{"id":403,"date":"2018-06-21T20:55:29","date_gmt":"2018-06-21T20:55:29","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/mikeauton.com\/?p=403"},"modified":"2018-06-22T13:48:49","modified_gmt":"2018-06-22T13:48:49","slug":"website-headline","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mikeauton.com\/website-optimization\/website-headline\/","title":{"rendered":"Your Website Headline – Optimize Before You Advertise"},"content":{"rendered":"

Your website headline is almost always the most important element of your entire website…<\/strong><\/p>\n

It’s pretty much the single most important factor that determines whether or not your website performs to its full potential… or not.<\/p>\n

So, why is it so many website owners don’t seem to spend enough time finding a message that resonates with their clients?<\/p>\n

My guess is that many website owners just don’t understand the importance of this one simple line of text.<\/strong><\/p>\n

They maybe don’t know that roughly\u00a05 times\u00a0more people read the headline of your\u00a0web page than the actual content<\/em> of the page.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"website<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

How Your Website Headline Affects Your Profits<\/h2>\n

This\u00a0means when you spend $1 to get\u00a0a website visitor, about 80 cents of that is just for them to read\u00a0your headline<\/em>.<\/strong><\/p>\n

And what happens if\u00a0they don\u2019t like, understand or respond to your website headline?<\/p>\n

That’s right.<\/p>\n

You\u2019ve just\u00a0wasted 80% of your entire advertising budget<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Yup: EIGHTY PERCENT.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Now, if you’re anything like me you’re probably already thinking about how you can improve your website headline.<\/p>\n

But before you click away, there’s one more thing to be aware of.<\/p>\n

See, there is\u00a0a second element directly connected to your headline.<\/p>\n

And that is your\u00a0\u201cCall to Action\u201d Button<\/strong><\/p>\n

Here\u2019s a good example of both elements in action:<\/p>\n

\"Website<\/p>\n

As you can see, this website<\/a> headline is simple, but very clear:<\/p>\n

Send Email Your Customers Can\u2019t Ignore.<\/strong><\/p>\n

And the \u201cCall to Action\u201d Buttons give two very clear, very simple and powerful options:<\/p>\n

1)<\/strong>\u00a0\u00a0Get Started for Free<\/strong><\/p>\n

2)<\/strong>\u00a0\u00a0Watch the Demo<\/strong><\/p>\n

Now, you don\u2019t need to be a rocket scientist to know what this site is offering.<\/p>\n

It’s clearly\u00a0offering an email marketing service.<\/p>\n

It says as much in the sub-headline.<\/p>\n

And you get two very simple and clear choices in the \u201cCall to Action\u201d Buttons.<\/p>\n

Both of which are good for\u00a0you<\/strong>\u00a0AND good for\u00a0the website owner<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

This is a great example of Clarity of Message.<\/p>\n

The website headline makes the functionality and the benefits of the product or service extremely clear.<\/strong><\/p>\n

And it does this using a small number of words: 6 to be precise.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Plus, the user is immediately guided to the website owner\u2019s two preferred actions.<\/p>\n

\u2018Get Started\u2019 is obviously the website’s preferred choice.<\/p>\n

And \u2018Watch the demo\u2019 of their service is an acceptable \u201cnext best\u201d alternative.<\/p>\n

So, there you have it.<\/p>\n

Website Optimization – Start Here<\/h2>\n

If you want to make a quick impact on your website’s conversions, start with\u00a0your headline.<\/p>\n

After all, your website headline is also your potential client\u2019s starting point.<\/p>\n

Test\u00a0out a handful\u00a0of headlines with supporting call to action buttons that:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Explain the functionality and the benefits of your product clearly<\/strong><\/li>\n
  2. Lead your website visitors to <\/strong>your<\/strong><\/em>\u00a0desired course of action<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    \"website\"<\/p>\n

    Keep it simple – The functions are at the start in this example (car hire, search) <\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

    and the benefits come after (compare, save)<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

    And remember,\u00a0the point of your headline is to grab your potential customer\u2019s attention quickly and clearly.<\/p>\n

    It’s there to\u00a0make them want<\/em> your product or service.<\/strong><\/p>\n

    And it’s there to make them click your\u00a0call to action button.<\/strong><\/p>\n

    My Headline Works – Job Done?<\/h2>\n

    Of course, it\u2019s easy to think that once you\u2019ve got a winning headline your job is done.<\/p>\n

    But the truth is our job as marketers is almost never done.<\/p>\n

    There\u2019s almost always something more you can do to improve your website\u2019s conversions and profitability.<\/p>\n

    But the headline is almost always the first place you need to look at.<\/strong><\/p>\n

    So, start here and see the impact it has on your conversions.<\/p>\n

    \"\"<\/p>\n

    Have an honest look at your website <\/strong><\/em>– as if you were seeing it <\/strong><\/em>as a client for the first time<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n

    Take a look at your website headline now and ask yourself, if it:<\/p>\n