All websites have a homepage. It is the most important page of
your site. It acts as the main gateway to the entire site. Most
of your prospective customers will enter through it. Its vital
to get it right. You dont want them to just turn around and go
away again.
Take a moment to clear your mind. Now go and look at your
homepage and take a minute to evaluate it. Does it work for your
prospective customers?
Most will arrive at your homepage and quickly scan through the
content. If they are interested in what they read and see
they'll typically decide to click on a link that takes them to
another page where they'll find more information. As they make
that decision they'll be asking things like:
What do they do? Do they look professional? Whats in it for me?
Do i have the problem they describe? Are they talking directly
to me? How can i get it?
Alternatively, if the homepage hasnt interested them immediately
then they'll leave just as quickly as they arrived, unlikely to
return.
Your homepage is the gateway to your website and plays a
critical part in the prospects visit. First impressions count.
The success of your site depends on your homepage. Now, before
we look at what a homepage should be, lets look at what it
shouldnt be.
It should not be a false homepage requiring you to click a link
to get to the real homepage. It shouldnt be a page that fails to
direct the prospect to further action. It shouldnt contain any
content that doesnt serve an immediate and clear purpose. It
should never read like a dull brochure, that does nothing to
motivate prospects to seek more information or buy immediately.
What a homepage should be. It should have a clear message. It
should be a dynamic page that instantly conveys a sense of what
you do, how you do it, who you are, how you do business, etc. It
should start to describe the direct benefits that prospective
customers get by buying your product or service. It should
create prospect interest and make them eager to find out more.
It should provide direction and clearly marked links to get them
there. It should focus entirely on serving the needs of your
prospective customers and removing their anxieties.
The purpose of your website is to sell your products and
services to your prospects. To be effective your homepage must
meet the needs of your prospects exactly and provide answers to
their questions. To do this you must know what your prospects
want and how they want it. If you dont already know, find out.
Ask them!
Also, spend some time looking at other homepages learning what
works and what doesnt. Are there features and styles that you
could adopt on your site?
Once you have these answers design your entire homepage around
them. Spend some time getting it right and both you and your
prospects will benefit. Dont settle for second best unless you
want your website to fail as a result of being ineffective.
When you've done it. Take a moment to clear your mind. Now go
and look at your homepage once again and take a minute to
re-evaluate it. Does it work for your prospective customers now?
Good luck!
About the author:
Peter Simmons is editor of the DYNAMIQ EZINE. GET MAXIMUM
RESULTS FROM YOUR WEBSITE! Increase your traffic, prospect
conversions, sales, profits, referrals and more... START GETTING
RESULTS RIGHT NOW with your $129 WEBSITE EVALUATION ABSOLUTELY
FREE at http://www.dynamiq.co.uk/ezine or email me anytime at
mailto:peter@dynamiq.co.uk
