- [Voiceover] Your homepage is more
than a front door or entrance to your site.
It's the first impression.
It needs to set the tone,
communicate your brand message,
and work well.
A good homepage is the same
as meeting someone in your best clothes
and saying all the right things.
When I'm introduced to someone,
I like to make a good impression.
Rather than shouting all my accomplishments at them,
I listen and have a conversation.
Your homepage is the same.
It needs to be clear and helpful to the user.
It shouldn't make them work for every bit of information.
Unfortunately, if a visitor doesn't understand who you are
and what you do within seconds,
he or she will leave the site.
The homepage needs to clearly state who you are,
what you do, and why you do it.
If the message isn't coming through clearly
with the images of work, put it in text.
You can't be too direct and clear.
The homepage is not the place
for coy and subtle messages.
The homepage also needs to be user-friendly.
Banners, animations, and your favorite song
will slow the loading and visitors will give up.
Conversely, even though it may look good,
a homepage that is only a landing page
that leads to the rest of the site is a waste.
I work with the idea that you will lose 50% of your visitors
on every click.
Of the 100 people who visit your site,
50 bother to click to the next page,
25 after that, and so on.
Hierarchy is critical on a homepage.
If everything is shouting, nothing is heard.
Consider where you want the viewer to look first,
second, and third.
If everything is the same size or color value,
this doesn't work.
Let one image be the star
or let your brand message stand out.
One trick I like is to make clear
that there is more content below the fold.
Otherwise, the visitor says, that's it?
I always try to size my images
to make sure that some stick up above the fold.
Finally, change it up every once in a while.
Visitors will return if a site is not static.
Change out the main image,
highlight the most recent project,
or add interesting news.
You're a designer, not a banker.
Design is serious, but not funereal.