About us page by telling your tale.

Tell your story

In addition to a clearcut beginning, middle, and an end (think about your favourite short fiction stories), your About us page content – or brand story – should include these key elements, weaved seamlessly into your text:

Your company’s core vision and philosophy: Despite the fact you might sell similar products to your competitors, you’re not like them – you’re unique, you’re you. Think about your primary mission statement and intent, consider what makes you stand out from the crowd and include it in your About us page. Make it a key part of the story.

A statement from the founder, or founders: To fortify your values and philosophy, a striking quote from your company founder (this may as well be you) always grabs attention and helps drive a brand message home. Include it if you can.

A logical history or company timeline: As mentioned, today’s consumer will invest both emotionally and financially in a strong brand story, and giving a brief but meaningful overview of your history is an effective way to do so. In many cases, company timelines yield positive results as not only do they offer valuable company information, but they tell the story in a clear, concise and digestible format. The History page of Balzac Brothers and Company serves as an excellent example:

Not only is this About us page visually striking, but it offers an engaging overview of the company’s story while delivering its philosophy and mission statement all in one neat digital package.

Team information

Nowadays, consumers crave a human element in brands and businesses; they don’t want to feel like they’re being sold a meaningless sales slogan or are talking to a soulless black box.

One of the best ways to humanize your brand and forge a meaningful rapport with your target audience is by including brief but engaging team member profiles.

By giving consumers a glimpse into the personalities of the people that make your business tick, you serve to build trust and showcase your passion – which goes a long way in the modern world of eCommerce.

It’s possible to add team member profiles to your About us page in a number of ways, from Top Trumps style information bites right the way through to a short embedded video of each employee introducing themselves – the sky’s the limit. Lean on your unique tone of voice, be as creative as you can and you’ll connect with that all-important eureka moment in no time.

Here are two notable examples for your inspiration:

Testimonials

The average consumer holds a great deal of value in the thoughts, values, and opinions of their peers. Plus, 88% of people trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations, and by including customer testimonials in your About us page, you could potentially help to increase conversions by up to 62%.

Customer testimonials will validate what you’re saying – and if displayed in an aesthetically pleasing way, they will engage your site visitors while solidifying their trust for your brand.

In today’s digital world, brand trust goes a long way. In fact, for the millennial generation, brand authenticity is second only to loyalty discounts when selecting businesses to support.

Collate your best customer testimonials and add up to three on your About us page – this will give it an additional layer of meaning, enticing the right customers to your business.

Inspiring About us style testimonial examples include:

Contact information

While this may sound glaringly obvious, you’d be amazed at how many businesses overlook this simple yet essential element of their About us page.

If you’re not overly keen to display this kind of information directly on your About Us page in fear of making it look too cluttered, you should at least ensure you provide a clear link to your contact information page within your content – even as a call to action somewhere near the bottom.

Providing your contact details helps to build trust (if a person has no idea where you’re based, they might be hesitant to hand over their money) and if a visitor is really invested in what you’re all about, having the contact information at hand will make it easy for them to initiate a conversation with you should the need strike them.

You don’t necessarily need to disclose all of your contact details on your About us page, but an up-to-date contact email address or number, the town or city in which you’re operating, and your social media handles will suffice.

These five key ingredients will ensure you get the very most from your About us page – and help you connect with your target audience in ways you never thought possible.

Like most elements of digital marketing and eCommerce, creativity is key, and you can use these ideas or examples in any way you wish – as long as you don’t compromise on user experience (UX).

Using various forms of media will help you make your page more striking, more immersive, and more likely to convert, and these examples will help you get those creative juices flowing:

“Sometimes reality is too complex. Stories give it form.” – Jean Luc Godard

Your About us page is the window to your commercial soul – so use it wisely, and you’ll reap great rewards. We wish you the best of lucks.

For other tried and tested ways to increase your profitability, check out these effective sales boosting strategies.

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