Your home page is important. Quite often it’s the page that most visitors come to first. It’s the page you will generate the most links to, unless you write an epic post. It may also be the page that the search engines pay the most attention to when people are searching for you by name. With these facts in mind it makes sense to make sure your home page is as well designed as it possibly can be.
There are seven key elements for a successful home page. They each are important independently, but they work together to provide a unique and impact experience for your visitor. Before you take a look at these key elements, however, it’s important to answer a question first.
What is the goal of your successful home page?
Your home page needs to have a goal – an objective. What do you want visitors to do? What action do you want them to take? There are many possibilities. You may want direct your reader to:
- Dig deeper and explore your website
- Click through to a services or product page
- Opt-in to stay in touch
- Discover more about who you are and what you do
- Find resources that will make their life easier
Once you know what you want visitors to do, then you can make sure your home page supports this goal.
Your home page needs to have a goal
Now you’ll use the seven key home page elements. These include:
Images
The images you choose on your home page are important. You want them to support the overall website and business goals but they shouldn't detract from the main purpose of the website. Images, in the form of graphics and photos, can quickly overwhelm a home page and become a distraction if you don't manage them carefully.
An example of how the image is part of the successful home page is shown over here at Content Nitro
If you choose to use images (and they really can enhance a home page) make sure they support your goals. Make sure they adequately represent your brand.
This will probably mean booking a photoshoot, and buying some specific stock images and customising them to fit your brand.
The most common image you use might be your own photo, as you can see from the example, you can look Sarah right in the eye and see that she's a real human being. This helps connect the reader to you. It helps brand your business and start building a rapport. You can also have photos and imagery around what you do, how you do it and your services.
The images should tell your story visually and back up the words on the home page. On Sarah's homepage you see a speedometer, this is part of the Content Nitro branding and straight away shows progress, speed and moving forward.
Everything from words to images should be in alignment with each other. If they're not, your reader can tell. They can't quite put their finger on something being wrong, they just know that it is.
Strapline
Your strapline is often the very first thing a visitor will see. If it doesn’t grab their attention, then it’s not doing its job. However, in addition to grabbing their attention, it also must support your home page’s purpose.
The strapline here at The Business Success Dojo is clear . concise and tells you exactly how we will help you.
Take time to craft your home page headline. This is also an important element to test and track. Create two home pages with two different headlines and then test them. Yes, that's right, test your home page's impact. Determine which headline is better at helping you accomplish your goal for this page.
Emotions
Emotions are what your visitors use to validate their buying decisions. They’re incredibly important if you’re trying to motivate any action.
You can tap into your visitors’ emotions with images and words. If it's the first time visitor, you need to show you understand their needs and tap into their emotions so that they trust you enough to start moving through the site.
Emotions are what your visitors use to validate their buying decisions
Navigation
Make sure that your visitor not only knows what they’re supposed to do on your home page, but also that they can quickly work out how to do it.
Over on Honeys hypnotherapy site she makes it really clear on how you can book a free consultation with her. You can also see how she has segmented out her 3 areas of support, Anxiety, Deprtession and teens, each with thier own button taking you to that sopecific area for more information.
This isn't always a navigation bar, the successful rise of home pages as landing pages proves this isn't always needed. You just have to make it clear for your visitor to take the next click.
On the 1230 TWC homepage you can see all the successful home page elements in action.
- A gorgeous visual of networking over lunch
- A strong strapline
- Emotional connection
- And a slimmed down navigation so that the most popular pages are accessible from the home page
If you want your visitors to move deeper into your website, then make sure your buttons and call to action support this. If they can't find the way to the page they want, they’re going to leave.
Proof
You might notice that many of the elements of a successful home page are also sales copy elements. This is because you are trying to motivate an action. Your home page has a purpose. Proof can be demonstrated by:
- Awards
- Testimonials
- Endorsements
- Trust Factors
- Facts and statistics
The proof you use, again, depends upon your goal. On Elizabeths site you can see just how credible she is with all of her certifications being proudly presented on her homepage. This instantly tells any visitor she knows exactly what she's doing and they are safe with her as a qualified professional
You want to encourage an opt-in, then you might use facts and statistics along with a banner ad highlighting any awards your site has won. This gives your website credibility.
Call to action
A compelling call to action is required for every successful home page.
Calls to action guide your visitors towards the action you'd like them to do next. There's no clutter, just simple and effective sign-posting and calls to action.
Remember to test your calls to action too. We've found “Subscribe” works better than “Sign up” in the optin calls to action. Whatever works the best for your audience is the one that you stick with.
Opt-in form
Finally, if your goal is to motivate an opt-in, then you must have an opt-in form on your home page. In fact, everything on that page needs to support the goal of the visitor becoming a subscriber? Why? Because 70% of website visitors leave never to return again – even if they like your site.
Another of our clients Shelley from Tomorrows VA gives her homepage visitors an option to opt in to her email list by offering them something they may be interested in for subscribing, on her site as a whole she has different opt ins based on where they are on the site and what they may be interested in however on the homepage as at that point there is no way of telling what they are looking for there is a general opt in.
The homepage of a website is perhaps the most important page on your website.
Make sure the elements on your page support your goals and your success. Test and track various elements until you get the best results, and remember, nothing, not even the home page, is set in stone and it can be tweaked and tested until it's supporting your website goals.
Is it time your home page had a makeover?
Thanks for hightlighting my home page Kevin, it’s appreciated
Thank you for this Kevin! After completely the 30-day blogging challenge, I’m ready to go back and make some changes. I don’t currently have a “home” page and so this is valuable information!