A lot of our conversation about content development centers around landing pages, articles, blogs and other informative features of a website. It is fair to say that content is king…without valuable informative content, online shoppers probably will not even find your site and if they do, they will quickly leave as it will offer them nothing.
Writing home pages however is much different than writing general content. Not only does it have to draw someone in, it also has to support the second level pages that contain all of this informative content we speak of.
Continue reading to learn how a top copywriter Nick Usborne approaches homepages. Nick has had an exceptional copywriting career and offers many invaluable tips to maximizing the benefits of website copywriting.
1. Use your main homepage headline to highlight your site’s underlying value proposition
Someone coming to your site for the first time has a purpose – they are looking for something that you may offer. Therefore, your main headline has to communicate the value of your site and the products and services you offer along with gently explaining why your site is better than others in a similar niche.
This isn’t an easy thing to accomplish and gets more difficult if you try to do too much with your headline.
Therefore, you need to stay focused on the primary reasons behind why someone would be interested in what you offer and communicate that in a concise, easy-to-understand way.
2. Use sub-headings and short introductory text to clarify and expand your headline
Not every online business can communicate all they offer in ten words or less. It’s best to keep your headline short then use short intro text directly beneath it to further clarify and expand your message.
Be sure this intro text immediately follows your headline. Basically, be conscious of eye-patterns and how someone scans your webpage. Do not make them search for this statement.
3. Help site visitors find what they’re looking for
Unless you offer only one product or service, your homepage has to help someone find what they’re looking for in your secondary level pages. If 80% of your visitors only look at three or four different products, then include links to those secondary level pages in your homepage copy.
Use navigation links to provide access to all parts of your site but also include extra links to those areas of your site that are most popular.
4. Make first-time visitors feel comfortable and confident
Unless you are a nationally recognized brand, new visitors to your site are going to be naturally skeptical. They need reassurance that you can be trusted.
There are many ways to do this – including a third-party logo from the Better Business Bureau is one example.
But your headline and homepage copy also has to be written in a tone that’s inviting and belays their fears. Homepages are rarely sales pages – save that for the secondary pages. So do not include sales language in your homepage…simply write in a clear, honest manner.
Make your customers feel like you’re the mom & pop store down the street that cares about their problem and wants to offer a solution.
While these guidelines are not the only elements to writing a good homepage, they are the most important. Like Nick, we try to write homepages in a clear, concise manner. We use homepages to help visitors learn what the site is about and find what they’re looking for without too much trouble.
See more of Nick’s copywriting tips and take a look at some of our copywriting resources on this blog and the SEO copywriting knowledge center.