The 4 Essential Elements of an About Me Page
- Written by Neil Patel on June 11th, 2007 |
- 40 Comments »
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One of the most important pages on a blog is the about me page. When someone comes to your website for the first time the chances are they are going to check out the about me page and learn all about you.
So in order for you to create the right image, you need to create a compelling about me page that includes the following elements:
- Image – I don’t care if you are the ugliest person in the world, you need to place an image of yourself on the about me page. That way your readers can connect with you and get to know you on a personal level. If you don’t include an image you will just be branding your name as an expert. In that case, I hope there is no one else out there with the same name as you.
- About Yourself – The main point of the about me page is to talk about yourself. People usually just talk about their background and education, but you also need to discuss your expertise and even life experiences so that you can better brand yourself.
- Helping Others – People see thousands of about pages in their lifetime, which is why they don’t remember most of them. The key with a good about me page is that you express how you can help the visitor / reader so that they will remember you.
- Contact – Once you have made a strong impact on the visitor, chances are high that they will visit your website again or even contact you. Because of this you need to make it easy for people to contact you through your about me page.
Now that you know how to create a proper about me page one thing you should consider is combining the about page (about your blog) and your about me page (about yourself). Based a small study I conducted, it seems that the chances that a new visitor clicks on the about page compared to the about me page is roughly the same. I concluded from this that new visitors may not be sure which about page they want to go to which is why I it may be best to combine them.
Hey, good post man. I’m glad you included number 3, Helping Others, because the truth is that if any site is going to succeed, is does so by holding the visitor’s needs first and foremost… so even in an about us page, they’re kinda thinking “how does thing person relate to what I’m looking for”.
Tony - VocalNation.net
Hi Neil,
Small observations making great impacts. I knew the importance of the contact page, but you made it so organized and simple. I am updating my know.
Vijay
Thanks, I got the idea from http://www.niallkennedy.com/ … full credit goes to him.
I’m adding a contact page to my blog now!
A fifth element, related to #3, would be why am I blogging?
It is also a good idea to try to get your “about me” ranked for your name. I have this page ranked as an extra snippet in the Google search results. I get a lot of clicks to this page based on the page title “Who is Mark Barrera?”. It really helps people find this info by having it in the search results and not forcing them to find it on your site somewhere.
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=mark+barrera
I’m glad you brought this up, Neil. Turns out that I probably really really need to update my “about me” page on my site as I have some sort of “official bio” there that has been written a while back.
Mark Barrera is right, it’s important that you check out what comes up when someone “Googles” your name. It could be your “about me” page that shows up in the SERPs, but if you’re lucky to have a unique name then you probably already have a blog on your own domain name, right?
After reading this post I qickly added an image to my about page. good tip!
I’d like to ‘add’ something to number two. The one (or two) line ‘pitch’. What do you do in one or two sentances. For example (sorry for the shameless self promotion) I state: I’m an online marketeer who’s specialty isn’t bringing in new clients, but new employees. I help companies with my expertise trough training and consultancy.
In one sentance people understand what I do. In two they know what I offer. All the rest… is for those interested.
Good point. Not everyone enjoys reading… this way you are getting to the point.
Because of the topic of my blog I keep it completely anonymous. Any suggestion for dealing with that on an about page? Some subjects just cannot be written about freely without keeping one identity private. A solution would be good, thanks.
If you need to keep an identity private you may want to try making the about page just about the site itself. Make it a bit corporate if possible so it looks “legit”.
If you want to use a hidden identity to make the site mysterious that could potentially work. If your site is popular it may also create some buzz.
Thanks, Neil. I’ve often wondered about that page, and I’ve gone back and forth on what type of information to provide. Some people seem to prefer a professional bio only. Some people get really personal.
On some level, I think it depends on your current career level. There are some things I might not want to risk putting on my About page whereas someone in their industry a few more years might not worry about how their personality will affect the reader’s assessment of the copy.
I will definitely be making some adjustments because of your post. Thanks again!
Great blog. We are continually telling our clients the importance of having an About Us page & many people are uncomfortable with that. This is great support for what we have been telling them!!
Thanx!
Your point number 4 seems really obvious but somehow I have never thought about it. Excellent tips, thank you !
To be honest most the stuff that I probably write could be considered obvious, but as you mentioned it is the obvious stuff that we all overlook.
Good points. I think it is worth noting, when writing all parts of the “about me” page, that when someone is reading that page they are not really interested in you.
They want to know, “what can I get/learn from this guy/gal?” and “why should I listen to what they say?”
I definitely agree with all your points and think I’ve done that on my About Page. I even include a photo that most people love. But, even if I didn’t include a photo since I’m the only one with my name…I guess I have a built-in brand already set up!
tasra
Nice, I also like how you have an image of yourself in your sidebar. I still need to do that…
Good article, gave me some ideas on how I could improve my about page.
As for contacting — I’ve heard people say you don’t need a contact form because people are supposed to have an email client ready. Which I don’t agree at all with. What’s your experience about contact forms?
Contact forms are great because it is easier on people to contact you. For me I use webmail so it is easier if websites have a contact form.
One option could be to give people your email address as well as have a contact form.
What about length of an About or About Me page?
I’m told from various marketing friends that it all depends on what exactly you’re “selling.” If you actually have a mission or purpose for your blog, it helps if your About Me is up to the task of selling you.
Thoughts?
The length can vary depending on your goal. If your goal is to educate usually a short about page is best. If your goal is to sell e-books then a long and more in-depth about page is probably best.
Hahha, nice post! I’be been wondering if a photo is needed or not and if they even care in knowing my face or not. Point taken, blog will be updated
How about putting a CV on my about page? (either downloadable or as another page) Is that relevant and useful enough for personal branding?
Adding a resume may help little for personal branding, but in most cases people who add a resume to their about page do it because they are looking for more job offers.
My about page is a little different. It started out as a script I wrote a couple of years ago, but have since turned into a plugin.
Is this sufficient for a personal blog:
http://www.ilovecode.com/qanda
Now, that isn’t a professional blog although I have had numerous connections and jobs come from it. I’m a developer and I blog about the web among other things there.So, is something like this sufficient for branding me… Sara…ses5909…
I love what you did with your about page! The one thing you should consider doing is to make it a bit more personal by adding more information about yourself.
I took your advice and added a little bit more! Thanks for the input
Thumbs up for the quality of all your posts Neil! It is amazing to realize how much “less is more”. For sure I am one of your faithful followers.
Glad you like the content. Will try and write more of it!
Excellent blog entry. Your blog is quickly becoming one of my favorites. In fact, you’ve convinced me that it’s time to do an overhaul on my own ‘about me’ page. Thanks :).
i completely agree with the 4 points, and would consider this also worth thinking about, if it is not definatly a blog.
visitors alsways want to know, who the people are, they are dealing with, so its imporant for other websites too..
cheers
ka
http://www.ninc.at
http://www.nnw.at
http://www.nincshirts.com
http://www.ninclabs.com
ps: i have to rework some own about us pages:) time is the fire we are burning in:)
Neil, great stuff! This will definitely be a key element in my blog relaunch.
The article is very brief but useful.I’ve translate it into Chinese in my website.
Thanks for the help Neil. I am a beginning blogger with too much on my mind not to talk about! I’ll be blending those pages together soon.