Whether you’re a business just starting out with your website design, or you’re about to begin the process of redesigning your site, the homepage is one area you want to get right. That’s because your website homepage is often the first point of contact with your visitors, so it’s crucial to make a first good and lasting impression of your brand. People are quick to judge, and you can’t afford to send customers in the opposite direction, or worse, to your competitors.
In this blog, we highlight five best practices to follow with your homepage design that will help you create a welcoming and user-friendly experience for your audience. From showcasing your testimonials, to strategically placing your call-to-actions (CTAs), these best practices will set you on the path to a homepage design that not only looks great but also drives conversions.
The importance of your homepage design
Your website homepage is the core of your whole website and without it, your customers will be unsure of what your business is about. With a well-designed homepage design, it can help increase user engagement, drive conversions and establish a strong brand identity.
Think of your homepage as your digital storefront. By making it visually appealing and easy to navigate, it will encourage exploration of the rest of your site, and when you add clear CTAs, high-quality images and a responsive layout, you can help to drive conversions.
Ultimately, your website homepage sets the tone for the rest of your website, so you must ensure it leaves a positive and lasting impact on every visitor.
5 homepage design best practices
Here are five best practices to keep in mind when you’re designing your homepage. If you incorporate all of these factors into your website, you can be sure you’ll attract more customers to your business.
1. Make the purpose of your business clear
When designing your homepage, you want to ensure your customer is informed about your business at all times. Visitors should be able to quickly understand what your business is about and what products or services you offer. Be sure to use concise and engaging language to communicate your value proposition effectively.
You should also incorporate clear imagery that accurately represents your brand and showcases your products or services. But be sure to try and to use your own imagery rather than licensed stock images, or at least use imagery that is related to your offering. You could also use banners with text to help show the purpose of your business too.
By making the purpose of your business evident from the moment visitors land on your website homepage, you can engage them much more effectively and increase the likelihood of conversion.
2. Feature your news, blogs and social media
To make your homepage design more engaging and interactive, you should incorporate your news or blogs sections and add a dynamic feed of your social media channels. This not only keeps your audience updated on the latest information, but also encourages engagement and interaction with your brand.
News or blogs are a great way to keep your content fresh. It allows you to showcase your expertise and credibility and keeps visitors informed about your latest content. Integrating your social media feeds can also help drive traffic to your social platforms and foster a sense of community among your audience.
Adding these elements means you’re creating an engaging online presence that resonates with your visitors and encourages them to explore more of what you have to offer.
3. Display testimonials and reviews
Reviews and testimonials will bolster your reliability as a business. It’s a simple section that provides more variety and depth to your homepage design. Potential customers often look for social proof before making a purchase decision and seeing positive feedback from previous customers can help reassure them of the quality of your offering.
You can add any type of reviews and testimonials including text reviews, star ratings and even video testimonials if you wish. Showcasing your reviews and testimonials on your homepage shows you’re a trustworthy brand meaning your audience is much more likely to convert.
4. Ensure a clean and sharp design
We’ve emphasised the importance of design, however it’s important to not over-complicate your homepage design. If you do, it can lead to an over-the-top design that is cluttered and confusing which can turn your visitors away before they even have a chance to explore the rest of your site.
You want to keep each section clear and consistent. Aim to keep a simple colour pallet and keep to the same colours you’ll use across the rest of your site. Opt for easy-to-read fonts and use high-quality images as we’ve mentioned previously. Keeping your design clean and sharp ensures a positive user experience and encourages visitors to stay on your site longer thanks to your easy navigation.
5. Add plenty of call-to-actions (CTA)
You’ll have certainly seen CTA buttons on other sites before and there’s good reasoning for that. You want to entice your viewers to navigate around your site and convert. Acting as visual cues, you can add CTAs across your homepage design to guide them to take specific actions such as signing up for a newsletter, exploring and buying your products or services, or contacting you.
Strategically adding CTA buttons across your homepage is a best practice that can significantly enhance user engagement and drive conversions. Remember to keep them clear, concise and visually appealing to maximise interaction with your website.
Let us help with your homepage design
These best practices can be used to either improve your current homepage design, or they can be used to design your first website homepage if you’re just starting out. But we know the whole process of designing a homepage can be quite daunting, but we can help.
We’ve worked with countless businesses to design and develop websites that look stunning, work practically and most importantly, drive conversions for our clients. Be sure to contact us today to see how we can help take your web design to the next level.