How to write an about me section for a small website

Most people find the about section the hardest part of their website to write. It feels like bragging, or like filling in a form. Both feelings come from the same mistake: treating it as a summary of your whole life rather than a short welcome for a stranger.

On a small website, the about section might be two sentences under your name or a short paragraph further down. Either way, it has one job. It helps someone who just arrived decide whether they are in the right place. This guide gives you a simple shape for doing that, with examples you can borrow.

The three-part shape

A good about me section usually has three parts, and each can be a single sentence.

1. What you do, in plain words. Not your title. What you actually do, and for whom.
2. One detail that makes it yours. A place, a habit, an odd specialty, a reason.
3. What a visitor can do next. Read something, book something, say hello.

Here is that shape for a florist: "I arrange flowers for small weddings and kitchen tables around the harbor. Everything is grown within a bike ride of the studio. If you have a date in mind, ask about availability." Three sentences, and a visitor knows exactly where they stand.

Write in first person

"I make..." reads warmer than "Jane Smith is a multidisciplinary..." on a personal site. Third person can work for a business or a formal portfolio, but on a small website it often feels like you are hiding behind a press release. Write the way you would introduce yourself at a friend's dinner table, then tidy it up.

If first person feels awkward, start by writing an answer to a friend's text: "what are you up to these days?" Copy the reply, remove the in-jokes and you have a first draft.

Lead with what you do, not who you are

Visitors care about what you do before they care about your story. "Freelance designer, illustrator, maker, dreamer" tells them very little. "I design labels and packaging for small food makers" tells them almost everything. You can always add the story afterwards.

If you do several unrelated things, pick the one this site is for. A cellist who also writes code can mention both, but the first sentence should match the reason most people arrive. The rest can live in a post or a second sentence.

Add one detail that only you could write

The second sentence is where an about section stops sounding like everyone else's. Good details are specific and a little personal, without being private:

• "I learned to bind books from my grandmother and still use her bone folder."
• "Most of my photos are taken before eight in the morning, on the same three streets."
• "I only take on four commissions a season so each one gets proper attention."

That last one includes a number, which is fine because it is yours and true. Avoid claims you cannot back up, such as "the best in the city", and avoid made-up figures about customers or followers.

Close with a next step

End by telling visitors what they can do. Point to the one action that matters most: your main link, your portfolio or a contact route. "If you would like a quote, the contact link below is the quickest way to reach me." On a link-in-bio page, this is often just a nudge towards the first link. On a site with posts, it might be "start with the newest note".

Three more examples to borrow

A potter: "I make everyday mugs and bowls in a garage studio by the river. Every glaze is mixed by hand, so no two batches match. New pieces go up on the first weekend of each month."

A student building a first portfolio: "I study product design and like fixing things nobody asked me to fix. These are the projects I learned the most from. I am looking for a summer placement."

A retired teacher who writes local history: "I write short histories of the streets in our town. Most start with a single old photograph. If you have one, I would love to see it."

What to leave out

Some things make about sections longer without making them better:

• Long lists of tools, skills or software, unless the site is for hiring.
• Dates and "currently" statements that will go stale.
• Every job you have ever had. Link a CV if someone needs it.
• Private details you would not tell a stranger, such as your home street.
• Apologies, such as "I am just starting out, so...". Say what you do and let the work speak.

Match the words to the scene

On Mini Casa, your words sit inside an illustrated scene, so the two should feel like they belong together. Paper Trail is a letterpress cottage with a book roof and letters to deliver. It suits a warm, slightly bookish about section. Margin Notes is a cottage under an open book, with a pencil and a cup, and it works well for writers and people who like to think on the page. A playful scene can carry a playful sentence. A calm scene asks for calmer words.

If your site is mainly a portfolio, the guide to writing a project story shows how to give each piece the same kind of plain, specific context.

Read it out loud

Before you publish, read your about section out loud once. Anywhere you stumble, the sentence is too long. Anywhere you cringe, the claim is too big or too vague. Fix those two things and you are almost certainly done. Then leave it alone for a week and read it again with fresh eyes.