WHAT MAKES A GOOD WEBSITE HOMEPAGE?
Oct 22, 2015
Here at The Creation Lab, our website designs always aim to reflect the brand of our clients accurately, and target their audiences effectively. Although every website is unique, there are still universal factors that contribute to each website we create.
One of these factors is the website's homepage – the front page that draws people in, and encourages them to browse the rest of your website - providing it's designed well! It's important to get this right, if not your website may put people off; they will simply click the 'back' button and look for a different website.
So, what exactly does make a good website homepage? Read on to find out!
1. Company Logo & Branding
Without your logo and unique colour scheme or branding, there is nothing to distinguish the website as being yours; it’s the one thing your web users are expecting to see when they search for your website online. A company logo usually appears in the top right or top middle of the page, and remains in the same position throughout the pages of your website to keep consistency.
2. Contact Details
A point of contact is the second most important component to your homepage, as it may be the only thing your web users are looking for. Take the nature of your business into account and consider how people most like to contact you – sometimes an email address is more appropriate than a telephone number. If you are a hotel, restaurant or event venue, people may also be searching for an address and post code.
3. Navigation
Google defines a website homepage as a “table of contents for the site”, meaning that everything has to be within easy reach. A navigation bar is the easiest and most effective way of doing this, and is typically displayed underneath your logo and contact details. It’s best to keep it succinct, with drop down menus to reveal sub-pages.
4. Image/Focal Point
A good homepage is attractive, drawing users in to explore your other pages. There’s nothing worse than being presented with something so crammed full of information that you don’t know where to look! That’s why a focal image is so important – it breaks everything up, and it’s also a perfect opportunity to show-off your products or facilities. Make sure you get some high quality photos taken!
Tagline
It’s up to you whether you include a paragraph about yourself on the homepage, but it’s useful to at least have a tagline, so people know who you are and what you are about. It doesn’t have to give your life story or talk about your company ethics – just something that explains what you do.
The most important content
A good homepage will have the most popular content within easy reach. Think about what people most want to use your website for, and add links to these pages on your homepage. For example, if you are an e-commerce website, your most popular products should be featured, along with any special offers. If you are an event venue, perhaps add testimonials and information about the facilities. This will help people find what they are looking for, and encourage them to browse your website for longer.
Would you like some help with the structure of your website's homepage, we'd love to help. Get in touch with our friendly team for some more information!
Now that you know what makes a good website homepage, how about reading about 5 things you need on your website's contact page?