On a website page, the area above the fold is what displays on the screen without the users having to scroll. In other words, it’s your page’s first impression.

Unfortunately, for many websites, this impression is painfully short because the content above the fold is so feeble that visitors immediately hit the back button.

We’ve analyzed thousands of small business websites, and we see two main problems with design and content above the fold.

1. The only messaging is a vague value statement that fails to communicate pertinent or persuasive information
2. Most of the page real estate above the fold is taken up by an irrelevant image

These two problems are really common in today’s SMB website designs. They usually crop up when amateurs do their own designs on DIY templates or when business owners force designers to create content based on their whims rather than developing a page designed to convert visitors.

Fortunately, these problems aren’t hard to fix. Here’s what you need to do.

Get to the point

The first and most important step is to put your value proposition and main call to action above the fold. This content specifically states why people should choose you and tells them how to contact you.

Above the fold is gold

The area above the fold on a web page is prime real estate. If there is vital information a visitor must know about your business, this is the place to put it.

Here are some other types of content to put above the fold:

• Your contact information, including address, phone number and an embedded map of your location.
• Your service areas (city or regional names)
• Special offers or discounts
• Customer testimonials or review links
• All calls to action including click-to-call buttons, contact forms or email sign-ups

Evaluate your website pages without scrolling. Is the most important information there? Can you convert visitors?

If not, you need to improve your design above the fold.

Originally published on 2/26/19