The about page is one of the most visited pages on a local business website — and one of the most commonly underestimated. Most business owners treat it as an obligation: a brief paragraph about when the company was founded, a list of services, and perhaps a mission statement nobody reads.
Done well, the about page does something no other page on your website can do. It answers the question every potential customer is quietly asking: who am I actually dealing with here?
Why People Visit Your About Page
Visitors who navigate to your about page are already engaged. They’ve seen enough on your homepage or service pages to be interested — and now they’re doing due diligence. They want to know whether this is a business they can trust, relate to, and feel comfortable working with.
This is a high-intent moment. The visitor is actively evaluating you. What they find on your about page will either confirm their interest or create doubt.
For local businesses on the Mornington Peninsula — where personal connection and community reputation carry significant weight — the about page is where that human connection is made online.
What an Effective About Page Includes
Real people, named and photographed. The single biggest differentiator between an about page that builds trust and one that doesn’t is whether it shows actual humans. A photo of the founder, the team, or the people who will do the work — with names attached — creates a connection that generic business descriptions can’t replicate.
Visitors are often choosing between multiple businesses. The one that feels most human, most real, most like someone they’d trust in their home is the one that wins the enquiry.
The genuine story behind the business. Not a corporate history. A real story — why the business exists, what problem it was started to solve, what drives the people behind it. This doesn’t need to be long. A few honest paragraphs outperform a page of formal language every time.
Your values and approach. What do you actually care about? How do you approach your work differently? What do you believe that your competitors might not? These aren’t abstract questions — the answers are what make you memorable and relatable.
Credentials and experience where relevant. Years of experience, qualifications, relevant certifications, notable clients or projects — these add credibility without replacing the human element. They answer the capability question: can this business actually do what they say?
A connection to place. For businesses on the Mornington Peninsula, mentioning where you’re based, what suburbs you serve, and any genuine connection to the local area strengthens both your local relevance for SEO and your relatability for local customers.
Common About Page Mistakes
Writing in third person. “XYZ Company was founded in 2015 with a commitment to excellence” sounds like a press release. Writing in first person — “We started Click Websites because we kept seeing local businesses with websites that looked fine but generated nothing” — is far more engaging and credible.
No photos. An about page without photos of real people is a missed opportunity at best and trust-reducing at worst. Even a single good photo of the founder makes the page dramatically more effective.
Listing services instead of telling a story. Your about page isn’t a second services page. Services belong on service pages. Your about page is about who you are, why you do what you do, and what it’s like to work with you.
No call to action. A visitor who’s finished reading your about page and is now convinced they want to work with you should have an obvious next step. A simple “Ready to work together? Get in touch” with a link to your contact page captures that momentum.
The SEO Value of a Strong About Page
Beyond conversion, a well-written about page has SEO value. It’s an opportunity to naturally mention your location, your services, and your local relevance — all signals that reinforce your geographic and topical authority with Google.
It’s also a page that attracts links. Other local businesses, industry directories, and community websites are more likely to link to an interesting, genuine about page than to a generic one. Those links contribute to your overall domain authority.
Putting It Right
If your current about page is a paragraph of corporate language and no photos, it’s worth spending an afternoon rewriting it. Tell your actual story. Add real photos. Write in a voice that sounds like a human being rather than a company brochure.
The about page is one of the pages a good web designer on the Mornington Peninsula will discuss with you during the planning phase — because getting it right matters for conversion, for trust, and for the overall impression your website creates.
You can see how we approach our own story on the our story page. Browse our portfolio for examples of how about pages sit within a complete website build, or get in touch to talk about your project.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the about page really one of the most visited pages on a website?
Yes, consistently. Visitors who are genuinely considering working with a business almost always check the about page before making contact. It’s the human due diligence step — and what they find there significantly influences whether they enquire.
How long should an about page be?
Long enough to tell a genuine story and answer the key questions — typically 300 to 600 words is a good range for a local business about page. Quality and authenticity matter more than length. A short, honest, well-photographed about page outperforms a long, formal, faceless one.
Should I include my full team on the about page?
If your team is a meaningful part of the customer experience — as it is for most service businesses — yes. Named team members with photos and brief bios personalise the business and reduce the anonymity that can prevent enquiries.
Does the about page help with SEO?
Indirectly, yes. A well-written about page that naturally includes your location, your services, and your local relevance reinforces geographic and topical signals for Google. It’s also a page that can attract links from other local sites, contributing to your overall domain authority.
