Turn your forgettable ‘About Us’ page into a memorable one

It’s the boilerplate’s ubiquitousness that makes it important. Your boilerplate gets used over and over again. Depending on the scope and reach of your media relations efforts, your boilerplate could be posted and published thousands and thousands of times—and read by millions of people.

Some communicators argue that that makes the boilerplate the most important paragraph in your organization.

The problem is, too many boilerplates are far too long, broad and fluffy to be very useful.

Include just the facts, ma’am.

What goes into a good boilerplate?

To decide, think like a reader. Ask, “What would a journalist or blogger need to know to define my company in an article or post?” For the most part, you’ll want to stick to the 5 W’s. You might want to include:

Whom you help. AllianceBernstein‘s boilerplate, for instance, says, “For over 40 years, AllianceBernstein Investments, Inc., … has helped investors …”