I was
recently in a Quick Win Intensive,
working with the MECLABS Institute team to optimize the conversion rate of a
professional services firm’s website. According to the analytics, the About Us
page was getting a significant number of visits.
However,
when we took a look at the page, it clearly wasn’t built with conversion – or
even customers – in mind. The webpage seemed to focus more on pleasing the
company’s employees.
There was
a bio for the founder, but other than that, there were just pictures of
employees and the departments they were in. No titles. No bios.
But more
importantly, no real understanding of who they are, how they can help a
customer, or why the customer should trust them.
The only
clear qualification they had to be trusted by a potential client was a face.
(After all, what client would trust a person without a face to handle their
account?)
Understanding the Role of Your Company’s About Page in Conversion
This
company is certainly not alone in overlooking their About page. For a lot of
websites, About Us pages are an afterthought. Or at the very least, not
considered by marketers in the customer journey.
But for
certain companies – like companies that have a complex sale, offer services, or
otherwise require high levels of trust – the About Us page can be a key part of
the customer’s decision-making process. Here are some reasons why:
·
If the customer is purchasing the services of an individual or
group of people – attorneys, medical professionals, advertising agency, etc. –
they may click to the About page to understand who they will be working with
before filling out a lead form or calling a phone number
·
If an influencer is considering recommending a company as a
vendor, they will search for information to justify why they are making their
recommendation
·
If the customer is coming to the website from an ad and has never
heard of your company or brand before, the customer may simply want some
reassurance that it is a legitimate company before considering a purchase
And as
the customer journey gets deeper with your company, the About Us page becomes
even more important. Customer interest in company info is
higher in the Negotiation and Purchase phases than in the
earlier Awareness and Research phases of the buying cycle.
Let’s
discuss some ways to optimize your company’s About page to increase the
likelihood of conversion.
Humanize Your Company
There’s
nothing wrong with having employee pictures on your About page. But they should
have a purpose and communicate value to the customer, not just be a set of
pictures.
If your
company has a unique culture or viewpoint, the About page is an opportunity
to humanize your
company and let that passion shine.
For
example, to compete with larger competitors, Evogear treated its About page
like a social networking site to highlight its employees’ passions for outdoor
sports. The online retailer of outdoor gear and fashion apparel included
employee profiles with answers to questions and prompts like:
·
Brands I am stoked on.
·
What do you like to do besides work at Evogear.com?
·
How did you get your start with Evogear?
·
First time skiing or snowboarding?
As with
any social networking site, each staffer's profile includes a button so
visitors can contact that individual directly.
And they
even promoted the About page on the website. An ad on the homepage included
three staffers’ headshots along with the copy “Who is Evogear? Click here to
find out more about us.” And the team added a link to the About page as a
standard part of the footer on every product page: “Why Buy From Evogear? Take
a peek into our world.”
You can
read more about Evogear’s effort in the case study Personable ‘About Us’ Page Lifts
Ecommerce Conversions 30%.
Reduce Anxiety
According
to the MECLABS Conversion Heuristic, a repeatable
methodology marketers can use to identify the elements that affect likelihood
of conversion, anxiety is one of the negative elements that will lower your
conversion rate. Anxiety in a marketing context is defined as “a psychological
concern stimulated by a given element in the sales or sign-up process.”
Your
company’s About page can help reduce customer anxiety by building up your
company’s credibility. The About page is a great place to include credibility indicators like:
·
How long the company has been in business
·
The size and scope of the company – revenue, number of employees,
amount of sales, number of locations, number of stores your product is sold in,
etc.
·
Biographies of key company leaders, which could include their
education, previous companies they worked at, professional accomplishments,
awards, how they have helped similar customers, etc.
·
Company awards or other recognition
·
Brief mention of press coverage with a link to a more complete
page
·
Information about a parent company, industry memberships, or other
key affiliations
·
Prominent customers your company works with
Communicate Your Company’s Primary Value Proposition
There
are four essential levels of value
proposition your website should communicate to visitors. For
example, while a potential customer may first get brought to your website from
an email or ad that links directly to a product page where you should lead with
a product-level value prop, the About Us page is an opportunity to clearly
communicate your company’s primary value proposition.
According
to MECLABS, a forceful company value proposition will provide a clear,
credible, appealing, and exclusive answer to the question “If I am your ideal
customer, why should I buy from you instead of any of your competitors?” You
can learn more about optimizing your company’s value proposition in Aligning the Brand with the Value
Proposition Is the Most Powerful Way to Create Value Momentum.
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