They say that less is more—and when it comes to your company’s homepage, that can often be the case. The front page of your website establishes the first impression that most clients and potential clients will have of your brand. It ultimately determines whether your leads become sales, your visitors turn into paying customers—or whether they simply navigate off the page and forget about you altogether, unimpressed by what they saw. As such, it’s important to have content on your home page that helps your brand to shine. At the same time, it’s important to delete anything that diminishes your brand’s appeal.
The Grammar Chic team visits an awful lot of business websites, and many of them are quite good—but some have elements that are likely doing more harm than good. Three of these damaging elements are especially common—and if any of them currently mar your own business website, then we recommend you ditch them immediately.
- Your life story.
We say this frequently, but it’s most assuredly pertinent here: The content on your website really isn’t about you. Not even the content on your About Us page. No, the content on your website should be all about the reader, and what benefits he or she derives from doing business with you. When John Smith visits your business website, he should come away from it with a good sense of what’s in it for him to pick up the phone and call you, or click over to your e-store to order a product. He should be able to envision himself benefitting from your company’s offerings.
Yet, far too many businesses use their home page to outline their entire history, or to provide a personal narrative from the business owner. These things can have their place on the About Us page, perhaps, but your homepage needs to be quick, to the point, and value-focused. You only have a few seconds to form that positive first impression, so focus on consumer benefits.
- Buzzwords.
We’ve written about this before, as well, but meaningless marketing buzzwords can really turn off your readers. Your company website should have a voice of its own, communicating whatever it is that makes your business special. Clichés and jargon are only going to detract from that.
- Prices.
There is an ongoing debate about whether it’s smart to have all your pricing online, and we’re not saying it doesn’t have its place. Many companies do benefit from having pricing online. It doesn’t always work out well to have it on your homepage, though. It can be a turnoff to some, who might otherwise have dug deeper into your site to learn more about the company. If you do choose to include pricing, put it somewhere other than the homepage.
What would you add to our list? What elements never have a place on a company homepage? Tell us in the comments section—or reach out to us directly: Call 803-831-7444, or visit www.grammarchic.net today.
Amanda E. Clark founded Grammar Chic in 2008. She is a graduate of Eastern Michigan University and holds degrees in Journalism, Political Science, and English. She launched Grammar Chic after freelancing for several years while simultaneously leading marketing and advertising initiatives for several Fortune 500 companies.