Chefs Feed: “About Us” Evaluation by Corporate History.net

Currently the most important product of Chefs Feed is an iPhone app that gives reviews of restaurants (even specific dishes) by over 600 chefs, for 15 American cities plus London. The San Francisco-based company was founded in 2011 by brothers Steve and Jared Rivera, who hope to expand their chefs’ recommendations into video and print. The About Us page is here.

OVERALL GRADE: B minus

The uncluttered Chefs Feed site is clearly designed with mobile users in mind, and it’s aimed at promoting the app. To be clear: we’re evaluating the About Us page that appears on the company’s website, not the info that appears on the app.

Products/Services: B

The About Us page starts with a catchy tag line: “I’ll have what they’re having.” It goes on to name-drop celebrity chefs (Mario Batali, Wolfgang Puck, Thomas Keller) who offer recommendations on the app. If you don’t have a long-established corporate history, using big-bang names like this are a great substitute.

Below the brief description of what the app offers are headings with teasers. We wish these were links to pages of samples, e.g., what have chefs said about restaurants in our neighborhood? What kind of live information can we expect to receive?

Below the teasers are pictures of some participating chefs, with links to many more: well done.

The most innovative feature of this page is the section of mentions in the media. Hover over the media logo and a callout from the article pops up. In most cases, that’s all we need to know, so it’s a particularly useful technique.

Personality: B

The personality of Chefs Feed is the chefs who contribute, not the company’s founders (who aren’t even mentioned). Doubtless many people hungry people consulting the app will know at least some of the chefs ... but surely not all of them? Even though the website is made to promote the app, we wish it offered links with at least minimal information on the chefs – even working links to the chefs’ restaurants would help.

On the related Team page, it’s fun not just to see photos of Chefs Feed key players but to learn their favorite dishes. (Of course, I’m a person whose mouth waters just to read the words “gnocchi @ Frascati.”) This idea can be adapted by anyone creating any kind of About Us or business anniversary coverage. For example, in our book for The Pep Boys we profiled dozens of folks who work in the stores – and asked them what their favorite cars were. Good use of CorporateHistory.net’s About Us Commandment 3: Reveal Thy Personality.

Accessibility: C

There is no Contact page, but the footer of every page has a snail-mail address, phone, fax, and emails for general inquiries and media. Snail mail and fax? How many people use these? But at least all the options are there.

TAKEAWAY

We wouldn’t want to live without our favorite mobile apps. But sometimes we like to plan ahead, and in those cases we’d like to have information available on our desktop as well, where it’s easier to juggle multiple pages, discuss an entry with a myopic spouse, or transfer info to our contacts list. Humor customers who don’t run their whole lives on mobile devices by giving them information on the website as well: there’s still a lot of money in that demographic.

Does your Web site’s “About Us” section accurately convey your organization’s history and capabilities? Every two weeks we evaluate one example, grading it in three areas that are key to potential customers: Personality (Who are you?), Products/Services (What can you do for us?), and Accessibility (How can we reach you?). To talk about your About Us page, contact us!

Today’s example was chosen at random; CorporateHistory.net has no ties to this company.

Viva Moleskine!

Enjoyed the interview with Arrigo Berni, CEO of Moleskine, on American Public Media's "Marketplace" on May 20, 2013. Notebook maker Moleskine went public in April. Italian company, quality product, strong message: what's not to like? My favorite quote by Berni:

Arrigo Berni, CEO of Italy-based Moleskine,
demonstrating his company's product.
Photo courtesy of marketplace.org.

“There are certain dimensions of our life where digital technology is definitely providing a benefit, an advantage, to us, but there are other dimensions, maybe closer to what human beings are and the physical experience of interacting with physical products. The emotional dimension where technology is at a disadvantage, in fact, compared to paper.”

Excellent corporate storytelling. Kudos to "Marketplace" host Kai Ryssdal for keeping me hooked as I navigated Route 17 on a busy Monday evening.

Longwood Gardens: “About Us” Evaluation by Corporate History.net

Longwood Gardens, in Kennett Square, Pennsylvania, is a horticultural mecca of over 1,000 acres – one of the leading botanical gardens in the United States. Situated on land purchased from William Penn, it was opened to the public as an arboretum in 1798 and was greatly expanded by Pierre S. du Pont, who purchased the property in 1906. He spent decades developing the conservatory, fountains, and other features. Since his death in 1954 it has been operated by the Longwood Foundation. The main About Us page (Gardens / History) is here.

OVERALL GRADE: A

Products/Services: A

We seldom see a site that covers all the bases of its own corporate history: usually we have to seek out essential details on Wikipedia or elsewhere on the web. The Story of Longwood page is a rare exception and a great read. It covers the organization’s entire history with appropriate weight on the important items. And it has archival photos! A slight cavil there: please, Longwood staff writers, add captions or ID tags. Even if the photo is immediately referenced nearby, captions matter. Readers always read them.

Adding subheads is another minor change that would make a big difference. Rather than “1700 to Present” (currently the only subhead), why not “The Peirce Farm,” “Pierre du Pont,” “The Fountains,” and so on? Or we suggest dividing the long time span into shorter chronological chunks.

Supplementary pages focus on non-botanical attractions that might draw visitors to Longwood: the mansion, the organ, the carillon. We like this as an illustration of our Commandment 2 of About Us pages: Know thy audience. Think about the types of people who might be interested in your organization, and make a point of offering material that will appeal to each. On all these pages, the sidebar features lovely photos of flowers and scenes from the gardens to remind visitors to the site that yes, they ought to visit Longwood.

All these great pages (under Gardens) are not the “official” About Us page, which is reached via a link in the footer and only offers information about Longwood’s tax status and major departments. The official page could be livened up with links to these pages, each with a teaser and a photo.

Personality: A

Longwood stresses that the gardens were the work of Pierre du Pont, and describes his interests and goals. It states that the goal of the current management is to continue his vision - the “innate sense of the garden as theater” – while incorporating modern technology. Clear and effective: well done.

Accessibility: A

A link in the footer leads to a Contact page with telephone numbers and emails for many specific departments and names. We get the impression that the Longwood Gardens staff would be pleased to hear from us, a pleasant change from filling out an online contact form that’s dispatched to who knows whom, who knows where.

TAKEAWAY

In an age of tweets and videos, presenting a well-written story with great illustrations is still one of the most attention-grabbing things you can do. And kudos to the person who chose the banner photo: a glimpse of the less formal gardens, a path, and a couple wearing jeans and hugging. It subtly promotes Longwood Gardens as a casual spot to visit and feel romantic. Very inviting!

Does your Web site’s “About Us” section accurately convey your organization’s history and capabilities? Every two weeks we evaluate one example, grading it in three areas that are key to potential customers: Personality (Who are you?), Products/Services (What can you do for us?), and Accessibility (How can we reach you?). To talk about your About Us page, contact us!

Today’s example was chosen at random; CorporateHistory.net has no ties to this company.