Top 3 tips for cleaning up your homepage
If your small business website is your shop window to the world, then it’s absolutely essential that it should be looking spick and span and bursting with engaging and relevant content for your target market. Take a look at these top tips on how to give your homepage its annual health check and make sure it’s actively participating in your business growth.
Number 1. Ensuring a smooth landing. How’s it looking?
Your homepage is the most likely landing spot for your site visitors and it’s absolutely essential that, even on first glance, your site speaks volumes about what your business delivers AND is aesthetically pleasing. A striking image that really sums up your business offering is a safe place to start and they do say that a picture speaks a thousand words.
Plenty of the free themes / templates on the major website building platforms utilise an image banner at the head of the homepage, so you might want to consider switching to one of these themes if your homepage is looking a little text-heavy and unappealing.
Make sure the image is great quality. That means high resolution (no blurry pics please) and an appealing shot. If you’re using one of your own photographs then be a ruthless critic. If you want to use a stock image then you’ll need to make sure you have the rights to use it for commercial use. Check out unsplash.com for royalty free images which are licensed for commercial use and – most importantly – free and simple to download.
If you really want to get snazzy here, you could consider using a looped video on your landing spot – video is the new black as it’s ultra-engaging and appealing to roving eyes.
Number 2. The one-stop-shop. What are the essential take aways?
I always suggest that the three essential pieces of information that you must ensure are communicated loudly and clearly on your homepage are: your business name, the problem you solve and how to contact you. Be careful not to clog up your homepage with too much content beyond these three key areas. So, your homepage may not be the place for your detailed pricing plans, an in-depth explanation of your services, your bio, your full portfolio… you get the picture. Keep these things tidily stored on separate pages, clearly displayed in your site menu.
*BONUS TIP*
If you’ve never asked yourself what problem your business solves for your target customer then perhaps now is the time. Are you a local gym providing a pay as you go service – solving the problem of customers feeling tied into a routine that doesn’t suit their lifestyle? Are you a wedding photographer specialising in documentary style images – solving the problem of everyone having the same traditional style of wedding images to capture their special day? Whatever it might be, make sure it’s clearly stated on your homepage for the world to know that you can help.
Read a full blog post about why this matters here.
3. Drawing them in. What is your call to action?
As discussed above, your homepage should deliver your three key pieces of information so that it acts as a one-stop-shop to a potential customer. But should they be thirsty for more, you want them to be able to easily click into some further exploration of your content, delving deeper into your site.
A call to action is usually a button (or a clickable image) which takes a customer from one page onto another. Your main homepage CTA (call to action) might simply be to ‘Contact Us’ button that takes them straight to a contact form or location map. It might be a ‘Learn More’ button which takes them to the page where we find the full explanation of your services. Or it could be something more specific like ‘Get Prices’ if you know that your great prices are a key part of your offering and what your target customers main objective will be.
Think carefully about the mindset and intentions of your target customer when they visit your site. What are they looking for? What do they want to be able to know or do? Make sure that your CTA helps them on this journey to being able to bring their business to you.
*BONUS TIP*
Housekeeping – perhaps it goes without saying, but it is part of the essential maintenance of your website to ensure that all the CTA buttons, clickable images, menu tabs, dropdown menus and any other moving parts of your site are working beautifully. Also make sure your business details are all up to date and correct. It’s amazing how many times I get told that the email address listed as the first point of contact is actually for someone who has now left the company. Seriously, guys.