Create a clear & compelling homepage - 12 top tips
“Can you help me clarify what I’m saying on my website?”
This is one of the questions I get asked most by clients.
And I understand why - after all, it is the distillation of your entire offering into a few digital pages - eeeek!
Creating clear and succinct messaging is very hard when you’re so close to the business. And, it’s easy to focus on what you’re trying to say and forget the needs of your audience.
Visitors have about 7 seconds to work out if they’re on the right site, establish what you do, and determine whether you can help. (There's no pressure then!..) Only if that information is clear and compelling will they invest more time clicking through for more information.
Here are my ‘top tips’ for creating a homepage that clearly describes who you are and what you do. And considers the needs of the audience you want to attract.
1. Simplify your navigation
The role of your homepage is to attract traffic, educate visitors, and invite conversations. Once on the site, you need to make it easy for visitors to find what they want with a simple and commonly used navigation structure. Keep it simple and obvious - it may seem boring, but it works.
2. WIIFM - what’s in it for me?
Have an idea of what you want to say but structure it in terms of importance from top down. Remember that what might seem important to you may be less important to your visitor. While describing what you do is important, it’s also vital to be clear about the benefits you deliver to your audience.
3. Describe your ‘why’
Your audience must understand why you do what you do and why they should buy from you. Clearly spell out the functional and emotional benefits of buying from you. And why they should buy from you vs. a competitor — how are you distinctive?
4. Follow your brand strategy
Most of the problems I see with clarity on a company's website are related to something other than the graphics or the speed of the site. They are due to a need for brand strategy. Without a strategy, you can't describe who you are, what you do, and why you do it. Without a strategy, you don't know how to 'show up' in the market in a way that clearly explains to the right customers why they should work with you rather than a competitor.
5. Calls to action
For a homepage to work well, the user needs to be able to find the information they want in as few clicks as possible. This is where your CTA (call to action) are important. You need to tell people what action they should take next, whether to click through for more info or book a call.
Start by defining your primary CTA. This is the most important conversion (step) that you want your client to take (eg book a call). Are you clearly positioning that CTA at the front and top of the homepage?
Consider your secondary CTAs, (which might be links that move users through your site's journey to other sections). Each CTA needs to be considered and clear and in an appropriate place to help smooth the visitors journey.
6. Break up copy
I know you’ll have a lot to say! But with an average of 54 seconds spent per user on your site, you need to keep your content simple, clear, and easy to read. It helps if your copy is broken into chunks, preferably with section titles, which allow the reader to flick through until they find the key info.
7. Space
Space is another thing that helps bring clarity and simplicity to a copy-heavy homepage. Space helps the eye by providing a 'rest from the words' and also helps focus the eye on the important parts of the content.
8. Cull, cull and then cull again
Having planned the hierarchy of your messaging, it is time to write the content. You will naturally write too much—it's human nature. I prefer to get it all down first. Then, get to work with the delete button. Cull any unnecessary words or phrases. Always look to say less if you can.
9. SEO
This doesn't have to be rocket science. In terms of content, you need to work your keywords into the higher levels of your messaging hierarchy. The Google bots assign different levels of importance to your copy, from headlines at the top down to smaller body copy. You need to place any relevant keywords into headlines to increase your chances of moving up the rankings.
10. Consistent use of colour
If you use a colour on one of your buttons, use it in all of them. Humans learn to identify things by visual cues and will appreciate the visual shortcut when navigating your site.
11. Social proof
Showing a quote from a client saying you’re great is 100 times more effective than you saying you are! Client testimonials lend you immediate credibility and should sit front and centre of your homepage. Especially if you can get them to record a quick video!
12. Your footer
Your footer should contain navigation to allow visitors to quickly click back up to the top of the site or onto another page. (No one wants to scroll all the way back to the top with the trackpad. The footer should also contain a CTA - preferably a primary call or email one.
See it’s not that hard! It’s just tricky when it’s you’re doing it for your own business. It can help to read what you’ve written out loud as sometimes that shows you it’s now quite right, Or get a Strategist to help you, steer you through the debate and help you form the strategy.
Good luck!