What are you looking for when you visit the "About us" page on a website?

[JoaoPereira]

I don't know exactly what you're looking for if you visit the "about us" page for an IT/Software Development Consultancy Company.

If your looking for IT/Software Development services and you find a company that may do the job, do you visit their "about us" page? What are you looking for, there?

 

[downsouth]

nah, no point its all glossy sales patter to be honest. every tom dick n harry can pull together wording that makes them appear far larger, more successful than their competitors.

I'd be on the phone, talking with them, examples of work, wanting to talk to reference customers etc

 

[JoaoPereira]

Yeahh, I agree with you...

I need to make my "about us" page for my recently created ltd company, but I'm just starting and starting as contractor.... not much that I have to say.... so I asked... I guess that legally here in the UK i need to have the company number and where is registered and what we do?

I'm sick of seeing "about us" pages that tell big stories, but don't believe they do anything about getting new deals.

 

[downsouth]

no need for an about us page tbh, just put the company legals in the footer section

 

[fisicx]

A picture and a bit of background and maybe a few details of qualifications and memberships.

But if the site is well constructed there should be no reason to ever visit an 'about me/us' page.

 

[JoaoPereira]

I think I will go for that...

 

[Darren C]

If your looking for IT/Software Development services and you find a company that may do the job, do you visit their "about us" page? What are you looking for, there?

As mentioned above, these pages tend to be a load of generic nonsense or (annoyingly) a one-man band referring to himself as we/us/our team, etc.

To answer your question though, I think a few pictures and a bit about your background may suffice? An address and contact number, email and so on.

 

[JoaoPereira]

As mentioned above, these pages tend to be a load of generic nonsense or (annoyingly) a one-man band referring to himself as we/us/our team, etc.

To answer your question though, I think a few pictures and a bit about your background may suffice? An address and contact number, email and so on.

Yeah, maybe a link to my linked in profile?

 

[UKSBD]

A brief background, how long you have been doing what you do, when Company was formed, your company name, your company number, your Vat number, your Data Protection number, your name, your trading and registered address, your phone number, your email address, how much insurance you have, a photo of you, a photo of office, a Google map (with Streetview).

If you work from home, don't be afraid to let me know
If it's your 1st year in business don't try to give the impression you have been in business for years.

Honesty on an about page will stop you losing my business as I will research you anyway.

 

[fisicx]

Yeah, maybe a link to my linked in profile?

Why do you want to do this? Everything I need to know about you should be on the site. Taking me off site to look at your connections means you no longer have any control over what I do next.

 

[JoaoPereira]

All great input. Thanks guys. You're all very helpful.

 

[SuffolkLad]

Ultimately - you have to ask the question "What is the purpose of your web site?" People often misunderstand the purpose of a web site.

What actually are you trying to convey with your web site? If you are selling your services, then you need to include the relevant information about those services and your experience in providing those services. In respect of the About Page - consider this... You could be a recently qualified accountant with all the certificates and accreditation's from institutions, or you could be the person who worked in the finance department for a large corporation - either scenario has its pluses and minuses. A potential customer knows what they're looking for.

The recently qualified person is more likely to be up to date with regs and best practices where as the experienced person will have a very streamlined faster way of working that is proven but not necessarily 'current best practice'. One may charge by the hour, one may charge for the job.

Which would you choose and why?

Truth is, you can only answer as you would choose if you were the customer, and that is how you must think about your web site and the content you put on it - including an About page. Is an About page even appropriate on such a web site?

 

[JoaoPereira]

So I'm a software contractor and the site is for my limited company. I don't need much in the about page, i guess.

I mainly work either from home or from the client's premises.
Right now I get business through agencies, but in the future I would like to change that.

I will use the site to mainly to publish technical articles and make my contacts available.
I think I will also have my CV over there to download...

 

[SuffolkLad]

The 'About' page is redundant because what you provide would come under the section on the 'Services you Provide'.

TBH, it seems more like what you will have is a 'Technical Blog' or a 'Knowledge Base' available on a pay per view basis. That being the case, 'About' is the least of the pages you would need.

That's my take on your personal situation.

 

[JoaoPereira]

The 'About' page is redundant because what you provide would come under the section on the 'Services you Provide'.

TBH, it seems more like what you will have is a 'Technical Blog' or a 'Knowledge Base' available on a pay per view basis. That being the case, 'About' is the least of the pages you would need.

That's my take on your personal situation.

Thanks. It's free to access to whatever I write in the blog, though... Think as the Netflix Engineering Blog, or google engineering blog... free knowledge for everyone. The point of the blog is to help future clients to make a decision about hiring me...

 

[Alan]

I run two sites - one my technical blog / notebook - this is because it can be far less formal than your 'professional' site. You simple use an author profile to explain who you are - e.g.see http://badlywired.com/2017/09/recipe-for-a-raspberry-pi-kiosk/

My formal site isn't relevant to your sector ( its on my sig if you are nosey ) but obviously as it is 'selling' it can't / shouldn't be as informal.

I would suggest you just run your technical blog for fun for time being...

Why ....

I mainly work either from home or from the client's premises.
Right now I get business through agencies, but in the future I would like to change that.

This is unlikely to ever happen, people who buy from agencies don't buy from direct websites. You will never have the marketing reach into corporates that agencies do so you website is never likely to bring in the sort of lucrative contracts that you probably are getting. And if you did have the same marketing reach / capabilities / sales skills - then it would actually be more lucrative for you to set up as an agency ( I have known several contractors that have done this successfully ).

 

[kev598]

I expect to see some overview or history of the company, some achievments, general information about team members or key team members contact information, including social networks and additional platforms related to that type of the business and google map with street overview. But it is in case if you already have established your business. If you are at the beginning I agree that blog would be the perfect option.

 

[fisicx]

Why on earth would you want to use a blog for this?

If the site is properly constructed an about us page shouldn’t really be needed. All your other suggestions could be integrated with the rest of the content.

 

[webgeek]

Until you have deals under your belt, where you can talk about accomplishments, focus on capabilities.

This would be a good place to focus on how your skills, knowledge and experience can shape solutions that will save them time, attract new customers, build profitability.

 

[lillie421]

I would say the same as most people, maybe just a short description of your company but not in too much detail as you will want some information to put in the 'services we provide'.

 

[Clinton]

Taking me off site to look at your connections means you no longer have any control over what I do next.

Why is "control" important?

I'm tired of modern marketing that is exploitative, controlling and herds people into "funnels" to push them in a particular direction. Marketing has become a competition about who can better play psychological games against the consumer and manipulate him into spending money.

I avoid buying from firms that are trying too hard to manipulate me.

With respect my own business, I regularly send people away from my site. I send them to my LinkedIn page, to articles I've written on hundreds of other sites, to competitors. Yet, I am almost always fully booked up and I turned away three potential clients yesterday.

Have a good enough "product" and people you send away will come back to you. You will also have a much, much better quality client - someone who doesn't need to be talked into buying but who has come to that conclusion from his own research. The importance of this cannot be overstated. Have a quality client and you won't need to give them discounts, extend credit terms, suffer the embarrassment of them bargaining, tolerate awkward and difficult behaviour. They'll respect your work, cooperate with you, pay in advance.

All the hard core marketing talk I see around me everyday in thousands of blog posts from Yannick Silver to Neil Patel is really just about compensating for a sh*t product.

 

[WebshopMechanic]

Hi @Clinton

I agree with your point about being transparent and not trying to drive people too hard down the funnel. There is 'too much hype and not enough help' on the internet.

BUT, do I believe there are different types of customer that need to be served.

Some people want a little helping hand and may not be able to afford your services and others want you to do it for them. I don't see why anyone would turn away a passive income from a customer who wants to do it themselves using your knowledge.

You and I also only have a few hours in the day so it's impossible to help everyone you want to.

I'm certainly not a fan of promising the earth with loads of Facebook ad videos and snake-oil webinar pitches because this type of hype ends in tears. People part with their hard-earned cash thinking it will solve their problems and it almost never does.

With that in mind, I also agree with your point about giving information freely. If you can go through life with a 'give to receive' attitude then you will always come out on top.

The problem lies though, in the fact that most people start a business just to make money. They are so focused on pound and dollar signs that they become desperate to sell and that desperation is seen a mile away. Those types of businesses rarely last long and, like you say, are generally trying to sell a crappy product.

I admit, I was like that years ago. I actually had quite a good product but I didn't focus on my customers. I was too focused on shifting boxes and making money. I was taught bad habits and I learned the hard way.

Lesson learned.

 

[Yelsha64]

It doesn't have to be anything complicated. Most people won't really care, It's more to put a face to the business so they gain more confidence and trust. If you are a team put some pics of the team and who they are, names etc. A paragraph about what you guys are about and your niche. Put a bit of humour in there to, I think that helps although hard to prove! contact details on the about page I think is good. Hope I helped.

 

[fisicx]

I'm tired of modern marketing that is exploitative, controlling and herds people into "funnels" to push them in a particular direction. Marketing has become a competition about who can better play psychological games against the consumer and manipulate him into spending money.

I agree. But there has to be a reason for an external link. Sending me to your facebook or linkedin page when just turns out to be a bunch of posts linking back to your main site is pointless.

But if you have a page discussing company valuations and you link to an article you wrote about the overvaluation of a dot com then the link adds value.

@johnpear is an IT consultant so the website should be for the benefit to the potential client. If there is a link is to a twitter feed that is full of admiration for Trump then where is the benefit to anyone? Same as a link to a linkedin page that just has a list of jobs - how is this of benefit? But a link to a linkedin post that has a vibrant discussion that demonstrates knowledge and skill then this can be a good endorsement.

 

[Stuart Elmes]

Disagree with much of what has been said about the About Us page. I often look at this to get a flavour of the company I'm looking at.

Yes, they can be full of annoying corporate-speak, but I want to know about how long you've been going, what type of customers you have, what you think is special about you, whether you're part of some bigger group, and maybe just a little bit of background about the founders/key people and how the company got going.

I'm fed up of these single page websites that all look the same...

 

[fisicx]

I'm fed up of these single page websites that all look the same...

...the way yours does

 

[HelenCope]

I always use the about us page of website as another area to target keywords. For example I run a marketing agency so my about us page targets the keyword 'marketing consultanct hampshire'. I hope that helps.

 

[fisicx]

Is there a lot of competition for 'consultanct'?

 

[Total Barcodes]

We turned the About Us section around slightly and put some questions together to ask the visitor to our site. Anybody can write a speech about how great they are, best in the industry but it doesn't really say much to a potential reader. I don't know if ours is good, or not, but it's on our website if you want to look at it

 

[RickiRick]

Usually, if I open the page "ABOUT US", it means that I am about to work with this company or that I still have some doubt. So this page must be so informative and interesting written to persuade me. A lot of sites put in "ABOUT US" general blurred information, in this case I always close such site.

 

[makeyourbusinessbetter]

Disagree with much of what has been said about the About Us page. I often look at this to get a flavour of the company I'm looking at.

Yes, they can be full of annoying corporate-speak, but I want to know about how long you've been going, what type of customers you have, what you think is special about you, whether you're part of some bigger group, and maybe just a little bit of background about the founders/key people and how the company got going.

I'm fed up of these single page websites that all look the same...

I agree with Stuart. The 'About Us' page is your elevator pitch, the opportunity to tell everyone about what you do and why they should choose your company, to create interest that hopefully leads to further investigation. You have about 60 seconds to persuade me to either look at your website further and pick up the phone or click onto the next company on my Google search.

It's like when someone provides a CV for a job. You don't want to provide every single detail, you just want to create enough interest to make the shortlist for an interview. People don't decide to hire you from a CV or a website, they usually decide within five minutes of talking to you. You have to create enough interest to persuade them to pick up the phone.

Put yourself in the shoes of a potential client. What do I want to know? What services am I looking for? Do you have the experience and expertise to provide the services that I want or need?

 

[Total Barcodes]

This is the About Us 'blurb' we went for......

Total Barcodes Limited is the evolution of 18 years worth of experience working in the Auto ID and POS industry. With experience accrued in the Distribution and Reseller network, Total Barcodes have the knowledge and experience to assist with any request, from integration of a new barcoding system in your warehouse and all of the hardware associated with this, to sourcing the correct thermal labels for your applications.

We supply barcoding hardware, such as Mobile Computers, Rugged PDA's and Tablets, Barcode Scanners, Thermal Label Printers (including consumables), Point of Sale hardware as well as Software solutions from Warehouse Management and Stock Control to Asset Management Software.

Now, enough about us.....what about you? Are you looking to get your business working with a new warehouse management system and don't know where to start? Do you need to refresh your estate of barcode scanners, and unsure of which models will suit your application the best? Are your customers asking for traceability which requires you to adopt a barcoding system in terms of thermal labelling and barcode scanning? If so, we can take the pressure away from you and offer an informative and consultative approach to finding the right solution that will work for your business. We work closely with all of the leading hardware vendors to ensure that the quality of our service is supported by a high quality hardware offering so that your business can become more efficient and profitable.

To find out how we can help you, please get in touch on 01482 534756 or email our sales team at and we will get back to you straight away.