No matter what the size of your company, employee profiles – or bios, as they’re more commonly known – are a really valuable business tool. And like any tool worth its salt, a good one can be used for a number of purposes. So, just what elements should a well put together bio include?
Put a face to the name
People curious enough to want to know about your employees also want to know what they look like; it simply helps them gain a faster, more accurate impression of who they’re dealing with. Make sure all company profiles include a clear, head and shoulders shot of your employee.
Keep it brief
A bio is not a CV. Rather, it’s a few short but compelling paragraphs which outline your staff member’s recent experience, what areas they specialise in, what benefits they bring to your organisation, and how your clients will benefit from their expertise.
Hit the right note
How a bio sounds to a reader’s ear is important, so avoid it coming across as dry and stodgy by using a light, conversational tone. The aim is to have your copy sound like a chat between two people rather than it sounding like a direct lift from a text book.
Write in third person
Clients prefer to read about ‘Maxine’ or ‘Julian’ rather than hearing about ‘I’ and ‘my’. Writing in third person helps a bio to sound more natural and paints a better picture of the employee, leading a reader to be more willing to trust what they’re being told.
Make it easy on the eye
Using short paragraphs that are easy to scan and easy to take in will help keep your reader’s attention. A big chunk of solid text can simply look like too much hard work to get through.
The missing link
At the end of a bio you can invite readers to find out more by including useful links such as ‘See Sarah’s full CV here’ or ‘Read more about John’s industry recognition by visiting www…’ or similar.
Make bios work for you
Bios are multi-purpose business tools. For example:
- They help personalise the ‘About Us’ page on your website.
- They’re ideal for your company’s LinkedIn page.
- They make excellent ‘leave behinds’ for sales people or can be used as flyers to send out to prospective clients.
Requests for tenders almost always require details of who’ll be involved in a contract, so ready-to-go bios look more professional and make your response easier to put together.