Over the last few years, the number of ways a small business can promote a seasonal product range, a new service or even just some new content has increased dramatically. With the evolution of search engines, the emergence of online advertising such as Google Adwords and the never-ending social media channels, these paths have created a whole new digital era for website visitors to find what they need without every needing to navigate to your website homepage.
With the inception of the Landing Page coinciding with the data released by numerous high-profile businesses such as publication giants The New York Times which documented a plunge in homepage visitors over the course of the last couple of years, many simply accepted and started to belief that the homepage had lost its true purpose.
As a Cheshire web design agency, our industry alone continues to be an ever-changing environment and we can safely assure you that while putting all your efforts into marketing your landing pages, you should never ignore or neglect your website homepage. Join us as we provide several reasons why you website homepage is still an extremely valuable asset to help your business thrive.
Encouraging Homepage Trends
Organic Page Views & Click through Rates
According to statistics documented by Website Magazine, users are only likely to view an average of 3.18 pages when filtering through an external, social or advertising link. For the more organic methods such as search results, users are likely to view between 10-30 pages each time.
Although organic methods are only likely to make up just a small section of your overall traffic, these leads actually present a longer engagement with your content which often leads to higher conversion rates, returning customers and ultimately brand loyalty. So although search may only make up a small number, this channel often account for over 50% of your total page views that drive more enquires.
Interested In Your Brand
Let’s face it, when a visitor clicks on a link from your social media campaign, newsletter or any other type of external resource, they are likely to only view that particular link that got them to click, then likely to go elsewhere and not return.
When a visitor enters through your homepage, they are somewhat already invested in your brand, your products or your services because they have already committed to choosing your website. With the right elements, you can subtlety suggest your visitors check out more content closely related to what may interested them and encourage them to have a look around your website.
Homepage Guideline Essentials
Primary and Sub-headlines
Statistically, you have roughly 5 seconds to convince website visitors why they need to choose your business so with first impressions, the headline is critical. Within the narrow time frame, it’s impossible to write a headline that will influence every customer so it’s important to target keywords that most likely promote your key business goal so for example our headline would be to promote being a local Cheshire web design agency.
Your sub-headline should mirror your chosen key business goal by reflecting on the key points of your products and services solve which will appeal to customers. Using our website has an example, although there are sub-headlines, we could choose to expand on different services such as being mobile-responsive or website rebuilds which will again cater to a core-audience.
Primary And Secondary Call-to-Action Goals
If a visitor succeeds the 5 seconds period, it’s most likely something has caught their attention which is encouraging them to want to explore your website further which is your primary call-to-action. By having one or two call-to-actions on your homepage, you can promote different key services you offer which will increase the likelihood of engagement if something in particle interests them.
You can also offer additional conversion opportunities in the form of secondary call-to-actions. Although they may not be high up your business goal priority list, it provides another outlet to visitors who may not be interested in your key service.
Flowing Navigation And Proof
It doesn’t matter if you have an e-commerce website full or products, or a simple website to showcase your services in the form or case-studies, the biggest flaw in increased bounce rates is poor flowing navigation so make the website as clear and obvious as possible. If a visitors lands on a product, provide recommended products or reviews within a single click or if they are viewing a particular service, provide testimonials or case-studies that show what you can do!
Speaking of case-studies, just because you say your products and services are the best doesn’t mean visitors are thinking the same thing. Look to add a snippet or a quote of text to encourage the visitor to click on a case-study, testimonial or review and let their words do the talking for you.
untitled™ Partner With Lead Forensics
Ok, so you have a stunning website but do you know where these clicks are coming from or where visitors are navigating or bouncing from when they have a look around? Well now you can!
untitled™ have partnered with b2b lead-generation software specialists so you can identify, track and convert users into customers that you never knew you had! If this service interests you, please do not hesitate to contact your local Cheshire web design agency so we can arrange a more detailed discussion or run through on how you can capture quality leads and gain a much better return on investment with your website.