3 Essentials of an Explosive About Page

Your About Page isn’t about you.

Don’t be fooled into thinking that it is.

Well, about 80% of it isn’t. The rest of it is. 🙂

Here’s the deal: when someone comes across your blog, they’re spending 95% of their energy thinking about themselves. Which means when they land on your About Page, they’re not thinking “Hmmm, this blogger seems interesting. Let’s get to know her more.”

Instead, they’re thinking:

“Hhmm, this blogger seems interesting. Let’s see what she can do for me. What does she have in common with me? How can she help me?”

So the key to an About Page of perfection is writing with your audience in mind, whilst still telling people who you are.

It’s a delicate path to tread, but one we’ll learn more about today in our 3 essentials of an About Page.

Here we go:

About Page Essential Number 1

Start the page off with an attention-grabbing hook.

A hook is the opening line or lines that grab the attention of the reader. It creates an immediate emotional connection that either encourages them to read on, or turns them off completely.

Note: the latter is not the response you’re going for.

Hooks are usually reserved for sales pages. But in reality, they’re an essential part of every page on your website.

So, how do you write a hook that makes your audience salivate for more? There are a lot of formulas, and I can spend all day talking you through them. But today, we’ll focus on one that’s positive, emotional, and connects the audience to your message.

It’s the hook that appeals to the aspirations of your audience.

Your task is to write down all the things your audience aspires to, and write it as if you were them. It helps if you think of your audience as one person.

Once you’ve written this, pick 3 of the most important aspirations they have and turn them into an opening line that you will place at the top of your About Page.

Here are examples of how we can do this for an audience of women who want to break out of the corporate world and start their own business:

Aspiration: Is this all there is to my life? I want to build my own business, have more freedom in my life, and make the dreams in my head a reality.
Opening line: Leave the limits of the corporate world behind. You were made for more.

Aspiration: I’m independent and assertive. I don’t want to do as I’m told by the boss. I want to be the boss!
Opening line: A business built on your terms? It’s possible.

Aspiration: I want my children to learn that they can be who they want to be. I don’t want them following the path they’re being taught to follow right now. They need to know they have options, and they need to know this far earlier than I realised it!
Opening line: Your children deserve to know there’s more to life than this.

About Page Essential Number 2

What is it that connects us to bloggers?

Is it their story? Is it the skills that they teach? Or something more?

What connects us to bloggers, or people in general, is the part of ourselves we see in them.

So the next essential of an About Page is to list all the aspects of your life and experience that are most relevant to your blog, and those your audience will connect with most.

If your audience is made up of mommy-bloggers, think about when you’ve had to juggle priorities, or times when you feel guilty for leaving people behind. There’s a lot of guilt happening in this world of women who want to do it all!

If your audience is made up of 30-somethings trying to make it for themselves, talk about your own ambition, and what you’ve achieved in life that’s relevant to your blog topic.

It’s then a case of weaving this into your copy.

Let’s look at a couple of examples of this:

In my About page, I literally list my life values. Why? Because I know my audience are mainly coaches and therapists — the idea of values resonates with them because they help their clients live by them. It also helps people connect with me because they can clearly see the shared values between us.

Take a look at Marianne’s About page. She talks about how she’s worked with many different companies on blog design. This makes you respect her and her skill. She also mentions the aspirations she has for her children. Even if you don’t have children of your own, you immediately start thinking ‘yes, I want the same thing’.

And like magic, a connection is made without having had one physical conversation.

About Page Essential Number 3

When the reader gets to the end of the page, don’t just allow them to drift away.

It’s your job to guide their attention. And they need to know what to do next.

So, what is it that you want them to do?

• Sign up to your mailing list? Add an opt-in form.
• Consider hiring you? Add a link to your Services page.
• Connect with you on social media? Make sure the links to your profiles are there.

Always end the page with an action in mind.

You’ve already done the hard work by creating a connection with the audience. Don’t lose them at the end! Ensure there’s a clear call-to-action at the very bottom. This ensures that they buy into you at the point when they’ve connected with you the most.

So there you have it. 3 essentials of your About Page. Which one of them do you need help with most? Write a comment and let’s help you today!

About Razwana Wahid
Razwana Wahid is the founder of RazwanaWahid.com, a copywriting and online business strategy service dedicated to coaches, consultants, therapists and service providers.

Check out the Showcase: Blog Sidebar Profile Photos + Bios post for inspiration to update your sidebar bio!

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