best promotional copy you ever forgot

November 21, 2005 3:46 PM

Not long ago I was reading a tech company's "About Us" page on their web site and was unduly impressed at how well-written it was. It seemed to me the perfect combination of hilarious and informative. I made a mental note to consult it when writing a similar page for a new service my company is launching. Of course, I have forgotten the company. I just remember how good the copy was...ring any bells?
posted by subpixel to Writing & Language (12 answers total)

Maybe if you gave us a bit more... can you remember vaguely what the company did? The design or colours used on the page? One paragraph of text? Six paragraphs? Massive font? Teeny font? Any particular phrases that stick in your head?
posted by chrismear at 3:50 PM on November 21, 2005

I doubt this is the one you're looking for, but I really like the about us section of kayak
posted by toxic at 3:54 PM on November 21, 2005

Just about everything written by Josh Jones, CEO of Dreamhost, is a superb mix of humor and practical information. So, you can't be too surprised that their "About Us" page is no different. It's excellent - check it out!

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posted by Independent Scholarship at 4:38 PM on November 21, 2005

andyco?
posted by blue_beetle at 4:48 PM on November 21, 2005

huh?

Huhcorp: We do stuff.
posted by Wild_Eep at 5:08 PM on November 21, 2005

What a great way to fish for interesting companies! Three Rings (makers of Puzzle Pirates) has a great about page.
posted by Nelson at 5:12 PM on November 21, 2005

Club des Millionnaires Sardine FAQ is very silly and well-written, even if the site design sucks. The sardines, incidentally, are excellent.
posted by scruss at 5:21 PM on November 21, 2005

All you need to know about Powers Phillips P.C.
posted by Wet Spot at 6:10 PM on November 21, 2005

I like most of Joel Spolsky's stuff. His about page for Fog Creek Software isn't as funny as much of his writing, but it is well written, and there is some humor.
posted by WestCoaster at 7:54 PM on November 21, 2005

Slightly offtopic, but my favorite all time story in the "about us" category is the Pacifict story about sneaking into Apple's campus to get their first product released. If you haven't ever read it, you really should. Here is a sample snippet:
People around the Apple campus saw us all the time and assumed we belonged. Few asked who we were or what we were doing.When someone did ask me, I never lied, but relied on the power of corporate apathy. The conversations usually went like this:
Q: Do you work here?
A: No.
Q: You mean you're a contractor?
A: Actually, no.
Q: But then who's paying you?
A: No one.
Q: How do you live?
A: I live simply.
Q: (Incredulously) What are you doing here?!
At that point I'd give a demo and explain that the project had been canceled but that I was staying to finish it anyway. Since I had neither a mortgage nor a family, I could afford to live off savings. Most engineers at Apple had been through many canceled projects and completely understood my motivation.
posted by crazyray at 8:24 PM on November 21, 2005

Slightly offtopic, but my favorite all time story in the "about us" category is the Pacifict story about sneaking into Apple's campus to get their first product released.

It's hard to belive any company would let someone do that these days. (It's also stupid to work for free, IMO.)
posted by Paris Hilton at 9:18 PM on November 21, 2005

Oddpost?
posted by Tubes at 9:56 AM on November 22, 2005