When a new website or redesign is done, almost all the attention goes to the homepage. It's understandable - it's the shop window, the first impression, the page everyone sees. So it gets fine-tuned down to the last detail.
And then the rest of the site is sort of forgotten.
Service details, "about us" page, contact, references - these are done. It will be completed with old text, hastily, "so that there is something there". But it's these internal pages that often decide whether a customer will eventually send an enquiry. And if they're weak, the homepage won't save them.
The customer does not decide on the homepage
The Homepage rarely concludes a decision. Its task is different - to engage and guide. It helps the customer understand where they've got to and click on what interests them. Service detail. A specific product. A testimonial.
And only there the decision is made. That's where he reads to see if what you're offering will solve his problem. That's where he looks for confidence and reasons. That's where he either sends an enquiry or closes the window.
When the homepage is great and the service detail is empty, you've led the customer to the exact point where they're making a decision - and there you've left them with no arguments. It's like having a beautiful storefront and a half-empty store behind the door.
Each page has its own task
A good web site is not one good page and the rest in numbers. It's a journey where each page has a goal and builds on the next.
- Homepage is to attract and direct.
- Service detail is to explain the benefits, dispel doubts and lead to demand.
- References are meant to deliver confidence at the exact moment the customer is hesitating.
- About us is to show that there are people behind the company who can be trusted.
- Contact is to make the last step as easy as possible.
When one of those pages fails to do its job, the journey is interrupted. And the customer doesn't continue.
Why is this happening
Mostly because of budget and time. Homepage is the priority, energy and money is focused on it, and there is no more time for internal aspects. Or just the homepage is made as a "demonstration" and there is no time to finish the rest.
The problem is that the website looks finished - everything is in place on the outside. But inside, on the pages where the real decisions are made, the essentials are missing. And you can't tell at first glance. It's only noticeable when enquiries don't come in.
Explore the web beyond the homepage
Try going through your own website as a customer. Not the homepage - you know that one. Click on the service detail and ask: does this page explain what the customer gets out of it? Will it give confidence? Does it point to the next step? Then do the same for references, for contact.
If the inner pages look weaker than the homepage, you have a silent reason why the site isn't bringing in enquiries - even if it looks finished on the outside.
This is one of the things I look at with corporate websites as a whole, not as a single page. When you want to know where the customer journey breaks on your site, I'll look at it with you and I'll suggest what to do first.
Michal Šanca - I look at the website as a whole customer journey, not as one neat page.
