I have pastors and ministry/business leaders that call every day looking to spice up their websites. Most of the time, the focus in the beginning of the call is a certain graphic or changing the color of a background. I receive comments like, “The site needs more color” or the popular, “I want to see some movement on my page”. Ultimately, what these leaders are saying is that their homepages are doing a poor job of conveying the heart of the organization, and miserably failing to produce results. But, because leaders aren’t sure what those results should be, they misdiagnose the problem with their sorry homepages.

So what’s the real problem?

Great homepages are designed to do for websites what magazine covers do magazine sales – they produce measurable results. Because people have been trained to believe that marketing or presentation is designed to create an IMPRESSION, they look for something “more lively”, “that will jump out atcha”, and “that makes an impression”. But, those results are not measurable. They are subjective and shallow at best. Is marketing truly about “impression”, or is the goal ATTRACTION and RESPONSE.

In marketing, they call that “response marketing”. It uses the AIDA (Attention, Interest, Desire, Action) formula to create a compelling presentation that ends in a predetermined and extremely defined course of action. Focused results are only generated by narrow funnels. Let’s talk about what you need on a homepage to force visitors to be compelled…and to do something about it!

SLAPPING PEOPLE (NICELY) WITH IMPACT STATEMENTS

Students of my web design theory have heard this phrase over and over again. An impact statement is a combination of words and images that explain what the website is about and why the visitor should care – all within 3-6 seconds. This is accomplished by deciding on a compelling slogan, catch phrase, or verbal idea, and presenting it alongside a picture or graphic that helps drive the point home. Read my article about impact statements to catch up.

Impact statements help to set the tone and grab the visitor’s attention. The best impact statements shift brains from peripheral thought to focused interest. This is best done by focusing your impact statement on:

1. Something familiar & personal
2. Something unique
3. Something problematic

Your audience and personal style will determine how far you can take that. But, you must take it far enough to actually make an impact.

Er…that’s kinda why I call it an impact statement.

BULLY PEOPLE (GENTLY) WITH DIRECTIVE STATEMENTS

If you do that correctly, people will immediately look for what I call directive statements. These are visual and textual clues as to where to go next. This is NOT accomplished by menus or navigational elements. The first-time visitor to your website is looking for direction, not choices. By focusing in on the top three to four things YOU want them to do, you will succeed in directing them to the most vital parts of the website. Again, these are not supposed to be the top three or four “most useful” places on your website for your visitor. They should be the places that will directly lead them into a relationship with you.

The whole idea of relationship transactions is a topic I will cover in a later article. But, it is common sense that it is a good thing to lead people to a place where they can interact and provide you with:

1. Sales
2. Donations
3. Personal Information
4. Newsletter Subscriptions
5. Referrals
6. Suggestions
7. Inquiries
8. YOUR NEED HERE

That is what directive statements do. For example, you may have a menu of 100 things, but if you are trying to attract (not “impress”) people to your church, you would focus your homepage on sections like “What to Expect”, “Meet Our Pastor”, “How We Serve the Community”, and maybe “For Members”. The same applies to business. Focus on your top or newest products, newsletter signups, an outline of your various services (with response forms on each page), etc.

IT’S NOT BRAIN SURGERY

To veteran marketers, this makes absolute sense. So, why are there so many misguided and dreadfully unproductive websites out there? The answer is simple. Most websites are created by people who never actually have to be held accountable for the success of the website. They receive a check for their time building it. Makes sense, doesn’t it? I was once asked by a person studying web design to name the most important quality for a good web designer. I said:

1. A good handle on marketing/advertising design
2. The ability to write compelling sales copy

Most designers have neither of these qualifications. They are hired to produce graphics and menus, not to build your organization. That is fair enough. So, who is left to make sure that the website is profitable?

Who did God give the vision to? Who is the steward of that vision? Who lives or dies by that vision? We all know the answer to that question. So, stop messing with your logo, and start taking control of your website with an in-your-face homepage.