About Us, Who Cares?

One of the most popular questions that I hear from B2B companies is why do we need an About Us section on our website? This question is posed a lot because you tend to think that a customer is going to buy only due to the products or services you provide, not an about us section. But in order to truly answer this question for your company you need to consider what you want to accomplish with your website and B2B online marketing strategy. Step back and ask yourself a few very important questions:

1. Are you trying to gain new leads and customers?
2. Is your sales cycle longer than a few minutes?
3. Are you trying to build long-term relationships with your customers?

If you answered yes to any of the above, then your website needs an About Us section to effectively accomplish these goals. Let me explain why and how.

What Does an About Us Section Do?

In just a few words, it gives information about your company. But let’s dig a little deeper into the reason behind giving this.

Trust. Giving customers information about your company is the number one way to build trust, especially with customers who have never done business with you before. In its bare form, it builds trust by telling your customers that you are a real company and that you are willing to disclose information about yourself. Would you want to enter personal information into a website that you know nothing about, especially when you know a competitor? Probably not. By having an About Us section that gives detailed information about your company, such as your history, it builds trust that you’re a reliable company to do business with.

Personality. While showing your company’s personality might not beat something like price in the eyes of a customer, it can be a very powerful influence. Exhibiting your company’s personality through an about us section, puts a face on the company and gives customers a feeling of dealing with a person rather than just a machine or a process. Taking it a step farther and creating a “peoples” section where you give employee bios gives customers a personal feel which will resonate in their mind when thinking about doing business with your company.

Benefits/Relationships. One great way to use an about us section is to answer the #1 question that everyone is asking: Why should I do business with you? In an about us section talk about all the benefits of your company, staff, etc. Try to stray away from sounding salesy, but instead like you are someone who is personally describing an experience with working with your own company. Do you have trained staff to answer questions? Do you always strive to meet the customer’s needs? To you have any guarantees? This is the place to put all of that information and show customers that you are a company that is worth doing business with and a company that is willing to build long term relationships with it’s customers.

Compete Against the Amazon and Grainger Giants

An about us section is very important for B2B companies to have on their website. It is just one of the many elements that goes into good online marketing. It gives customers a sense of trust, puts a face to the company, and exhibits your company’s benefits. All of these allow your company to compete against big well-known companies such as Amazon and Grainger who are known as just big corporate companies.

Here are just a few things to consider when putting together your About Us:

• Company history: Founders, years in business, mission and vision, etc.
• Industries served: If you target more than one industry this is a good place to make that clear.
• Employees: If you have a knowledgeable and helpful staff let your customers know.
• Certifications and associations: If you are a game player in the industry then show that on your website.

For 8 tips to write a converting about us page, take a look at this blog post from my colleague Laure Marini.

Interested in more tips to improve your website?  Learn 5 other ways to increase the effectiveness of your website.

For full guidelines on how to create content to market your specialized knowledge and increase sales, take a look at our Essential Guide to B2B Content Marketing.

And, if you need a partner to ensure that your website is a well-oiled converting machine, contact us!