Keep in mind that each page of your website will demand a slightly different approach. The Home Page, for example, needs to focus on what you are offering and why the site visitor should choose you over everyone else.
People are often tempted to fill the Home Page with reams of text which says how great they are. People won’t read past the first few lines so it’s best to stick to short, punchy headlines that pull your potential clients in. Follow this with a few short simple sentences that get your essential message across.
For example, maybe you are selling cars and are offering fantastic deals. However, as every car dealer boasts ‘the best deals’, you might want to focus on something else as well. Your website has excellent navigation and one of the most comprehensive search facilities, making it quicker and easier for your site visitor to find the car of their choice. You have regular news updates and reviews. You make it a priority to give top advice and guidance to potential buyers.
Instead of writing all of this in a long paragraph, you could bullet the main points so that they stand out:
We offer even more than the best deals:
- One of the most comprehensive search facilities
- Regular news updates and reviews
- Top advice and guidance
- And of course the best cars at the best prices
Once you have drawn your visitor into your site via your home page, you can explain what you do in more detail. This can take on the form of ‘layering’ so that you are giving your site visitor the choice to get more information should they want it. With the Home Page, you start with a few key points. From there you can have links to the secondary pages where you can write more detailed text if necessary.
This does not mean, however, that you can now start waffling on. If your website has a lot of information that needs to go in, you can take the layering one stage further and have intermediary pages that act as navigators. It is far better to have more pages that are each specific to one topic, than one long page with dozens of different topics.
Each page should follow the standard rules. Use clear, concise text which is broken down so that it is easy for the site visitor to scan. And use headings, subheadings and bullet points so that the information is easy to find.
