A good About page answers four questions in the first screen: who you are, who you help, what you do and why anyone should believe you. It should do so with specific, checkable facts rather than slogans, because that is what a cautious buyer wants and what an AI assistant is most likely to repeat accurately when someone asks about your company.
We rewrite About pages for clients more often than any other page, and the pattern is consistent: a long mission statement, stock photos and almost no facts. Here is the structure we use instead.
Why does the About page matter more than it used to?
Two audiences read it. The first is the buyer who has seen an ad or a recommendation and wants to know whether you are real before they send an enquiry. The About page is often among the first pages they check. The second is an AI assistant or search engine that needs to describe who you are. When someone asks an assistant “what does Company X do?”, it draws on what it can find about you, and your own About page is the one source you fully control. If that page is vague, the description will be vague or borrowed from a third party.
We think this is one of the cheapest brand improvements available, though we have no controlled study to quote; the logic follows from how these systems pull in public text. Related reading: what to do when ChatGPT gets your business wrong.
The structure, section by section
1. A one-sentence statement at the top
Start with a plain sentence that could be lifted out of context and still make sense: “We are a six-person accounting firm in Tampere that helps freelancers and small companies with bookkeeping, VAT and year-end reporting.” It names the type of company, the place, the customer and the service. That sentence is also the single most useful line for an assistant to quote, so write it carefully and use the same wording elsewhere.
If you are unsure how to phrase who you serve and why you are different, our post on writing a positioning statement in 90 minutes provides a template.
2. Your story in three short paragraphs
People like to know why a company exists, but they do not want a saga. Use three short paragraphs: the problem you saw, what you did about it, and what you do today. Include the founding year and a real reason. “We started in 2019 after both of us spent years watching small clients overpay for work they did not understand” is better than “passion for excellence”.
3. The facts block
Give a scannable block of facts that a visitor or a machine can verify:
- Year founded and where you are based
- Team size, or key roles
- Services in one line each
- Languages and markets served
- Certifications, partnerships or memberships you can prove
- Business ID or registration number, which signals legitimacy in many markets
Be careful to include only what is true and current. An outdated team size or a certification that has lapsed damages trust more than an omission.
4. The people
Show real names, real photos, roles, and one sentence of relevant experience each. A page that says “our experienced team” without a single name suggests there is nothing to show. If you are a very small team, two or three founders are fine. Link each person to a profile page or LinkedIn so their credentials can be checked. Use consistent job titles across the site and external profiles.
5. Evidence, not adjectives
Replace “trusted”, “leading” and “innovative” with proof. Good evidence includes named clients with permission, specific results with the context in which they were achieved, third-party reviews, awards, press mentions and links to published work. If you cannot name clients, describe the type of client and the situation in concrete terms, without inventing details. We cover how to collect proof that persuades in our post on getting testimonials that actually persuade, and how outside reviews affect AI descriptions in whether Trustpilot and G2 reviews influence AI assistants.
6. A clear next step
End with one action matching the reader’s intent: contact, book a call or view services. Make the contact details visible, including a real email address and phone number. Hiding behind a form alone reduces trust, particularly for businesses that sell services.
Common About-page mistakes
| Mistake | Why it hurts | Better |
|---|---|---|
| Opens with a mission statement | Visitors still don’t know what you do | One plain sentence first |
| Stock photos of strangers | Signals a company with nothing to show | Real photos, even simple ones |
| No dates or numbers | Nothing checkable to quote | Founding year, team size, years of experience |
| Different facts across platforms | Assistants repeat the wrong one | Match the website, LinkedIn and directories |
| Superlatives without proof | Readers discount them | Specific, sourced claims |
Keep your company facts consistent everywhere
An assistant gathers information from your website, social profiles, directories and press. If your site says you were founded in 2019 and your LinkedIn says 2020, or your company name appears with different spellings, the system may repeat either, or an average of both. After you finish the page, audit these places and align them: LinkedIn company page, Google Business Profile if relevant, industry directories, your email signature and any Wikipedia or Wikidata entry if one exists. Naming also plays a role; see how to choose a business name that AI assistants can find and repeat correctly.
Should you add structured data?
An Organization schema block, with your name, URL, logo, founding date and links to your official profiles, is a sensible addition and costs little. Be realistic about what it achieves: the research on whether markup directly drives AI citations is mixed, and we summarised it in does schema markup actually get you cited by AI. Think of it as clear labelling of facts that are already on the page, not as a ranking trick.
A fifteen-minute test of your current page
- Cover everything except the first screen. Can a stranger say what you do, for whom and where?
- Count the verifiable facts on the page (dates, names, numbers, credentials). If there are fewer than five, it is thin.
- Ask an AI assistant, “What does [your company] do?” and compare the answer with your preferred wording.
- Check that every claim you make could be verified by a sceptical customer in two clicks.
Fix what fails, and rewrite the top sentence first. It takes under an hour and tends to improve both visitor trust and the accuracy of how you are described.
FAQ
How long should an About page be?
Between 400 and 800 words is plenty for most small businesses, with a scannable facts block and people section. Length matters less than the proportion of specific facts.
Should the About page mention prices?
Not necessarily, but link to your services or pricing page. The About page should establish who you are; the service pages should handle what you charge.
How often should I update it?
Review it every six months and whenever team, services or certifications change, then update external profiles to match.