Blogging 101: How to Write a Better "About Me" Page ~ Diane's Vintage Zest!

Blogging 101: How to Write a Better "About Me" Page


*Update*  Check out the latest Blogging 101 posts here:








********************


Writing an "About Me" page is extremely daunting to most folks.  Blogging is writing all about your passion, your likes, your dislikes, your life, your family, and everything else, but when it comes down to giving readers a snapshot of just you, it is super tough to know where to start.  Add to that the pressure that it is consistently one of a blog's highest viewed pages, and it can go untouched for months.  (No judgement from me, because that's what I did.  Eek!)


I suggest to new bloggers that you write your "About Me" page before even hitting Publish on your first post.  I mean, if a stranger burst through your door announcing, "It's me!  I have so much to tell you about my day, an awesome recipe I made, and some of my travel tips!", you would probably call the cops.  If that same person introduced themselves as your neighbor who moved from California and tells you about their family and a few other tidbits, you might strike up a friendship.  The more info you share about yourself, the more likely someone is to connect with you and want to hang around with you!


That's what the "About Me" page is, in blogging terms.  Someone stumbles on to your blog through a specific post, and to find out more about you, they click on your page.  If they like what you have to say, they decide to start up a "virtual" friendship by subscribing, and you just gained a new follower and friend!


********************


For this Blogging 101 post, I include a few sections that every page would benefit from having.  Then, I go into a few general tips for writing your page.  If you take a peek at my "About Me" page, I write a lot.  I am wordy, and I own that, but if you want to shorten it up because you are a person of few words, that's perfectly fine!  Feel free to switch up the order so your story flows better, or omit sections that don't apply to you.


Are you ready?  Here are a few tips to putting together an even better "About Me" page for every blogger, not just newbies!



Blogging 101: How to Write a Better About Me page on Diane's Vintage Zest!



Sections to include


Intro

This is the speed-dating version of how you would present to someone in 10 seconds.  In a few sentences welcome your reader, say thank you, and introduce yourself.  Easy!



All About you

This is the hard part, right?  Wrong!  You know all the answers, so here are a few pieces of information that you might want to include:


  • A picture of you (or not, if you are a shy blogger like me)
  • Where you live now, and where you were born and raised
  • About your family
  • A bit about your childhood and college life
  • Your work
  • Favorites! (see below)
  • Random facts (see below)

What are the favorites and random facts list?  A quick way for people to get to know you without having to think too hard. That's a plus for me!  :)  Here are a few ideas to get the creative juices flowing:
  • Favorites:  Movie, TV Show, Song, Food, Snack, Sport, Holiday, Travel destination, Day of the Week, Season, Animal
  • Random facts:  Who is your celebrity crush?  Do you play an instrument?  Do you have a special talent?  How many pets do you have?
  • More:  Include other items or facts that are pertinent to you.  I included my favorite Musical and Director because I love vintage things, but you can include anything you want!


Blogging 101: How to Write a Better About Me page on Diane's Vintage Zest!
Make sure that you aren't lecturing or bragging about yourself.  You want to share and connect with your reader!



About Your Passion

People want to know about your history with your blog topic.  Show them what excites you!

  • Why do you love it?
  • Has it always been a part of your life?
  • Who introduced you to your hobby in the first place?
  • In fact, is it a hobby or is it a full-time job?


Make it specific:

  • If you blog about family life, introduce each of your family members and how they have changed your life.
  • For food bloggers, was there a first recipe that you remember making?
  • Sewing bloggers, do you have a specific style that you gravitate towards?
  • Travel bloggers, do you remember when the travel bug bit you, and where have you visited so far?



Why do you blog?

Now that you explained what you are passionate about, explain why you blog about it.  There are tons of people who love to cook/sew/travel/decorate, but not everyone blogs about it.

  • Why did you start a blog?
  • When did you start?
  • Is this your first blog?
  • What do you like about it?
  • Why do you continue to blog?


Blogging 101: How to Write a Better About Me page on Diane's Vintage Zest!



Where did your blog name come from?

Self-explanatory!  Sometimes I wonder how a blog got its unusual name, and there's no explanation.  Ack!



Reader Favorite Posts

New readers will want to see what other people like about your blog.  Include a top ten most-viewed posts of all time, recent favorites, or posts with lots of comments.  Whichever posts are most engaging will most likely lead to a new subscriber!

Keep in mind, if you are a new blogger, you won't have this section quite yet.  Wait at least a few months before posting this section!  Ditto on the next one...



Your Favorite Posts

I like including this section to uncover what posts I think are hidden gems.  Maybe by sharing your favorite posts, it might jump into the reader favorite posts section!  Who knows?



Closing Section

Say thank you and give them some info if they would like to contact you.  Also, it is a good idea to include your subscription buttons if they want to follow you through e-mail, Bloglovin, Google plus, Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, StumbleUpon, LinkedIn, tumblr, Ravelry, Flickr, or whatever else you use!



Blogging 101: How to Write a Better About Me page on Diane's Vintage Zest!



General Tips


Include Pictures

This is pretty simple.  People love pictures and connect more if they can see what you are talking about.  Remember, I am a shy blogger so my picture is not shown, but I try to connect with as many other pictures as I can, without turning it into a photo album.  If you refer to a specific posts, include pictures of them!  They are worth a thousand words...



Link to Posts

Remember, this is a completely new reader to you!  That means that they have absolutely no idea about the trip you took to Bruges, the awesome coconut macaroons you baked, your link party, or your weekly giveaway & small business feature.

When you introduce yourself, link to posts that make sense!  If the picture of you was taken from a specific post, link to it.  While explaining your passion, link to a recent project.  If your favorites list includes a food that you have a recipe for, link to it!

On the same token, don't link too much or it will take over your content and the information you want to share with your new buddy.



Be Yourself

Your mom was right!  Be yourself and the people who become your friends/followers will really like you for you.  *Sniff*  That's so touching...

But really, if you end up copying and pasting someone else's "About Me" page and inserting your own info, it won't sound like you at all.  In blogging, your voice is everything, so make sure to use yours! Besides, it is much more natural to blog as yourself because then you won't worry or fret about editing every post to match what you think you should sound like.



Blogging 101: How to Write a Better About Me page on Diane's Vintage Zest!

********************


Hopefully you found some good tips to help write a better "About Me" page.  To see what I ended up with, check mine out right here!  For seasoned bloggers, did you find any helpful tips above?  I would love to know if you have anything to add!


Now, get writing!




45 comments:

  1. Thank you for this! I just wrote my About Me page last week and I finally got to a point where I liked it and had to leave it alone... but it still felt like it was missing something. You just schooled me -- it's missing LOTS of things! GREAT ideas here -- love the suggestions to list a summary of favorites and random facts for skimming-readers but my favorite tips you gave are to include info about WHY I have this passion and WHY I decided to blog about it -- duh! Those should be in there. Thank you so much! :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Oh, awesome! I'm glad you stumbled across this page then. :) I found it sooo difficult to update my About Me page that it took me over a year to really revamp it with enough info. I hope that you find more useful tips in the rest of the Blogging 101 series!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Great post! I definitely need to re-write mine - thanks for the tips :)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Great post, I just started my blog and writing the about me page was scary! I probably need to update it following all these guidelines, Thanks!! :)

    ReplyDelete
  5. Great post here! I just realized I have been missing a LOT of things from my About Me Page that should've been really self-explanatory to put in..wopes! Stopped over from the Let's Be Friends Blog Hop!

    <3 Pauline, ­­Addicted to Makeup

    ReplyDelete
  6. I totally needed to find this! My about page is short and, well, badly written! Thanks!!! (Fond you via A Little Bird Told Me)

    ReplyDelete
  7. Nice! I am glad that you found this helpful. :) Feel free to leave a link to your page when it's done! Also, I hope to have you stick around for the rest of the Blogging 101 series. Thanks!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Thanks so much! Don't feel pressure to include everything though, but it's probably a good place to start!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Ha! I didn't think about it much until I rewrote my own, so you're in good company. :) I hope you find more helpful tips in the rest of the Blogging 101 series!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Ha! That was me a month ago, and a lot of the commenters on this post too! I hope you find some other helpful tips in my upcoming Blogging 101 posts as well! :)

    ReplyDelete
  11. Ha! Me too! After looking through it, I realized that no one would really learn anything about me at all. :) Thanks for visiting, and I hope you stick around for the rest of the series! :)

    ReplyDelete
  12. Lots of great tips here...I really do need to write more about me. Ugh!

    ReplyDelete
  13. Lots of great information. I have many of your tips, but not all of them.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Awesome tips! Thanks for sharing, I'm overhauling my 'about me in the next few weeks'

    ReplyDelete
  15. Thanks for the awesome tips! I' constantly re-reading my about me section and wondering if I should change it…add to it…mix it up….
    Thanks!

    ReplyDelete
  16. Thanks for sharing. I struggle with the about me section. Constantly changing it and never satisfied.

    ReplyDelete
  17. I definitely need to tweak my 'About Me' page, so this is very helpful! I found you through The Blogger's Digest!

    ReplyDelete
  18. Thanks, as I've been hesitant to get around to writing this page.

    ReplyDelete
  19. Great tips! I have been working on my about me page, and it is just so hard to write about myself sometimes. Its like when you are in an interview and they ask you to list 3 good things about yourself. So hard to do, especially off the top of your head.

    ReplyDelete
  20. Love this! I just started a blog last month and haven't wrote my about me yet so I needed this! Glad to have found you on the Dwelling Tree link up:)

    ReplyDelete
  21. Stopping by from Party Time at Bouquet of Talent link party. I cannot tell you how much I needed this! New blogger about two months now and I have changed the "about me" twice. After reading this, I need a total re-do. Thanks for all the advice, much needed and appreciated from the ladies at www.homemadeinterest.com

    ReplyDelete
  22. These are awesome tips! :)


    Thanks again for joining the Link Up this week!

    ReplyDelete
  23. Great advice! I need to get a brighter photos! Huh!

    ReplyDelete
  24. Dear Fellow shy blogger! I am so glad to meet you as I think we are a rarity, although I am gradually overcoming my shyness!! I have just last week updated my About me post but in doing so I deleted how my Blog got it's name, infact it's clearly due for a third update reading your tips! Thank you
    Wren x

    ReplyDelete
  25. This whole series is so helpful. Thanks for sharing. Hello from Inspire Me Monday.

    ReplyDelete
  26. What a fabulous post! I know a lot of readers (myself included) can greatly benefit from this post!


    Have a wonderful week and congratulations - you are one of our featured guests this week at Inspire Me Monday at Create With Joy!

    ReplyDelete
  27. Great tips, I wasn't really sure what to write on my page but knew it was pretty important. I like this much better so I'll have to re-write mine, thanks! Pinned and shared. :)

    ReplyDelete
  28. Ha! Well I hope this helps take some of the pain out of it. ;)

    ReplyDelete
  29. Thanks! Hopefully this makes the process a bit easier. :)

    ReplyDelete
  30. Great! I'm happy to help. :)

    ReplyDelete
  31. That's totally understandable considering that you yourself constantly change! Hopefully this eases your struggles a bit. :)

    ReplyDelete
  32. Awesome! Definitely stay tuned for more of my Blogging 101 tips if you find this helpful!

    ReplyDelete
  33. Yeah! Dive right in to writing it and you'll be so happy once it's done!

    ReplyDelete
  34. Oh yes. I'm not a fan of questions about me. I can talk about things I have done, but never about myself!

    ReplyDelete
  35. Yay! You are just the right person to find my Blogging 101 series then! I wish I didn't have such a terrible About Me page for over a year...but I did... Oh well!

    ReplyDelete
  36. Oh great! So happy you found this page, and I hope you stick around for the rest of the series!

    ReplyDelete
  37. Great!!! Definitely subscribe or follow to keep up with the whole series, if you found this helpful! :)

    ReplyDelete
  38. Ha! Well, "About" pages are always a work in progress, as are we. :) You're welcome!

    ReplyDelete
  39. Awesome! So, so happy to be of help! :)

    ReplyDelete
  40. Thanks so much! Looking forward to having your readers read my tips! :)

    ReplyDelete
  41. Yay! I'm happy that I could help you with the re-write. Thanks for visiting! :)

    ReplyDelete
  42. I think my about me page is beyond boring :-) Great post, I found you via the a round tuit link party. I definitely had to pin this one because I am sure it will help others make a great about me page.

    ReplyDelete
  43. Awesome! Thanks for pinning it, and I hope you find more helpful tips in the rest of the Blogging 101 series! :)

    ReplyDelete
  44. Thanks for posting this. I found it on pinterest. I'm new at this and it helped.

    ReplyDelete
  45. I just love this post. Thanks for sharing. Will def Update My About section!!

    ReplyDelete

I love to hear your comments! And putting in your two cents is always free. :)

.