It’s the Little Things That Matter
December 29th, 2006 by Chief NutWe call it micro-content. First, open up a web page. Then, close your eyes and back away from your desk 4 or 5 feet (don’t knock over your printer or that plant stand behind you). Open your eyes and start absorbing the contents of the page for 5 seconds. QUICK, close your eyes! OK, what did you reaaalllly see? Here’s a likely scenario …
- First you saw the logo/company name in the upper left (we read from top to bottom, left to right, yes?)
- Next, your eyes likely popped over or down to a large headline or a large prominent image
- After that, the next image or sub-header
- Finally, your eyes will scan hyper links, text with a color other than black and titles on images
All of this is the most important information on your site! Now, ask yourself these questions:
- If a visitor does this for YOUR home page, what do they feel?
- Do they know exactly what you do with only this information?
- Does this information connect with your visitors?
- Is there a call to action?
- Are visitors engaged enough to want to click through for more information?
If none of this holds true, you’re going to have very poor results with that page. Here’s a great tip from Anita Campbell about how to get people to read instead of skim.” It’s all about the micro-content!
