Michael Gaigg: Über UI/UX Design

Design Guidelines: ‘About Us’ Page

Example of an 'About Us' page from IT Solutions

There are many reasons for improving the usability of your 'About Us' page. Unfortunately many companies, especially bigger and well-known companies, tend to underestimate the value that comes from a well-designed 'About Us' page or simply assume that there is no need to explain themselves to their users.

The 'About Us' page helps to establish and re-enforce Trust and Credibility. Users of different backgrounds may need to know who is behind the content or service. Should I invest in this company? Apply for a job? Write an article about their service? Order a product?

The best news over all is: a simple link on your homepage is cheap and easy and the benefits of a clean and well-structured 'About Us' page outweigh many times the effort of creating it.

Design Guidelines for 'About Us' pages

1. Provide clearly visible link on homepage
2. Label the link either “About ” or “About Us”
3. Present content in ‘inverted pyramid’ layers:
   • Tagline: Few words or brief sentence summarizing what you do
   • Summary: One to two paragraphs about goals and main accomplishments
   • Fact sheet: Section that outlines key points and other essential facts
   • Details: Subsidiary pages providing indebt information about processes, company structure, philosophy etc.
4. Disclose address

References

• Nielsen, J.; About Us Information on Websites; http://www.useit.com/alertbox/about-us-pages.html

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About Michael Gaigg

Michael Gaigg is a User Interface Expert at ESRI. His expertise includes User-centered Design (UCD), Usability, Accessibility and Section 508, Web Development and Web Design.