Bringing the Bones Home

Where do you begin when writing a Home page for your website?  Always begin with the bones.  In fact, begin with the bones for any page you’re writing but it’s the Home page where it’s most likely to go wrong as people either write too much (nobody will read it all) or they write too little (less is more but when going minimal you have to be sure to say the right things).

Here are the bones – the basics to help you create your copy for this page:

Who Am I?

Show yourself.  The old saying goes “it’s not about you” but you know, it kind of is.  Your customer needs to resonate with you and build a relationship with you so show a glimpse into who you are.

Who Are They?

Just as importantly, who is your ideal customer?  If you aren’t clear on this they won’t be clear on this – know who you’re writing to before you even put your pen to paper.  Be clear, keep it targeted.

Why Me?

Why should your customer choose you and your brand?  You don’t need to launch into a sales pitch but you need to define your difference and understand your key messages and points of differentiation from the very beginning, weaving this into your wording.

How Do I Want Them to Feel?

How do you want your customer to feel when they read your website?  What emotion do you want to evoke?  What are you aiming to stir in them?  You don’t need to say anything overtly but you need to understand this in order to craft your copy.  People always cram this space with facts – less facts, more feeling.

What Do I Want Them to Do?

What do you want your customer to do?  Where do you want to lead them?  Create a breadcrumb trail through your bones, taking them to the next place they need to be in your brand experience.  People won’t click on things without guidance, they need to feel comfortable and to have the path clearly lit.

These are the five basic things to include on your homepage: the double who (them and you), the all-important why, the feeling and the doing.  This is how you attract the right customer, not just to click into your website but to actually read your copy and create a relationship.

For further information on converting your customer through your content, check out my new e-book, Converted, available for preorder now.