Affiliate Site About Page and Author Bio: What to Write When You're One Person With a Laptop
Most affiliate sites have an about page because the template came with one, and it says "we are a team of passionate experts dedicated to helping you make informed decisions," which is four lies in a sentence when it's one person with a laptop.
The one person with a laptop is fine. The lies are the problem, and they're also unnecessary, because the honest version is more convincing.
This post covers why the about page and the author box matter more than their traffic suggests, what to say when the true answer is "it's just me", a filled example you can adapt, the author-box fields that actually carry weight, and the things that look like credibility and read as fakery.
It builds on the E-E-A-T post, which covers what Google means by experience; this is the page where you say what yours is.
The short answer
Write an about page that says who you are in relation to the topic, how the site picks products, where the knowledge comes from, and what you're not. One person, real name or a consistent pen name, a real photo.
Put a three-sentence version in the author box on every post, linked to the about page. Leave out the team, the stock photo, the credentials you don't have and the testing you didn't do.
Why these pages matter
Google's search quality guidance tells raters to look for who is responsible for a site, and names the about page, contact page and author information as where to find it.
Its reviews guidance asks sites to make clear what their evaluations are based on. Neither page ranks for anything or earns a commission; both are what a rater, and a reader deciding whether to trust a pick, opens second.
The failure mode isn't a missing about page. It's an about page that could be on any site: no name, no topic, no method, a sentence about passion. That reads as anonymous, and anonymous is the signature of the thin review sites the helpful content systems were built to demote.
What to say when it's one person
| Question the page answers | What to write | Not |
|---|---|---|
| Who runs this? | A name, a photo, one line of relevant background | "Our team of experts" |
| Why this topic? | The real reason: you commute, you cook, you've bought six of these | "Passionate about helping you" |
| How are products picked? | The method: specs, owner-review patterns, forums, what you've used; the rule that each pick needs a reason | "Rigorously tested in our lab" |
| Where does the money come from? | The Amazon disclosure sentence, plus "this doesn't change what's recommended" | Nothing |
| What aren't you? | "Not an engineer; haven't used every model; where I have, the review says so" | Invented credentials |
| How do I reach you? | An email address that works | A contact form that goes nowhere |
A filled example
"I'm Sam Ortiz, and this site is about bike lights because I've commuted by bike in Portland for eight years and have bought more lights than I'd like to admit.
Every guide here is built from the manufacturer's specs, what owners say across hundreds of reviews and forum threads, and a comparison between the options; where I've run a light myself for a season or more, the review says so, and where I haven't, it doesn't pretend.
Each pick has to have a reason beyond 'it's popular', and the guides tell you who shouldn't buy it as well as who should.
"This site earns a commission when you buy through its links to Amazon, which pays for the hosting and my time and doesn't change which products appear. I'm not an electrical engineer and I don't run a lab. If a guide is wrong, email me at sam@[site] and I'll fix it."
Two hundred words, every sentence true, and it does more for trust than any amount of "dedicated to excellence".
The author box
On every post, three things: a real photo (the same one everywhere), a three-sentence bio (who, how you pick, what you're not), and a link to the about page. Add the author's name to the post's structured data so it's machine-readable. Make the name click through to an author page that lists their posts.
If the guides are written with a tool and edited by you, the author is you: you chose the products, checked the facts and wrote the verdict. The research-review post covers what the guide itself should say about its basis; the box says who stands behind it.
What to leave out
- A team that doesn't exist. "We" on a one-person site is the commonest lie and the easiest to spot.
- Stock photos. Raters and readers reverse-image-search; a photo that appears on forty sites ends the conversation.
- Credentials you don't hold. "Certified", "engineer", "industry veteran" without the thing behind it.
- Testing you didn't do. "Our lab", "hands-on", "we spent 200 hours". The legal pages post covers the disclosure that does belong here.
- Mission statements. Nobody has ever trusted a site because of one.
Doing it with AffSERP
The method sentence on the about page should describe what the guides actually do, and for guides written with AffSERP's X Best Review tool that's straightforward to state: picks chosen from the specs and the pattern across owner reviews, each with a reason and a caveat, with your own notes added where you have experience.
The "how we picked" section each guide carries says the same thing per post, so the about page and the guides agree, which is what a rater checks.
FAQ
Do I need an about page on an affiliate site?
Yes. Google's quality guidance asks raters to find out who is responsible for a site and its content, and the about page is where they look; readers do the same before trusting a recommendation. A site with no about page, or one that says nothing, reads as anonymous, and anonymous review sites are the pattern the helpful content work targets. It doesn't need to be long; it needs to be true.
How do I write an author bio for an affiliate site?
Three sentences: who you are in relation to the topic, how you pick products, and what you're not. 'Daily bike commuter for eight years; I pick lights from the specs, the pattern in owner reviews and what I've run myself; I'm not an electrical engineer and haven't tested every model here.' Add a real photo and a link to the about page. That's the whole box.
Should I use my real name on a niche site?
A real name with a real photo is the strongest version, and it's what the guidance rewards. A consistent pen name with a real photo and an honest description of the person behind it is a workable second; readers and raters can still see one accountable person. A fake persona with a stock photo and invented credentials is the version that gets caught, and it's worse than nothing.
What should an about page say if I haven't used the products?
Say how you choose them. 'This site reviews bike lights from the manufacturer's specs, the pattern across owner reviews and forums, and a comparison between the options; where I've used a product myself, the review says so.' That's an honest method, it matches what the guides actually do, and it's what Google's reviews guidance asks a site to make clear.
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