Many professionals or famous people need a personal website, but they are not sure as to how it should be.
There really is not a single model to adjust to when it comes to personal websites. There are many differences, which depend on personality and purpose.
I will include several different cases in order to cover the greatest number of possibilities, but even so, you may see particularities necessary for your own case.
Basic Factors for Personal Websites
There are some factors that are imperative in every personal website, regardless of who it specifically is.
These factors must be taken into account from the beginning of the project, so that you do not have to make big changes after the website has been launched.
The language
The first thing to take into account is the language. This should be according to your audience.
In some cases your audience will be your fans. In others, your customers. That is given by your occupation.
In the first case, your language can be cool and casual. But if it is the latter, it should be more respectful and formal.
A key point within the language is that everything you post to your personal website should be stated in first person.
That website is about you, and you should make your users feel that you are talking to them directly.
Take, for example, this same article. I could have written “websites for people should be done in this way”.
But, instead, I wrote “your website should have such conditions”. With that, instead of making it impersonal, I speak to you directly, and you feel it familiar.
Design
Another basic aspect is the personal website design. Colors, font or font, spaces, images, etc. that you choose should be according to not only what you are, but also what you want to reflect.
For example, you may be a lawyer, but you want to reflect that you are not so conventional and want to serve young, open-minded clients.
A pretty modern design, vivid colors and a sans-serif font could be just what you need.
Even so, it is appropriate to be balanced in terms of this, to avoid that it might seem the personal website of a teenage artist.
The page about you
One of the most viewed pages on personal websites is where you present your biography, the page about you.
Of course, people are there because they want to know more about you, so this page is what they would look for.
Well, that page should be great.
It must talk about you, but not only presenting facts (as where you were born) but elements that enhance your value as a person.
That will basically depend on your occupation. For example, an artist could write here the influences he/she has had. But a doctor would talk about his/her studies, awards, prizes, publications, etc.
The important thing is that on this page you comment your achievements without showing off and you can even talk about your failures, to teach.
You can even make a small video to introduce yourself, thank your visitors for being on your site and recommend some content and action. You can be sure that your visitors will love it.
The idea is that when users view or read the page about yourself, don’t get overwhelmed or bored with you, but determined to hire you, read your articles, or whatever you can do for them.
Finding that balance point is vital to keep the audience and make them grow.
There are not 2 identical bio pages, as there are no 2 people alike. But here I show you some examples, including my own, to illustrate my point.
- Samu Parra / https://samuparra.com/sobre-mi/
- Dr. Antonio Hallado / https://www.antoniohallado.com/acerca-del-dr-antonio-hallado-barjas/
- Jonathan Campos / https://www.jonathancampos.co/acerca-de-jonathan-campos/
Let’s define the personal website according to your occupation
The first thing to define would be what your occupation is or why you are known. That would help determine what your personal website needs.
It’s cristal clear that your personal website should fit in what you do, and what public are you targeting to.
Journalists
Journalists are professionals who most need a personal website.
Due to the nature of their profession, they should always be communicating.
No matter what your main range of action (television, radio, print) you can always place your content on your own website, to make it permanent.
A prominent section of journalist websites is the blog.
But it is not the same to write a script for television, or an article to be printed, as an article to be published on the internet.
In this regard, I have published an article to help those who need to write for the internet: “How to write for Internet using WordPress”
To gain authority on your website it is ideal that the journalist is defined by a specific theme.
For example, it may be economic, political, social, etc.
If you share news and opinion articles about any topic, it does not mean that Google will not take it into account, as it will, for recent news.
But if you specialize in a class of content, you could always be in the first places in search results about those topics.
Another important issue is that the readability of the personal website is good.
This can be achieved with enough size for the letters and good contrast between the letters and the background.
In addition, it is advisable to encourage public participation. This can be achieved by activating comments or allowing users to rate the article.
A good idea is that if there are several sections, there is something that visually identifies them to each one. It can be a different color, an icon, etc.
Medical Doctors
There are a bunch of reasons why a doctor might have a personal website.
One reason is that I want to get more patients. That is always the goal of any doctor, especially in their early years.
Another reason could be to improve his/her personal branding. May have the desire to lead some organization or become known.
A third reason may be to treat patients who are out of physical reach, that is, they can not go to the clinic because they are geographically far away.
Although doctors of any specialty could own a personal website, this need is more common among plastic surgeons.
In many cases the surgeries they perform are elective and their patients like to see before/after pictures from previous patients.
If this is the case, although a blog might be good, the most important thing should be the content about the surgeries he/she performs.
These texts, videos, audios, images, etc. should answer the questions patients ask about operations.
Since the doctor receives patients in his or her office, they should already have an idea about what patients are asking.
But in addition, you can review the search trends in Google to get a better idea.
Whatever the doctor’s specialty, what patients are looking for is someone they can trust and with whom they feel comfortable.
If you can reflect that in the texts and videos you make for your personal website as a doctor, you will surely be successful.
Politicians
Politicians do not have the same digital presence needs all the time, just as doctors would, for example.
Perhaps an election is approaching, then this politician needs to make known his/her plans in case of obtaining the position for which his candidacy is launched.
At that particular time you may also be interested in that volunteers can sign up directly from the personal website to support the candidacy.
Depending on the laws of the country, you may want to accept donations from visitors. In this case, small, fixed amounts that can be debited from a credit card may be the best option.
Of course, it would be ideal also to publish the events in which he will participate to invite the followers to accompany him.
Once the events have been made, the photos should be published and a brief summary of the experience. Those who read this may be encouraged to attend the next.
But when this politician has already taken office, his website may have certain changes.
In the first place it would be great to publish a text, perhaps the acceptance speech, where he/she thanks his voters for trust and comments about what is coming.
It is still important to post the events you will be attending and the experiences with the people you serve.
In addition, it would be great that it will have a good system to receive complaints or suggestions from the community it serves.
The Twitter feed (the social network preferred by politicians) and other social networks may have a place on the website.
But perhaps the most important contents would be those related to the achievements of the administration.
These contents could be in video, audio, etc. but they would also have to be available in text.
An article could be made monthly or every time there is an important achievement on the part of the political leader.
In turn, articles of the politician’s opinion on matters of transcendence may be useful in demonstrating his/her position.
In the images that are placed in that website it is expected that the politician never is seen alone. He/she will usually be surrounded by people in meetings or crowds with. But he or she must always be the center of the image.
Artists
There are a good number of professionals that we can name artists. In this list we can include actors, singers, painters, sculptors, writers, comedians, etc.
To make it easier, let’s say that artists are the ones who produce a work or offer shows, to entertain or provide culture to their audience.
As a rule, artists, whatever their area are, have a fan base. Their art is often linked to their name.
So, websites for artists must be designed in a way that go along with the personality and work of the artist.
The colors, language, and even the usability of an artist’s website should be designed according to the personality of the artist.
So, each case is different.
Artists produce works or shows. In some cases, they produce the 2 things.
For example, a singer records a disc. That is his work. But then he goes on a concert tour. That’s the show.
In addition, it may produce other products, which will be wanted by fans. This material can be t-shirts, key chains, phone cases, etc.
Although the singer may not be allowed to sell the music, he/she may redirect to the site or application where the user could do so.
But, for example, a plastic artist, let’s say a sculptor, might well put his/her pieces up for sale on the personal website.
The same could be done with the products of an artist’s brand.
Even so, the singer, as well as the comedian and other artists who offer shows, should publish on their personal websites the next places and dates where they will be performing, to inform their audience.
It is clear that also posting the experience of previous shows, perhaps with comments from the audience, would be ideal to attract new fans.
The biography of an artist, in the personal website, must be special. This is because fans often want to know more and more of that artist they like.
So it would even be fine, if it is the artist’s opinion, to talk about his childhood and years of training. As well as about their influences.
Of course, given that there are so many types of artists, I may later published an article about web sites for them in particular.
Athletes
Athletes are becoming more and more common as prominent figures in the hearts of their fans.
They become very similar to the artists. In addition, the sport that he practices becomes a spectacle for the followers.
So the principles told for artist websites equally apply to athletes.
Perhaps the difference could be that athletes usually finish their career sooner. It is not common find actives athletes over 40 years old.
But what for some may be an end, for others may be the beginning of something else.
Many famous athletes have become commentators, coaches, managers, etc. So they could keep being famous people.
The website of an athlete who is active should focus on what he/she does. It is necessary to emphasize the figure of the athlete so that people continue going to the sports matches or watching them on television.
On the other hand, the websites of athletes who have already stopped competing should be ample in commenting on the legacy of this athlete and focus on what he/she does now.
It is becoming increasingly important for athletes to be concerned about their social responsibility, and every action they take for this reason should be made known on their website.
Writers and Speakers
Although I have spoken of writers in the section that talked about artists, there are many writers who do not write to entertain, but to instruct.
Very often they are speakers who write.
For lecturers it is extremely important to have an excellent personal website.
This is because the fame of the speakers is built on what they think and how they express it.
So, they can offer some of their advice and ideally include videos with portions of their lectures.
It is ideal that these extracts are in You Tube, and from there they are inserted in the website, just as the singers do.
Generally, speakers create new material periodically. For example, a conference of about 2 or 3 hours in which they go on tour for companies, cities or countries.
Once you have exhausted the locations, and will no longer present that conference in person, you can use that content to feed your website.
Another option is to convert that material into an ebook and put it on sale on your own website as well as other online bookstores.
Experts
Experts, whatever their area of activity, can personal website that helps them to make known their personal brand.
For some reason that I do not know, it is frequent to see websites of experts of some professions more than of others.
For example, there are more websites of marketing experts, as I am, than of accountants.
I guess marketing experts give more importance to digital presence.
But, whatever your profession, if someone wants to become a reference in a niche, should have a personal website.
Since we are not talking about a particular profession, it is necessary to look at each particular case to determine the design of the website.
It is necessary that the design resemble what the profession represents. For example, people expect lawyers to be sober and smart, while engineers are expected to be practical and more industrial.
Basically a website for an expert professional should have a good biography page, a contact page and discussing his achievements.
For example, if you have done a special work, created products, driven public reforms, or won prizes, your website should be said.
But even more, you must clearly state the purpose of your website. Are you looking for a job? Do you want to advise companies or organizations? Are you looking to join a recent company? Looking for partners to join you in a new company? Whatever the right choice, it should be clear to the visitor.
Have Hlusick to create your personal website
As you can see, we clearly understand the different needs that can have people who want to own their own website.
If you want to know more, use the comments area, bellow, to ask your questions.
We will enjoy working with you so that you can have a great digital presence. Feel free to contact us.