Did you know you have just 10 seconds to grab a user’s attention and convince them to explore your website further? The importance of homepage design can never be underestimated. The majority of website traffic will land on your homepage, especially first-time visitors.
This page is your pitch. It’s the place to show off your brand, let the user know who you are, what you offer, and how you can impact their life. Talk about a huge responsibility!
So, in this article, we’ll tell you how to design a homepage, but not just any homepage – the perfect homepage.
The Homepage Design Process
A good homepage communicates the value of your brand and offering. However, a great homepage does it in an attention-grabbing, succinct, and engaging way.
Your aim is to compel the visitor, intrigue them, and make them want to learn more about your brand. You’re on a mission to beat the bounce!
So, how do you do it?
1. Know Your Audience
Before designing anything, you need to understand the people who visit your website the most. If you take time to learn what’s important to them, their values, the information they’re looking for, and how they might behave, you’re setting yourself up for success.
All this information can help you choose copies, images, CTAs, and user journeys.
You can discover this information through website analytics data, interviews, and live testing with your existing website.
2. Decide Your Layout
Now you know your audience, you can take the information you’ve learned and begin to craft the most impactful layout. When designing a homepage, you should remember its purpose – it’s meant to capture users’ attention while making it easy to find the information they’re looking for.
In step one, you discover the information your target audience is looking for. Use this to your advantage when deciding how you structure the sections of the page.
Here, you should also consider how you will use typography and imagery. However, don’t think about them as separate entities – the perfect homepage uses them seamlessly together to create impactful and engaging content.
3. Decide Your Platform of Focus
Most websites are built to be mobile responsive. However, the process always starts with creating a desktop version first and then scaling it down. What many people don’t realize is a mobile-first approach may be most lucrative for your business.
Take a look at the analytics for your current website – if you have one. If you discover the majority of website traffic is mobile, you should start with creating a mobile design first, then expand upwards to large screen resolutions from there.
In Summary
The perfect homepage comes down to understanding your target users and creating a design that works for them. Too often, people get caught up in personal bias, putting their feelings ahead of consumers. Learn about your audience, their behavior, and what they want to see, and the design process will be much easier.
Get in touch to learn more or find out how Shark Design can help with designing a homepage.