If your About page has to earn trust in under a minute, every sentence needs to justify its own rent.
By Theo Marlowe · Published July 26, 2026
When someone opens an About page, they are usually asking a small cluster of practical questions: What exactly are you? What do you do? Who is this for? Why should I trust you enough to keep reading, enquire, donate, or buy? If the page answers those questions cleanly, it does useful work. If it wanders, the visitor starts doing mental admin, and nobody visits a website looking for extra admin.
That is why the best About pages feel human without becoming self-indulgent. They give enough context to build confidence, but they do not drown the reader in family history, awards nobody can verify, or the kind of origin story that sounds like a documentary trailer. The writing rule is the same one Google uses in its helpful content guidance: write for people first. And the layout rule is similar to the point Nielsen Norman Group makes about scanning behavior in how little users read on the web: people skim, then they commit. Your About page should work with that behavior, not fight it.
In this article, I’ll show you what to include, what to leave out, how to write a short origin story without oversharing, which photos and credentials actually help, and how to turn the whole thing into a simple template you can reuse. If you want a live reference while you work, keep your About page, Contact page, and home page open in separate tabs. That is usually enough to spot the gaps fast.
One more practical note before we get into the structure: if your site also has a Support page, do not bury support information inside About. Keep the biography page focused on trust and identity. Keep the support page focused on help, next steps, and problem-solving. That separation makes the site easier to navigate and easier to maintain.
Why About Pages Matter for Trust and Enquiries
An About page is not decoration. It is often the first place a visitor checks when they are trying to decide whether a business, artist, or charity is real, credible, and worth contacting. The page can quietly remove doubt. It can also create doubt very efficiently if it is vague, overblown, or written like a committee tried to sound impressive after lunch.
For a small business, the About page often carries the burden of reassurance. People want to know whether you are established, responsive, and capable. For an artist, the page helps explain the point of view behind the work. It gives context to the portfolio, which matters because the portfolio alone does not always explain the why. For a charity, the page has to show purpose, stewardship, and values without drifting into melodrama. Visitors want to understand the mission and feel confident that their time or money is going somewhere sensible.
Trust is built by clarity, not by volume. A short page that says the right things usually outperforms a long page that says everything except the useful part. That is especially true when the reader arrives from search, social, or a referral link and has little patience for vague branding language.
I also like to think about the About page as the place where the site’s personality becomes credible. The homepage can be broad. The services or work pages can be tactical. The About page is where the site says, “Here is the person or team behind the system.” That single move makes the rest of the site easier to believe.
What first impressions usually decide
Visitors often decide three things quickly:
- Whether the site feels real.
- Whether the people behind it seem competent.
- Whether the work looks like it is meant for someone like them.
If an About page does not help with those decisions, it is wasting prime real estate. A visitor should not have to scroll through a vague mission statement, a decorative paragraph, and a hallway of stock images before they learn who they are dealing with.
That is why plain language matters. The GOV.UK writing guidance is useful even outside government because it pushes the same idea: short sentences, concrete words, and labels that mean what they say. About pages do better when they borrow that discipline.
Trust through transparency
Transparency does not mean overexposure. It means giving enough truth that a visitor can orient themselves. A small business might explain how long it has been operating, what type of clients it prefers, and how projects are handled. An artist might explain medium, subject matter, or the thread that connects a body of work. A charity might explain who it serves, what problem it addresses, and how support is used.
The page becomes more trustworthy when the details are concrete. “We help local organisations improve their websites” says more than “We are passionate about digital excellence.” The first sentence is useful. The second sentence is usually wallpaper.
The Core Sections to Include
The strongest About pages tend to share the same backbone. The wording changes by sector, but the structure stays stable. I usually break it into four essentials: who you are, what you do, who you help, and why that matters.
| Section | What it should answer | Good example | What to avoid |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who you are | What person, team, or organisation is behind the site? | “I design websites for small teams that need clarity, not clutter.” | Long autobiography, vague brand poetry, unexplained initials. |
| What you do | What do you actually provide? | “Website design, content structure, and practical support for launch.” | Buzzwords like “solutions,” “innovation,” or “creative synergy.” |
| Who you help | Who is the site for? | “Small businesses, artists, and charities that need a straightforward online presence.” | “Everyone,” which usually means no one in particular. |
| Why it matters | What changes for the visitor? | “A clearer site means fewer questions and more useful enquiries.” | Abstract claims that never connect to a real outcome. |
Who you are
This section should tell the reader what kind of person or organisation they are dealing with. It does not need to include every qualification or every chapter of your life. It does need to create a believable frame. A solo designer can say they work directly with clients. A studio can say the site is supported by a small team. A charity can say it is run by people who are close to the mission.
Keep this section grounded. If the site is for a business, the reader wants to understand the person or team behind the offer. If it is for an artist, the reader wants a sense of the creative lens. If it is for a charity, the reader wants to know there is purpose and structure behind the public message.
What you do
This is the part many About pages skip, which is a strange habit because it is the easiest one to write. Say what you do in ordinary language. If you design websites, say that. If you make ceramics, say that. If you support a cause, say that. Do not make the reader decode a slogan to find the actual offer.
Useful formula:
- We do X.
- We do it for Y.
- We do it so Z becomes easier, clearer, or more effective.
That formula sounds almost too simple, which is usually how you can tell it is working.
Who you help
This is where the About page stops being generic and starts being useful. Visitors want to know whether they are a fit. A business might serve local shops, service firms, or small organisations. An artist might work with collectors, galleries, or commissions. A charity might support families, volunteers, donors, or community partners.
The clearer the audience, the easier the enquiry. People are more likely to contact you when they feel the page was written with them in mind.
Why it matters
This final section helps the page close the loop. It explains the value without sounding inflated. The value might be trust, ease, calm, clarity, visibility, or a better first impression. In other words: what changes because your work exists?
That is the real job of the About page. It should translate identity into relevance.
How to Write a Short Origin Story Without Oversharing
A lot of people freeze here. They know the page needs a backstory, but they do not want to write a memoir by accident. Good instinct. The trick is to write a story that answers why the work exists, not a timeline of every turn your life has ever taken.
Think in terms of three pieces:
- The starting point.
- The reason it mattered.
- The work you do now.
That is enough for most About pages.
What to include
- The moment you realised this work mattered to you.
- A problem you kept seeing in the field.
- A practical reason the site or organisation exists.
- A short note on what you care about most now.
What to skip
- Every previous job you ever had.
- Private details that do not help the reader decide.
- Exaggerated hardship stories that pull attention away from the work.
- Award lists that sound impressive but cannot be verified or do not matter to the reader.
A good origin story creates context. It does not audition for sympathy. That distinction matters, because readers are usually not looking for drama. They are looking for signs that the work has a real reason to exist.
A simple origin story can be only a few sentences long. For example:
I started building websites for small organisations because too many good businesses, studios, and charities were hiding behind confusing pages. I wanted to make the structure clearer, the copy simpler, and the next step easier to find. The work has stayed practical ever since.
That paragraph says enough. It explains the motivation, the problem, and the current focus without turning the page into a diary.
If you need a writing rule for this section, use the same one you would use for a client brief: include the details that help someone act, and cut the details that merely prove you have a past.
A note on tone
Do not try to sound grand. A calm sentence is often more convincing than a dramatic one. “I build careful, useful websites for small teams” is more trustworthy than “I am on a mission to revolutionise digital storytelling.” One sounds like work. The other sounds like a pitch deck wearing a cape.
What Photos and Credentials Help Most
Photos and credentials are not decorations. They are evidence. They tell the reader whether the page is connected to a real person, real work, or a real organisation with some history behind it. The mistake is assuming that any photo or any badge will do. It will not.
Use real, working photos first
The strongest About page photos are usually the ones that show a person or team in an actual working environment. That could be a desk, studio, workshop, gallery, office, charity meeting space, or any other setting that feels true to the work. The point is not polish. The point is believability.
| Photo type | Why it helps | What can go wrong |
|---|---|---|
| Portrait in a working space | Shows a real person and a real environment. | Can feel stiff if it looks staged beyond reason. |
| Studio or workspace scene | Shows process, tools, and context. | Can become generic if it tells no story. |
| Team photo | Useful for organisations that want to show scale and warmth. | Can feel false if the team has changed and the page has not. |
| Project or work sample photo | Supports credibility when the work itself is the point. | Can drift into portfolio territory if the About page loses focus. |
Use the photo to support the story, not replace it. If the text is thin, the image will not save the page. If the text is clear, a good image makes the page feel more grounded.
When you write alt text, describe what the image shows in plain language. The alt text should be useful to screen reader users and should also make sense if the image fails to load. It does not need to repeat keywords like a robot trying to pass as a librarian. A sentence such as “Person reviewing an About page draft at a desk with notes and a laptop” is enough.
What credentials matter most
Credentials should match the claims on the page. If you mention qualifications, memberships, exhibitions, certifications, or partnerships, they should be relevant and current. Otherwise they become decorative clutter.
Useful credentials might include:
- Professional qualifications that relate directly to the work.
- Memberships in recognised industry or charity bodies.
- Published work, exhibitions, or project milestones that can be verified.
- Years of experience, if they are current and meaningful.
- Trusted collaborators or organisations, if the relationship is real and current.
Less useful are vague claims like “award-winning” without context, or lists of logos that nobody can interpret. If a credential does not help the reader make a decision, it probably does not belong near the top of the About page.
For charities in particular, trust often improves when the page explains governance or stewardship in simple terms. For artists, credibility can come from exhibitions, collections, publications, or a coherent practice statement. For small businesses, it can come from a combination of experience, response times, and clear process.
Where social proof fits
Testimonials, short quotes, and partnership mentions can help if they are brief and relevant. I would not turn the About page into a wall of praise. One concise quote or one short proof line is usually enough.
Example:
“Clear, calm, and easy to work with.”
That kind of line works because it matches what an About page is trying to establish. It is not trying to sell in the same way a services page sells. It is trying to build confidence.
A Simple About Page Template
If you are building this page from scratch, the easiest approach is to use a fixed structure and then personalise the wording. That keeps you from overthinking the layout while still leaving room for personality.
| Order | Section | Purpose | Sample sentence starter |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Opening line | Say who you are and what the page is about. | “I build websites for…” |
| 2 | Short origin story | Explain why the work matters. | “I started because…” |
| 3 | What you do | Describe the service, work, or mission. | “I help by…” |
| 4 | Who you help | Make the audience explicit. | “This is for…” |
| 5 | Proof | Build trust with evidence or credentials. | “Recent work includes…” |
| 6 | Invitation | Tell people what to do next. | “If this sounds useful, visit our contact page.” |
Here is a fuller fill-in-the-blank version you can adapt:
We / I help [audience] with [service, product, or mission].
I started this work because [short reason].
Today, I / we focus on [what you do now] so that [outcome for the reader].
If you are looking for [type of person or project], this page should give you a clear sense of whether we fit.
For the next step, visit our contact page or return to the home page to explore the rest of the site.
That template is intentionally plain. Plain is good. Plain is editable. Plain is what you want when the actual content is the point.
What an effective About page sounds like in practice
Small business example: “I design websites for local businesses that need more enquiries and less confusion. I keep the process simple, the pages focused, and the next step obvious.”
Artist example: “My work explores texture, material, and memory. I use this page to share new pieces, exhibition notes, and a clear view of the practice behind the work.”
Charity example: “We support people in our community through practical help, clear communication, and carefully managed projects. This page explains the mission, the team, and how to get involved.”
Those examples work because they do the same three jobs: they identify the page owner, describe the focus, and show the value to the reader. There is no filler, but there is still personality.
Final Checklist Before You Publish
Before you ship the page, I would run a quick check and ask five questions:
- Can a visitor tell who this is within one screen?
- Does the page explain what is offered in ordinary language?
- Is the audience clear enough that the right people feel addressed?
- Is the origin story short enough to feel human and not self-absorbed?
- Do the photos and credentials support the story rather than clutter it?
If the answer to any of those is no, edit the page before you publish. The About page is not the place to prove you can write 1,200 words about yourself. It is the place to help a visitor decide whether to trust you.
If you want a practical order for updating your site, I would do it this way: clean up the home page first so the main promise is clear, tighten the About page second so the human story is credible, and make the Contact page the easiest endpoint on the site. If there is support or help information, keep that separated on Support so the visitor never has to guess where to go.
In short: say who you are, what you do, who you help, and why it matters. That is enough to build a solid About page for a small business, artist, or charity. Anything extra should earn its place.
- Keep the opening clear.
- Use one short origin story.
- Choose real photos and relevant credentials.
- End with a clear next step.
If you do those four things well, the page stops feeling like a biography and starts functioning like part of the website’s operating system. That is the difference between sounding presentable and actually being useful.