Just to be clear on what we’re talking about here, I’m talking about the ‘About’ page on your website, usually found in the top navigation of most popular blogs and websites.

So the question is, do you really need an about page?

Hell yes!

It’s that time of month when I check in and see what’s happening with Google Analytics, and it was no real surprise to me that my about page is my third most popular page on my site. It also prompted me that I had a couple of things I needed to add to my about page, so as a side note, your about page isn’t one of those ‘set and forget’ pages. Make sure you update it every now and then.

So to me it’s a no brainer – of course I need my about page, and I strongly encourage all of my clients and students that they should ALWAYS have an about page. People are obviously clicking on it and reading about me and my biz but here’s the thing…you need to optimize your about page.

Now I get that writing your about page can be tough. When you’re writing about yourself, and what you do, writers block can really kick in. You have a couple of options – you can hire yourself a copywriter or you can have a crack at it yourself – in 3 easy steps.

1. Talk about who you are and what you offer in a short, benefit driven introduction.
2. Provide social proof and testimonials (don’t make this up if you don’t have any yet – use a quote from a leader in your industry instead)
3. Share your personal story – I keep this section brief, but I do share some of my personal story, you know marriage, kids, pets…people like to read that stuff, it helps them bond with you.

So that’s the 3 sections of content taken care of. Break it up with a couple of photos as well. I use a professional shot and then a candid shot of me and my cat! Again it gives your audience the opportunity to connect with you.

Before we finish up with our amazing about page, let me introduce you to the ‘Do Principle’. I  use the ‘Do Principle’ on every single page of my site and I teach my students and clients about it as well – and it’s really simple to implement.

Here’s what I mean (and this is just in the context of your about page for now). The ‘Do Principle’consists of two factors:

1. Do you clearly state what it is that you do (at the beginning of the page)?
2. Do you clearly direct your audience what to do next (at the end of the page)?

So in the opening paragraph of your about page you’ve talked about who you are and what you do (in a benefit driven way of course), so you’ve got that covered, right?

Now let’s look at the second factor of the ‘Do Principle’. What do you want people to do once they’ve read your about page?

Personally, I ask people to sign up for my newsletter or my website free clinic. You could also launch into a description of your products or services. But for me, gathering leads on my about page is the main call to action of that page. So how do we go about that?

You’ll notice if you visit my about page that I don’t have a sidebar on that page. That’s because I don’t want my readers distracted by other things going on. I want them totally focused on reading my content, and…you guessed it, opting in to my list. So having an opt-in form in my sidebar is kinda null and void in this instance.

Instead I have lead generation forms strategically placed throughout my page. Now I took this advice from Derek Halpern and believe me when I tell you – it works. Since incorporating 3 opt-in forms on my about page 18% of new subscribers came from that page alone.

Basically I have an opt-in form after each of the 3 sections we talked about earlier. So begin with your benefit driven introduction (insert opt-in form), then social proof or quote (insert opt-in form), and finally your personal story (closing with an optin form).

What do you think?

Are you ready to revamp your about page following my ‘Do Principle’ for creating your content and then adding some email sign-up forms?

{Featured image via Oh Dier Living}