Your Website’s Two Most Valuable Pages
Your Website’s Two Most Valuable Pages
Do you know how to optimize your website for conversions? You don’t have to be an expert in conversion rate optimization to make a big difference in your website’s performance. It just comes down to applying a few basic principles to the two most valuable pages on your site.
Take a look at your homepage and its “hero section,” which is everything that appears “above the fold” on your browser window. The first thing the hero section should have is a striking HD image that speaks to your business. But aside from that, you should pay special attention to the words you use to draw visitors in and drive them to take action. One of the most common mistakes real estate sites make with their hero section is building it around a “me” focus. Rather than entice visitors with imagery and words focused on them, we make it about us: who we are and what we do.
Your hero section should be all about the visitor. Instead of using images that feature you, your agents, or specific properties you’re selling, opt for an emotionally driven picture designed to highlight the benefits of working with your agency. On top of all that, give your hero section plenty of space to breathe. Don’t bombard your audience with dense text or confuse them with multiple links or calls-to-action. Make the main thing the main thing and eliminate all else. Remember, less is more.
Once you’ve made your homepage enticing and compelling, your next step should be to create a page (or multiple pages) focused directly on getting your visitors to take the next, smallest step in becoming a genuine lead. Many real estate professionals are under the impression that this means little more than putting together a contact page, which includes their email and phone number.
But getting your visitor to take that next step means creating what’s known as a landing page. A landing page is a stand-alone webpage designed to do one thing: get your visitor to take action. At their core, landing pages that convert speak directly to real people with real problems in search of real solutions.
Getting results on your landing page involves two vital steps. First, you must clearly identify what your landing page’s goal is. Most often this will be collecting a visitor’s email address. And second, you must connect your goal to solving at least one of the visitor’s problems. For instance, if you’re targeting first-time buyers with less than perfect credit, offer them an educational guide to securing their first loan, even if their payment record isn’t spotless.
Keep everything focused on a single goal and, just like the tips for an effective homepage, remove as much unnecessary information as possible. Too much information — such as including your phone number on a landing page when all you want is to collect an email address — only clouds its purpose and power. Create separate landing pages for buyers versus sellers and always include your location in your website language: It’s the difference between “Need to Sell Your House Fast?” and “Sell Your House Fast in Portland.”
We know that going online is the first step most home sellers and home buyers take in their property search, so this means your website must be built to not only attract them but convert them into genuine leads. But don’t get overwhelmed with terminology or technical issues. Instead, conversion rate optimization comes down to applying no more than a handful of principles to the two most valuable pages on your site: your homepage and your landing page.
Source: Aaron Orendorff is a regular contributor to Entrepreneur, Business Insider, Success Magazine, Fast Company, Lifehacker, and other online publications.
