The importance of your website landing page
Your landing or home page is undoubtedly one of the most important pages of your website. It is where the majority of web browsers will first experience you, your company or your brand. It takes seconds for browsers to evaluate and create an opinion. Ensure you make the first impression the best impression!
The headline
We tend to naturally read from the top left to bottom right. Make sure your website has a headline (in the top left) that is clear and simple and tells browsers what you offer. Follow up your headline with the "3 second elevator pitch" in a sentence or succinct paragraph. Tell your browsers why they should use you . .. what are the benefits?
The 'call-to-action'
Ensure the call-to-action (CTA) is loud and clear. Your CTA should drive peoples behaviour in line with the objectives of your website. Depending on whether your objectives are sales related or creating awareness of a product or service, your CTA will be different. Whatever the objectives ensure the CTA button is clear and large. If the design allows, ensure the button has an amount of 'white space' around it. If there is no space around the button then it could get crowded and lost with other site content, it has to stand out.
The Navigation
Navigation is key to keeping the bounce rate low. The bounce rate is the percent of browsers which left your site immediately after arriving on the landing page. Having a concise navigation allows your browsers to go to the pages that are relevant to them. The navigation is usually along the top of the page so it can be easily found. Try and keep the navigation titles simple such as 'Who we are', 'What we do', 'How we do it' and 'Contact us'. Having multiple complicated navigation options just confuses browsers and means they 'bounce' away. Also consider the way your navigation works on smartphones and tablets, they do not have cursors to 'roll-over'.
Finally ...
Although everything above is achieved with words, try and include 1 or 2 pictures which helps to explain what you do or what you offer. Remember that humans are naturally visual and love pictures! If someone has taken the trouble of reading your homepage make sure you include another CTA at the bottom of the page. Make it simple, clear and easy for browsers to contact you!
On that note, if you require further information send us an email or contact us further information.
Tags: Landing page, home page, navigation, call-to-action