Common Home Page Mistakes
I often tell clients that the home page is like the front and back cover of a book.
The site gets to give some eye-candy to grab your attention (that’s the cover) then give a brief summary of what you offer and about yourself (that’s the book summary and author bio). Sometimes, it’ll even have testimonials, or book reviews, on the site.
Still, lots of people make mistakes on their home page and here’s a breakdown of the top ones.
Calls-To-Action
You get to have at least one on your home page - at least. It should be visible right when you land on the site.
Features Versus Benefits
Stop telling your site visitors the features of your service or product. You can do that on the sales page or the product page. Instead, tell them what those features get them. For example, don’t tell me that you’ll help me lose 10 pounds. Tell me that you’re going to help me look HOT the next time my ex sees me.
Sign Up Forms
You need to start collecting emails. Plain and simple. That means that when someone is scrolling through your home page, you should have something that entices them to sign up for your email newsletter. Sometimes that’s an e-book, other times it’s a video series. Make it something worthy of an exchange for an email. Can’t think of anything? At the very least, add the typical “Join Our Newsletter” option.
Social Proof
Show me you have experience in what you do. Add testimonials, product reviews or the logos of where you’ve been featured. This give a bit of trust. Think of it this way: you’ve said you’re awesome, so now let someone else say it.
