Why Your Website About Page Drives Visitors Away

Most business owners I meet spend months obsessing over their homepage — the banner, the colours, the tagline. Then someone asks them, 'What does your About page say?' and there is a long pause. Usually it says something like: 'We are a leading provider of quality solutions with over X years of experience, committed to customer satisfaction.' That sentence could belong to literally any business in India. A buyer reading it learns nothing useful about you.

Here is what actually happens when a serious buyer lands on your website. They look at your homepage for about ten seconds. If something feels relevant, they do not click your services page next. They click About. They want to know who is behind this business. Are these real people? Do they understand my problem? Can I trust them with my money? Your About page is the moment a visitor decides whether to stay or leave. Most Indian business websites fail this test completely.

The most common mistake I see is writing the About page for your ego instead of your buyer's anxiety. Founders list awards, year of establishment, number of employees, certifications and a mission statement written by a committee. None of that answers the buyer's real question, which is: 'Why should I choose you over the three other vendors I have already shortlisted?' If your About page cannot answer that clearly, you are pushing warm leads straight to your competitor.

The second mistake is writing in the third person about yourself. 'ABC Enterprises was founded in 2009 with a vision to...' This sounds like a press release. Buyers are not reading your About page looking for corporate history. They want to feel a human connection. When a founder writes in their own voice — even just one or two paragraphs — the page immediately becomes more trustworthy. I have seen this change alone improve enquiry rates for small manufacturers and service businesses I work with in Bengaluru.

What should an About page actually contain? Start with who you serve and what problem you solve — not who you are. Lead with relevance. Then tell the founder's story briefly, including why this business exists and what you have seen in your industry that others miss. Add one or two sentences about your team or your working style. Then end with a clear next step — a link to your services, a call to action, or an invitation to speak with you directly. If you are unsure how your current page reads to a first-time visitor, a proper one-to-one consultation can help you look at it through a buyer's eyes.

Photographs matter more than most founders realise. A real photo of you or your team — even a simple one taken in your office or workspace — builds more trust than a stock image of a handshake or a glowing cityscape. I have reviewed websites for trading companies, logistics firms, interior designers and food brands. The ones with real founder photos consistently get more direct enquiries than the ones using generic visuals. Buyers want to see the face behind the business before they hand over their budget.

Length is also misunderstood. Your About page does not need to be long. It needs to be clear. A 200-word page that answers the buyer's three core questions — who are you, who do you help, why should I trust you — will outperform a 1,000-word corporate essay every time. Read your current About page out loud. If it sounds like something you would never actually say to a client sitting across from you, rewrite it until it does.

One more thing that is almost always missing: social proof on the About page. This does not mean a separate testimonials section. It means weaving in one or two short, specific client outcomes into your story. 'We have helped packaging manufacturers in Pune reduce their reorder cycle by restructuring how they present their product range to buyers.' Something concrete like that does more work than ten vague sentences about your commitment to excellence. If you want a structured way to work through this and other website communication gaps, our business growth workshops cover exactly this kind of practical audit.

Fix your About page before you spend another rupee on ads or SEO. Traffic means nothing if the page that builds trust is actively breaking it. Read the page as if you are a buyer who has never heard of your business. Ask yourself: does this make me want to call them? If the answer is no, you know what to do next. It is one of the cheapest, highest-impact fixes available to any founder — and it requires no developer, no budget and no campaign. Just honest, clear writing about who you really are and who you genuinely help.