How To Capture Your Audience's Attention In 5 Seconds or Less

Hey guys! You ever wonder why your website has so many clicks and impressions but no conversions?

Feel like you did everything right according to the training and nothing, not even a single referral has shown up in your stats?

Well, have you ever considered your homepage? A study shows that on average, 90% percent of first time visitors leave within the first 5 seconds of arriving on that page.

That's HUGE. People are literally just coming and going. But why exactly?

In this short article, I'm going to explain just that and a tried and true method to keep your target audience engaged and lead to more conversions for your website.

What's It In For Me?

When a visitor clicks on and view your website, there's usually 3 questions in their mind:

1. What is the website about?
2. Is this what I'm looking for?
3. How is this useful to me?

What Is The Website About?

Clarity. Clarity. Clarity, ladies and gentleman. People simply do not care about how your website looks.

Even though it's important to have your site look clean and simple, unless your niche is in web design or color theory, visitors will not bat an eye.

Your homepage should answer WHAT exactly your website is about in one short sentence, big headline.

Is This What I'm Looking For?

Your website needs to be relevant to your audience and their needs. Content as well. If you say you have you offer financial information, your site needs to reflect that.

How Is This Useful To Me?

Lastly, the visitor wants to know how the content on your website is going to help them achieve what they want or need.

---

A way to answer all 3 questions at once while giving your homepage a nice clean look is using a method called above the fold.

Above the Fold

Above the fold is a method newspapers used back in the day when that was the most consumed medium at the time.

Newspaper companies, much like today, were in competition to get people to read theirs so using this was vital to their success.

80% of visitors will spend most of their time in this area and this is the very first thing visitors see when their click on your homepage. So it's very important to put all the information that you want to get through to your audience, while keeping it all concise, short and sweet.

Above the fold consist of 3 sections: headline, subheading, and CTA button.

Headline

The headline's purpose is to command and get the attention of your target audience. This should be bolded with a font that is clean and easy to read.

Subheading

The subheading reinforces your headline and provides extra information about your offer, product/service, or website in general.

CTA Button

The CTA or Call-To-Action button has a bit information that entices your audience to take the next step or action that you want them to take.

Bonus Section: Image

Although it's not as important as the 3 sections mentioned above and you can get away without it, adding an image that goes along with what your website is about and is visually appealing can help make homepage extra awesome. But not really necessary.

To Conclude...

If you remember the 3 questions that visitors most likely ask when visiting your website for the first time, then you should see not only see more clicks and impressions but also more referrals and even conversions.
Using the above the fold method will be a game changer for your site and lead to a beautiful, homepage that's simple, easy to read, a highly effective way for catching your audience's attention in 5 seconds or less.

If you're still having a hard time, just put yourself in the shoes of your audience and ask your what would you like to see and expect from a homepage that's in your niche. The answer to that should assist you in making the necessary changes to your site.