⚡️ Friday Focus #84: Homepage Guide

Friday Focus #84

Hey Reader,

Most of us complicate our marketing a little too much.

It's tempting to chase after the next shiny object so hard that we forget to get the basics right—really right. That's what's going to matter in the 2023 world of AI. Everything about AI writing and design is about building more, and building faster. But, more isn't always better.

AI tools can be helpful, but only when used by a skillful human brain. Let's stay focused on what really moves the needly for your digital marketing.

Today, we're talking about turning your homepage into an authoritative lead-generating machine. Let's dig in!

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20 Things to Add to Your Homepage (and 5 things to remove)

Andy Crestodina

Your homepage probably gets more traffic than any other page. It has a lot of jobs to do, like:

• Quickly let the visitor know where they are
• Quickly get them into a deeper interior page

Here’s an excellent guide to homepage best practices from Orbit Media. Use your homepage to drive more new clients for your service business.

How to Find Who Links to Your Website (and what to do next)

Joshua Hardwick

Ahrefs studied almost a billion web pages to learn how backlinks from unique websites correlate to organic traffic. Generally, the more backlinks a page has from unique websites, the better it performs in search engines.

This is word of mouth in our digital age.

​Here’s how to find who links to your website and what to do next to improve your SEO.​

Beginner’s Guide to SEO

Ahrefs

Here’s a great way to start learning the basics of SEO and start ranking higher. They've got tons of helpful resources all over their website and YouTube channel.

5 Social Proof Examples to Increase Your Conversion Rate

Alex Garcia

Humans are wired to follow the actions of others - it's called "herd mentality."

The best social proof helps potential customers envision themselves in a position where their problem is solved. That confirms that your product can fix their pain points. Here’s how to use social proof to build trust and increase conversions on your website.​

6 Critical Solopreneur Systems

Justin Welsh

Most entrepreneurs never slow down to build in good processes and systems for their business, but that’s a mistake.

Brittany and I are expecting another baby boy this fall (this is #6) and I’m doubling down hard to clarify my systems. That way, when I’m lacking sleep and can’t think—I already know the next right thing to do.

​Here are the 6 systems that drive Justin Welsh’s hyper-focused solopreneur business.​

My Toolkit 🛠

Loom

Speaking of good processes, Loom is my favorite video messaging app—and it’s free to start. It’s so quick and easy to send how-to videos or a simple thank you to clients. They’ve got over 21 million happy users, so I bet it might fit your needs too.

​Check out Loom for free.​

Psychology of Marketing

This newsletter breaks down the science of marketing. If you’re wondering about how to understand the psychology behind perfect pricing (or Apple’s guide to packaging), this is where you can find it.

Thanks for reading this week, stay focused!

John