What makes a great website Home Page?

You must know this by now, your home page is the most important page on your website.

Not because it is the one that converts visitors to customers but because it acts as a teaser for your website and the page that will make visitors stay and read more or leave right away.

What makes a great home page? 
In my opinion it should:

IMPRESS visitors;
Include you elevator PITCH;
Act as a TEASER;
Be PERSONAL;
Keep FRESH

Here are my top tips for a great home page explained:

1. IMPRESS:
   
   Make an impression! on average it takes 8 seconds or less for visitors to stay or leave while browsing the internet so first impression counts.
   
   This can be achieved with professional photos (for example: product, scenery, yourself or stock photos that showcase your service), professional graphics (for example flat design), Video (for example: rolling video, time laps, promotional video, explainer), bold statement and modern professional and clean layout.
    

2. PITCH:
   
   Tell visors what you do in a few words so they understand right away. In the same way that you use an Elevator Pitch in networking events, don’t expect visitors to your website to read through paragraphs to finally understand what you do.
   
   Spell it out in a bold statement – clear and easy to understand with no jargon.
    

3. TEASER:
   
   Your home page is like a cover of a magazine, or like a shopfront window it gives visitors a taste of what is to come – a brief of the content of your website or what you offer.
   
   To do this look at your full content and pull out the main services / products that are most important and showcase them on your home page.
   
   Note - all of these pages can be access via the website menu, this is another way for visitors to get to these pages.
   
   For example, use graphics to display services, images of top products, latest blog posts, benefits of your product / service illustrated…)
    

4. PERSONAL
   
   Make it personal! When visitors come in to your shop you greet them – the same applies to your website home page.
   
   Greet your visitors (with words or imagery) and ask them how you can help them with phrases such as ‘hello’ ‘we help business…’, hi, I’m () and I can help you to ()’, ‘get started’ ‘let me help you’ ‘let me show you how’
    

5. FRESH
   
   Update the main photo of your home page seasonally – as new products arrive, a holiday, a special event. This will give returning visitors the feeling that it is a website / business that is dynamic and looked after. It also makes it more personal.
   
   This can also be done by updating blog posts or testimonials – keep it fresh!