How to write your About page

The About page gets more visits than most owners expect. People go there when they're close to getting in touch and want to know who they'd be dealing with. It doesn't need to be long. It needs to sound like a real person runs the place.

Start with who you are

Use your name. Say how long you've been doing this and where. "I'm Dana. I've been cutting hair in Takoma Park since 2014." That one line does more than a paragraph about quality and passion.

If there's a team, name the people customers will actually meet. A photo of each helps. So does one plain line about what they do.

Say who you work with

Tell people who you're a good fit for. Families, small offices, older homes, first time buyers, whoever it is. This helps the right people feel sure and saves the wrong ones from asking. It's fine to say what you don't do too.

Say why it's done your way

Most businesses have a few habits that make them different. You show up when you say you will. You give written quotes. You only use one supplier because you trust them. Pick two or three and say them simply. Skip anything every competitor would also claim.

Show you're real

A photo of you, not a stock image. Your service area or the neighborhoods you cover, like Bethesda, Rockville and Gaithersburg. Licenses or insurance if your trade has them. A link to your Google reviews if you have a good number.

What to leave out

Mission statements. Long origin stories that start in childhood. Words like innovative, passionate and dedicated. Lists of values. None of these tell a customer anything they can use, and they make the page sound like it was written for a brochure.

Write it like you talk

Try saying your About page out loud to a customer at the counter. If a line would sound strange said out loud, change it. Short sentences are fine. "I" is fine if it's just you. Don't call yourself "we" to look bigger.

End with how to reach you. Your phone number, your email and your area are enough. Someone who reads to the bottom of your About page is close to getting in touch, so make it easy.