The homepage is the main page of a website. It is the first page you land on when you visit a site. Similar to a book cover, the homepage design welcomes the users and tells them more about the significant purposes of the website. It also provides the users with the navigation index that categorizes the web content and points to other aspects of the site. Are you wondering how important is the homepage design? Or you do not know the effects homepage designs have on websites? If yes, it is good that you are here. In this article, we will tell you the things you need to know about homepage design, and how important it is.
How important is the homepage design?
Every good web designer will tell you that your homepage design is essential. Have you ever searched for a company online, only to realize that their website was out-dated, and difficult to operate? And the next thing you do is to show yourself out of such site. Anybody would do that. Perhaps this is because no one would want to waste his or her time checking a website that has a lousy homepage design.
Irrespective of your website purpose, your home page is like a storefront, it gives an idea of what is on your site. And in a world where people judge a book mostly by its cover, a lousy homepage will provide users with a wrong impression of your website, and probably your homepage is the only thing your user will see because they will likely move one from your site quickly.
Below are some of the importance of the homepage design:
Gives the users an idea of what your website is about
Any user visiting a website first lands on the homepage. As said earlier, the homepage tells the users what your webpage is all about. Can you imagine visiting a site that has no homepage design to welcome you? Or a website that has a bad homepage design that is difficult to navigate? You sure will not want to revisit such sites. Hence, having a good homepage design is very important.
Gives your website an outstanding look
There are so many websites available online. How then do you make your site unique and outstanding? One of the ways you can make your website stand out is by having a fantastic homepage design. Your homepage design gives your website a unique look. It makes it different from other sites and helps you create your brand.
Packaging design and customer perception
The homepage serves as the first impression for a strange visitor, and of all pages of your website the busiest. Regrettably, most brands don’t consider the homepage a significant area of your web design and prefer to invest more in the service pages. But if you do not have any or your homepage design is cluttered, disorganized, or out-dated, it gives your prospects a wrong impression. And this will affect the efficiency, and growth of your website. Homepage design is like packaging your site for your customers. Homepage design influences the thoughts, and perceptions of the prospects. How you package your website matters a lot.
What is considered to be an OUTSTANDING homepage design
Being noted that the homepage is where users get their first impression, and if t is bad, then they won’t stick around to learn more on your website.
Your homepage must be able to satisfy the below purposes:
- To entice and mesmerize user.
- To educate the guest user about your brand.
- To encourage the user to visit more pages on the website.
Component of a good homepage
Already you know what your homepage is supposed to do; next, we need to understand how it can do it? The points below need to be kept in mind when designing your homepage, to meet up with the standard of being an outstanding design.
Create your identity
Letting user/visitors know who you are as a company is one of the most important accomplishments of your homepage.
Preferably, your homepage needs to do the following:
- Familiarize and gives visitors a clear intellect of your brand.
- Have an appealing look to visitors.
- Offer visitors a clear path to other pages of the website.
Generally, when a visitor arrives at a particular website, they should be introduced to what the company does and why it matters.
Simplicity
Make your homepage easy to navigate/operate, don’t make your visitors work to find the information they are seeking because they won’t.
Keep your homepage simple and tidied with easy-to-read text and a categorized division that makes navigation a breeze.
Choose your font wisely
Psychologically, the font you use can affect your visitors and have a significant impact on how they feel about your brand.
When designing a website, you want your homepage to be in uniform on other pages of your site. Accomplish uniformity by avoiding the use of too many different fonts.
Have an audacious supporting image
A website is a highly visual medium; people react to the use of graphics and visual differently than they use simple words. Make sure your homepage includes images that symbolize your brand’s vision.
Uniformity in brand
If your company has a logo and such logo is frequently utilized in print materials, then the logo should be used in the website design. It is essential for your customers to be able to recognize your brand in all form of communication.
Click here to know how to build strong company branding
Pattern of reading
Most people prefer reading a webpage the same way the read a book, e.g., from left to right, top to bottom. Placing an essential information on the upper part of the homepage might help get the message across more effectively for website visitors who could be current or future customers. And most web designers adopt this method.
Content
Besides the fact that the content communicates your company’s brand to the user, it also has more importance to your homepage. It complements an excellent visual environment, making the message short and yet openhearted help the reader to remember the message easier, lots of text on a page might cause visual confusion, making it difficult for the readers to read let alone being interested in learning more about the brand.
Click here to know "How to find your target audience and create content relevant to them?"
By restructuring the content, the designer is then able to insert relevant text into the homepage.
Make your purpose undeniably clear
When the intention of a website is not made clear, customers are being lost within seconds of viewing. Some customers might not leave immediately because they might have misinterpreted the intention of your website which will in time lead them to search for information that does not exist.
Conclusion
With no doubts, regardless of the type of business you are running, there’s always a fierce competition in the market. Standing out and beating this competition is very important for a company to be successful. An enticing and user-friendly web design would make your website stand out and attract more traffic. The homepage is the reception that welcomes your visitors and shows them an overview of what to expect from your website. Hence, your homepage is a vital tool that can help you generate more profit for your business and help your business thrive in the market, amidst fearsome competition from other businesses. Good Luck!