If you’re a local business owner who has a website already created for your business, it’s important for the website to be laid out appropriately so it gets a person’s attention and makes them want to continue reading the content on the website. This includes making sure you have the relevant information on your main page that people are expecting to find when first visiting your local business website.

Does your homepage clearly provide information about who you are and what you do?

People expect to find exactly what it is they were searching for in the first place when they arrive on your homepage. They don’t want to find irrelevant info that wasn’t within their search request. Point being, people need to know exactly what your local business website is all about within only a few second upon arriving and reading. What’s even more important is each person visiting the site should know what services and products your business provides without having to dig for the information.

Is your content focused and clear?

As visitors continue to read the content on your site, they should be able to clearly understand the content on the site and what it is they are reading. If you include irrelevant information or some off the wall topic, it can confuse a visitor or make them uninterested, which means they won’t stick around or refer others. In addition, poor copy that’s full of grammar and punctuation errors looks very unprofessional. With the right content and information on your local business’s homepage that’s in proper English, visitors will be intrigued enough to want to continue learning more. Otherwise, you’re missing the main point.

Do you have a clear and visible call-to-action?

The next important thing to consider is, once a reader has gone through your main content, is whether or not they know what the next step they need to take is. Let’s say you want visitors to test your product through a free trial or a free eBook download; then you need to make sure it’s obvious to the readers what they need to do so they can try out the content offered. In other words, your call-to-action should be easily visible and clear on your homepage (and every page for that matter).

In addition to being able to answer yes to all of the above questions, you may also want to include testimonials and reviews that will persuade people to try your products and services. By doing so, it can tip a person towards purchasing if they’re on the fence. Not to mention, studies show that consumers rely heavily on reviews when deciding what to purchase.

Overall, you want visitors to understand what you and your local business is all about, as well as why your products and services are important and valuable for the visitors. Putting this information to use will help your local business and the website become more successful at generating leads for the long term.

Chris Marentis has over 30 years in the field of local business marketing. Along with his company, Surefire Social, Chris generates leads and builds business awareness around the web by leveraging website development, social media marketing, and search engine optimization.