By not including a picture, you\u2019re missing a bonding and branding moment. LinkedIn data<\/a> shows that having a profile photo can get you:<\/p>\n Using a one-size-fits-all bio tanks conversions.<\/p>\n Yes, having a basic one helps.<\/p>\n But if you want to bump up conversions, you\u2019ve got to do a bit more. Slant each bio toward the specific audience you\u2019re writing for. You\u2019ll engage better with your readers.<\/p>\n This one\u2019s a biggie.<\/p>\n Writing a bio like a dissertation sucks out the zing needed to make an authentic human connection. It leaves it dry and flavorless.<\/p>\n To connect with readers, write with personality. Massage your\u00a0brand’s dynamic voice<\/a> into the copy. Personality is the magnet that draws readers to you.<\/p>\n Now that the foul-ups are out of the way, let\u2019s optimize your bio.<\/p>\n Sounds obvious, right?<\/p>\n Wrong.<\/p>\n You\u2019d think including a\u00a0call to action<\/a> in your bio would be a no-brainer. Turns out it isn\u2019t. I\u2019ve lost count of author bios with no CTA.\u00a0Zero. Zilch. Nada.<\/p>\n Are you kidding me?<\/p>\n Let me put you in the reader\u2019s shoes for a moment. She\u2019s blown away by your content. Unlike restive scanners with ever-shrinking attention spans, she\u2019s read all the way down to the bottom. She\u2019s so thrilled she can\u2019t wait to find out more about this amazing person and his brand.<\/p>\n And then.<\/p>\n You tell her you\u2019re Andy Awesome who works for Amazing Brands. Oh, and you adore cat videos. That\u2019s it. What an anti-climax. A waste of a great conversion opportunity. A heart-breaking tale of a hot prospect brushed aside by a cold clueless brand.<\/p>\n Not even a “Follow me on Twitter” request. C\u2019mon.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s an example of what I\u2019m talking about:<\/p>\n Source: Mirasee<\/em><\/p>\n Sorry, Meredith, aka\u00a0the marketing nerd. Had to be you.\u00a0No links. No CTA. No pic.<\/p>\n Like any other piece of content, your author bio must<\/i> have a conversion goal.<\/p>\n To get conversions, slip in one or two CTAs. That\u2019s the very first step you must take to optimize your bio for conversions. Decide exactly <\/i>what you want people to do after reading your content.<\/p>\n Your homepage is like a train station.<\/p>\n People can go to many different places from there: about, services, products, contact, resources, meet the team, etc. The options are endless. No wonder visitors freeze in the face of myriad choices.<\/p>\n This graphic from Unbounce captures the essence of the problem:<\/p>\n Source: Unbounce<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n Consider the above diagrams, which show a homepage (left) and a landing page (right). The orange areas on each diagram represent links on the page. As you can see, the homepage has 43 links, and the landing page has only 1.<\/p>\n Question: which page would convert better?<\/p>\n I\u2019m sure you chose the landing page.<\/p>\n Too many choices on the homepage cause\u00a0analysis paralysis<\/a> \u2014 people end up not choosing anything at all, thus reducing conversions.<\/p>\n Having fewer links on your landing page has been proven to increase conversion rates because there are fewer distractions. To boost conversions, take your warm bio traffic to a dedicated landing page. Focus on a single<\/i> campaign.<\/p>\n This alone, even if it\u2019s the only thing you do, will hike your conversions.<\/p>\n Moving someone from prospect to paying customer is hard work.<\/p>\n Many marketers agree that the buying process has up to 7 stages. But great content plus strategic use of your bio can shrink the process dramatically. Link to your services page in your bio as\u00a0Jacob McMillen<\/a> does.<\/p>\n This bio\u2026<\/p>\n Source: Crazy Egg<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n …takes you to his copywriting services page.<\/p>\n Source: Jacob McMillen<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n People who arrive on this page through Jacob\u2019s bio are solid leads. They\u2019re presold. They\u2019ve already been highly impressed by the value he provides for free.<\/p>\n They can\u2019t wait to work with him.<\/p>\n Securing backlinks for your service pages is challenging.<\/p>\n Usually, when you write for online publications, you aren’t allowed to sell anything in your post.<\/p>\n But all hope is not lost. There\u2019s an out-of-the-box approach you can use to rank for your target phrases \u2014 your bio.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s Jacob McMillen discussing this tactic and how he was able to achieve phenomenal success through it.<\/p>\n Service pages are very hard to secure backlinks for. While you can easily link back to your blog posts in guest posts, no self-respecting publication is going to allow in-article backlinks to service or sales pages.<\/p>\n Author bios, on the other hand, are pretty much yours to do with as you please, so they are the perfect place to link to a service page you are wanting to rank. I’ve been able to rank my own primary service page for 40+ terms simply by including backlinks with my target search terms as anchor text in my author bios.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n This strategy works well if you write extensively.<\/p>\n A simple but powerful way to move your business forward through your bio is to link to your lead magnet.<\/p>\n See how\u00a0Peter Sandeen<\/a> does it below:<\/p>\n Source: Mirasee<\/em><\/p>\n His guest post link leads to his lead magnet opt-in page.<\/p>\n Source: Peter Sandeen<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n This bio opt-in page combination netted him a whopping 440+ new subscribers. Not a bad day\u2019s work, hey \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n It gets better.<\/p>\n For higher conversions, make sure your lead magnet dovetails into the subject of your post. A bio from\u00a0Stephen Roe\u00a0is a brilliant example in this regard.<\/p>\n In his bio for his guest post “How to Beat Decision Fatigue: The Ultimate Guide,” he offers readers a perfect accompaniment to the piece.<\/p>\n Source: Asian Efficiency<\/em><\/p>\n His offer? Beating Decision Fatigue Checklist.<\/p>\n Source: Thoughtful Growth<\/em><\/p>\n The lead magnet perfectly suits the topic. It\u2019s a natural next step readers would want to take. Not only that. He rolls out the red carpet for his readers by welcoming them specifically: “Welcome,\u00a0Asian Efficiency reader.”<\/p>\n A typical traditional\u00a0sales funnel<\/a> has several stages that gradually move the prospect from awareness to purchase point.<\/p>\n However, great content coupled with an irresistible offer in your bio can move the prospect from awareness to making the purchase decision much faster.<\/p>\n Kathryn Aragon<\/a>, former editor of this very site, sells her book in a subtle non-salesy way. She just mentions that she\u2019s the author of a business blog handbook.<\/p>\n Source: Crazy Egg<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n The link leads to her Amazon page.<\/p>\n Source: Amazon<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n Nicely done.<\/p>\n I reached out to Kathryn and asked her to share her bio writing secrets. Luckily for you and me, she obliged. Here\u2019s what she said:<\/p>\n Optimizing your author bio is a no-brainer. It’s free real estate, so you definitely want to leverage it to promote your wares. To get the best results, think carefully about how you include the link. First, be conversational, not salesy. Second, keep the bio focused. You should only promote one thing, so make sure it’s your top promotional priority. Finally, think about the destination. Would a landing page be more suitable, or will you link directly to the product page? It may help to test both options to see which works best.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Well put, Kathryn.<\/p>\n This strategy works well for low-cost items like ebooks.<\/p>\n Tripwire<\/a> products also lend themselves well to this approach since they\u2019re cheap. So you can attract lots of people into your funnel by offering a low-cost product or service in your bio.<\/p>\n You\u2019ll get a chance to upsell them later.<\/p>\n Plus, paying leads convert better than freebie seekers.<\/p>\n Yes, it\u2019s true.<\/p>\n Being\u00a0an authority<\/a> can boost your online sales. Use your bio to position yourself as an authority in your niche.<\/p>\n But how do you do it?<\/p>\n Here are 6 ways to boost your authority:<\/p>\n Neil Patel<\/a>, co-founder of Crazy Egg, uses the last tactic powerfully. He lists the behemoth companies he has helped.<\/p>\n Source: Inc<\/em><\/p>\n Amazon may not be your customer, but you can still use this strategy to great effect.<\/p>\n Humans crave consistency.<\/p>\n That\u2019s why when you go to\u00a0a 3-day conference, you\u2019ll probably sit in the same seat (or row) throughout its duration. The same goes for your branding. To achieve\u00a0brand consistency, your bio should be similar regardless of which channel you\u2019re on.<\/p>\n Take\u00a0MarketingProfs<\/a> Ann Handley for example. Her bio is the same irrespective of channel.<\/p>\n This is Ann on Twitter…<\/p>\n …LinkedIn…<\/p>\n …and Instagram.<\/p>\n Three strands are constant in all her profiles:<\/p>\n Because of consistent messaging, her brand is instantly recognizable everywhere. Brand familiarity makes it easier for prospects to trust your brand and to be more likely to respond to your offers. A\u00a0study<\/a> by Nielsen showed that 60% of online consumers around the world prefer to buy new products from a familiar brand than switch to a new brand.<\/p>\n And, oh, use the same headshot across all channels.<\/p>\n Mine all the marketing gold embedded in your bio.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s the thing.<\/p>\n Your author bio is a tiny but potent part of your marketing and branding. It\u2019s a conversion gem. You can\u2019t afford to dismiss it a second longer. Take time to craft, test, and tweak it until you get what works for you and your audience.<\/p>\n An author bio optimized for conversions gives your business more<\/i>:<\/p>\n Are you ready for more of these?<\/p>\n Then go work on that bio. You may be pleasantly surprised by the results.<\/p>\n Where is your bio lacking? Which tip are you going to try first? Or, if you\u2019re crushing it with your bio, please share your secrets. Either way, we want to hear from you in the comments below.<\/i><\/p>\n About the Author<\/strong>: Qhubekani Nyathi aka The Click Guy is an irresistibly handsome (wife\u2019s baseless claims!) website copywriter<\/a> and long-form content strategist. He helps small and medium brands rapidly grow their income and impact through actionable long-form content that ranks high, builds authority, and drives sales. Contact him<\/a> now to order conversion-focused, in-depth posts like the one you\u2019ve just read.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Are you treating your author bio as an afterthought? If you\u2019re like most online marketers, the answer is probably yes. Don\u2019t believe me?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":279,"featured_media":35976,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_eb_attr":"","_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-35944","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-conversion-optimization"],"yoast_head":"\n\n
Blooper 4: The Rigid Bio<\/h3>\n
Blooper 5: The Bland Bio<\/h3>\n
1. For Conversion’s Sake, Please Include a CTA<\/h2>\n
![\"meredith](\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/26205211\/meredith-eisenberg.png\")
<\/p>\n2. Link to a Landing Page, Not Your Homepage<\/h2>\n
![\"layout\"](\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/26205337\/layout.png\")
<\/p>\n3. Link to Your Primary Service Page So You Land Hot Leads<\/h2>\n
![\"Jacob](\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/26205600\/Jacob-McMillen-bio.png\")
<\/p>\n![\"communicate](\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/26205659\/communicate-your-value.png\")
<\/p>\n4. Target Key Phrases You Want to Rank for in Search<\/h2>\n
5. Offer a Free Download and Grow Your List<\/h2>\n
![\"peter](\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/26205839\/peter-sandeen-bio.png\")
<\/p>\n![\"peter](\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/26210021\/peter-sandeen-page.png\")
<\/p>\n![\"stephen](\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/26210538\/stephen-roe-bio.png\")
<\/p>\n![\""welcome\"](\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/26210803\/welcome-asian-efficiency-reader.png\")
<\/p>\n6. Go for the Jugular\u2026 Ask for the Sale Right Away<\/h2>\n
![\"kathryn](\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/26211033\/kathryn-aragon.png\")
<\/p>\n![\"business](\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/26211137\/business-blog-handbook.png\")
<\/p>\n7. Boost Your Brand Authority by Noting Your Achievements<\/h2>\n
\n
![\"Neil](\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/26211751\/Neil-Patel-bio.png\")
<\/p>\n8. Create a Consistent Profile Across All Channels<\/h2>\n
![\"ann](\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/26212017\/ann-handley-twitter.png\")
<\/p>\n![\"ann](\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/26212110\/ann-handley-linkedin.png\")
<\/p>\n![\"ann](\"https:\/\/ceblog.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/26212357\/ann-handley-bio.png\")
<\/p>\n\n
\n