What I Learned About Website Home Page Copy From a Plumbing Emergency

I had toilets and showers backing up and I needed to get immediate help. I called a number I got from a friend and a number I got from Yelp.

The number I called from Yelp asked me to leave a message, while the number I got from a friend was answered by a person who said he would have someone get back to me.

Now you might think I was more impressed with the phone call answered by a real person rather than the one answered by a machine.

Wrong!

The phone message was pleasant and I soon got a return call from a very nice woman whose interest in my problem seemed genuine.

On the other hand, the real person who answered my call sounded like a dispatcher without any personal interest in my emergency.

The result of these two calls? I went with the company I found on Yelp, and after my plumbing emergency was solved, I added another positive testimonial to the company's Yelp page.

Afterwards I pondered the lesson this experience could have about website home page copy:

First impressions are very important – yes, this is not news – AND a personal interest in a prospective customer's problems is very important.

In other words, this caring attitude should be clearly presented on the home page of a company's website, which is the equivalent of answering a first phone call from a prospective customer.

The challenge for you:

Review your own website home page copy. Does it convey an interest in your prospective customer's problems? Or does it just state the obvious – you're in business to sell products or services?

When people arrive at your site they want to know this is the right place for getting the information they want. A "caring" home page can help forge a personal relationship with your prospective customers.

P.S. If you need help evaluating the home page of your website, see our website review service.

© 2011 Miller Mosaic LLC

Phyllis Zimbler Miller (@ZimblerMiller on Twitter) has an M.B.A. from The Wharton School and is the co-founder of the marketing consulting company Miller Mosaic, LLC, which offers "done for you" and "do it yourself" social media services including marketing-focused WordPress websites.

Visit Phyllis' "about" page on Google Plus.

View information on Phyllis' books and ebooks at http://budurl.com/PZMbooks