7 Seconds to Make a Great First Impression

Yep, you read that right. It takes a website visitor just seven seconds to make a decision about whether or not they want to stay on your site. To put this into perspective, it takes about 27 seconds to make a good first impression in real life. Everything happens faster on the internet. Not only does your website have to look great aesthetically, it must answer these key questions right away for the visitor:

• Is this site interesting?
• What am I supposed to do here?

Great websites focus on the complete user experience (UX). There are two guiding questions home builder web developers should ask themselves before they dive in to creating or updating a site:

• Why are visitors coming to my site? Answer: To find a new home!
• What do I want them to do? Answer: Contact me!

Using those questions and answers as a framework, let’s take a look at three ways to make sure your home builder website is both visually appealing and highly functional to engage new home prospects:

Clear Navigation

It all starts with a clear, top-level navigation that helps your visitors get from point A to point B (point B being a web form). The most common form of website navigation is the top menu. Keep in mind that people scan web pages the same way we read print: top to bottom and left to right. That means your most important menu item should occupy the top left space. For home builders, this is often the “Find Your Home” option. 

New home website navigation should also have a logical flow that matches the home building process. For example: 

Find Your Home > Search Floor Plans > Quick Move-In > BOYL > Contact Us 

A clear hierarchy paired with visual clues and easily recognizable links can help visitors to find their way with ease.

When laying out your site, don’t be afraid of design conventions. Having a similar structure and layout to other websites is not a bad thing — this is why best practices exist. Website visitors today have been conditioned to look for certain elements and find information on any website following a particular path.  Using common design conventions helps visitors find information on your site faster and complete their objectives. 

Concise Content with CTAs

On your top-level web pages, skip lengthy introductions and lead with your most relevant, quality content. This is called the inverted pyramid writing approach. Don’t make your web visitors work hard to find what they came for (information on new homes) — put it up front and center, then give them a way to learn more. Most visitors search for something useful and clickable — like a “Find Your Home” or “Schedule a Tour” button. Always pair content blocks with a button to dive deeper into other sections of your site. Don’t leave your audience guessing on where to go next!

Consistent Branding

In your website design, stay true to your brand through the use of colors, fonts, stylized icons, and high-quality photography. Just remember — simplicity and consistency are key. You don’t want to make the design so complex and highly stylized that it takes away from its main utility: to be user-friendly and convert leads. A website visitor shouldn’t be so distracted by graphics that they can’t find what they came for. 

Overall, a home builder website that entices visitors with elements of your visual branding, leads with great content, and maintains a familiar structure creates a more enjoyable user experience and leads to more conversions. 

Need help? Check out Group Two’s website development for home builders services. We’ve got your website (and you) covered!