Opening Page

First impressions count!

You have managed to get someone to your site, either they have been told about you, they have googled you or they have seen your web address on your van or an advert. So what is the first thing you want them to see?

Some people look at me strangely when I say that the main purpose of the opening page of your website is to get rid of most of the visitors. Yes, it does sound a little insane, but you do not want to deal with everyone in the world. You only want to deal with your target market.

Focus On Your Target Market

When people arrive at the front page of your website you need to deliver a message that is going to hit the right note, to the right people.

It is always the hardest thing in the world when you are in business to identify why people should come to you and not go elsewhere. What is your 'difference'.

The chances are that people coming to your website have also been looking at those of your competitors. So maybe a good step would be to identify your competitors, and look at their websites. Please remember, you do not what to copy them, you do not just want to do what they do! You need to create your own identity that differentiates you from them and allows potential customers to believe you are the people they need.

Websites are for three things, the big three C's -

• Competence

• Confidence

• Communication

You need to show people your competence by explaining what you do in an informative and professional manner. This will lead people to gain confidence in your company, which will in turn get them to communicate with you.

Your opening page starts the process. The potential customer needs to see a professionally presented company, read some brief, but interesting text and see good representative images.

The image rotation system in the FastWeb system allows you to present a series of ideas on the opening page and link these to more detail. We recommend that you have no more than 5 images or messages in the rotator, otherwise the visitor might not focus on the one aspect they came for. As on the FastWeb site, these messages are brief, to the point and introduce services or features of your company quickly and in an interesting way.

You do not want to pack too much onto the opening page. Take a look at the cover of magazines. They are packed with headlines, tempting tit bits and summaries that entice the reader to open the magazine. It is the same with the opening page of your site.

Keep It Simple (stupid)

I do believe that you should have some text on your opening page that in two simple sentences introduces your business.

i.e. At Bob's windowcleaning we have been providing services to the Wellington area for over 25 years. In this time we have built a reputation for safe, clean and effective workmanship. Call our office today for an obligation free meeting.

Or

Cake making is not just a craft, for all the staff here at Cakes4you it is our passion. Let us create the cake to help you celebrate your occasion in style. From our Hamilton cake kitchen we bake and ship nationwide, take a look at our cake display page to see our satisfied customers.

Each of these examples explain who the company are, what they do and where they do it, all in a statement that can be read in less than 15 seconds. Be brief, be accurate, be clear.

As a rule of thumb you should include no more than 5 key messages or decisions on your front page.

Call To Action

The number one thing you MUST , I repeat MUST, include on your front page is an invitation for people to call you. Whether that is done in the text or as a graphic. Read the item about calls to action in the hints and tips section of 'The Club'. 'Calls to Action' are essential if you want to lead people to contact you.

The second must have on the opening page is a quick way to get off this page and to find out about your company. People buy from people, not corporations, especially on a local level. Your visitors want to find out about the people in your company, this allows them to see if your ethics and reasons for being in business fit with their ideals.

The other three are up for debate, however, the beauty of the FastWeb system is that you can change the content, so you can experiment with different content to see what works best. Yes Experiment is the right word as no one has yet come up with the perfect formula for website content, or they would all look the same.

So to summarise

• The key things to put on the front page are quick and interesting pieces of information
• a Call to Action
• a brief Introduction to your Company
• a link to your About Us page
• some interesting and informative images

Keep the opening page interesting and allow the visitor to know they have found the right company for their needs, you can tell them why it should be you on the other pages.

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