Here’s How to Guarantee Your Website Makes a Great First Impression
I was at a conference once where the speaker told us to turn to the stranger to our right and introduce ourselves using the first line of text on our company’s website.
I stuck out my hand and said something awkward like, “These three cooky contraptions claim to cut greenhouse gases!”
We laughed and I made a mental note to edit the homepage banner when I returned to the office.
Years later, I still think about that exercise. And I constantly consider how the first few lines of text on a website might affect a users’ feelings about the brand.
You can help guarantee your website makes a great first impression by considering just a few key design and communication components.
Optimize your homepage headline
The headline on your homepage is the first thing users see when they land on your website. Returning visitors will likely skim past that text, but new visitors will read the content as they browse your website for the first time.
Keep these tips in mind when writing your headline:
Make sure your headline accurately reflects your brand. Explain who you are and what users can expect from or accomplish on your website.
Push down the promotional information or unrelated content. Give your users a chance to get to know you before sending them off to a new section of your website.
Treat your homepage headline like an encounter with an acquaintance. Welcome them in and effortlessly guide them toward capabilities and next steps.
Take inventory of your calls-to-action
You don’t bombard someone you’ve just met with question after question before they even have a chance to shake your hand. So why do websites treat visitors that way?
Users presented with too many options may not know exactly what to do or where to go next. Worst case scenario: they exit your website out of frustration.
You can cut down on the number of CTAs by thinking about your goals. What are one to three things you absolutely want a user to do when they land on your website? Prioritize that content and those CTAs, and push less important information further down the page.
Remove or disable pop-ups
The majority of users are coming to your website to complete a task. Don’t interrupt the beginning of their journey with an annoying pop-up about your email list.
It’s not uncommon these days to land on a website and instantly receive numerous pop-ups. There’s the GDPR-required pop-up asking you to consent to cookies. There’s the chatbot pop-up asking if you need help. There’s the website feedback pop-up asking for your opinion. And, of course, there’s the dreaded pop-up asking you to sign up for an email list.
Users aren’t reading all of these pop-ups. They’re growing frustrated and automatically closing the pop-ups as quickly as they appear.
Help out your users by removing the non-required pop-ups altogether, or by at least disabling them on the homepage.
Retool your headline throughout the year
Making a great first impression doesn’t mean you can’t be fluid or creative. You wouldn’t repeatedly greet an acquaintance the same way every time you saw them. Just the same, your website shouldn’t grow stagnant with one perfect headline.
Update the imagery and tweak the verbiage as your goals and initiatives shift. But before you hit publish, consider the components above and ask yourself: Does this make a great first impression?
I’d love to hear how you think websites can make a great first impression. Leave your thoughts in the comments below. And while you’re there, I’d love it if you shared the first line of text from your website.