It should be fairly obvious that some of the pages on your website are more important than others. What’s surprising is how few people actually apply this knowledge to their websites to improve conversions. Implementing a few critical changes has the potential to improve your site dramatically.
Every website is different, but generally speaking the four most important (and most-visited) pages on a website are the Home Page, About Page, Blog and Contact Us Page. In this post, you’ll learn how to optimize each one of these pages. If your most-visited pages are different than the ones listed above, use the same framework to optimize those pages.
What do you mean by “optimize” a webpage?
You’ve probably heard the word “optimize” most commonly used in phrases like “search engine optimization” (SEO) and “conversion rate optimization” (CRO). In the pursuit of SEO and CRO, it’s easy to overlook the broader, big-picture idea. First and foremost, a site must be optimized for the user.
Not sure how to create user optimized web pages? HubSpot’s Neil Patel recommends an easy four-step process:
- Find your most visited pages
- Figure out why users are there
- Give them what they want
- Ask them for an action in return.
How to Optimize Each Page
There are two simple questions to ask of every page, and the specifics of optimizing those pages will flow from the answers to those two questions. The first question is all about the user, and the second question is all about you.
Question 1: What is the user looking for?
- Where did they come from? A search engine? An email? A navigation menu? The idea here is to understand the origins of the user, so you can deliver relevant content.
- What do they need to know? You want them to know something so that they will then do something (which is addressed in the next question). Remember: Less is more. Give too much information and the user won’t remember any of it.
Question 2: What is my goal for the user?
One of the critical components of a web page is its call-to-action (CTA), and many website owners don’t realize that every single page of a website should contain at least one CTA. If you retain only one thing from this article, let it be that every webpage needs a CTA.
Tips for Optimizing Each Page
Now that you have a framework, here are a few specific tips to help you optimize each of the four most important pages.
1) Home Page
- Use a big headline, and place the most important information front and center.
- Provide flow. Make it obvious where the user is supposed to go and what they are supposed to do next.
- Make your CTA as big and obvious as possible. A home page may allow for several different CTAs — make it easy for the user to choose by making CTA buttons large and easy to click.
2) About Page
- Deliver the most important and relevant information above the fold. The user is on your About page for a reason — answer their question(s) without making them scroll.
- Include at least one CTA. Remember, most people aren’t just looking for more information; they’re seeking a deeper level of engagement.
3) Blog
- Organize information on your blog clearly, and make sure that information satisfies the reasons users might be on your blog.
- Include CTAs that make it easy for the user to subscribe to the blog, download a free resource, and so on.
- Provide CTAs in the core design of your blog so they appear on each individual blog post. Most blog visitors land on individual blog articles through organic search, not on your blog’s “home” page, so put CTAs on the sidebars, in the footer, and other places.
4) Contact Us Page
- Put the information they’re looking for above the fold — an email address, phone number, contact form, map, mailing address, and so on.
- Use CTAs that allow the user to contact you easily. Make the CTA really obvious, and engage them by gratifying their intent instantly, using CTA copy like “Chat now!” “Email now!”.
BizzyWeb is ready to help you make your website performance rise to the next level! Get started today with a FREE BUZZ Report to see what you’re doing well, where you have room for improvement and how BizzyWeb can help you create a plan to “Generate Buzz Without Getting Stung!”