3 Things Your Website Should Do in 5 Seconds
People who visit websites have a very short attention span. They expect to find what they’re looking for within seconds, and they want a good experience in the process.
A recruiting website has to accomplish three basic functions within the visitor’s first five seconds. Otherwise, there’s a risk of losing them.
First, the visitor needs to know who you are. Second, they need to know what you do. And third, it needs to be obvious what action you want them to take, all within the first five seconds.
#1—Web visitors need to know WHO YOU ARE.
For most recruitment and staffing agencies, their website is their storefront. There is no “driving up” to a website. It’s more like being teleported and not knowing exactly where you’re going or what it’s going to look like once you arrive.
That’s why it’s important that the name of your company and your company logo (hopefully you have one) are two of the very first pieces of information the visitor sees when they arrive at your site.
Seeing the company name provides a sense of relief, since the visitor now knows they’re in the right place. To help them locate the company name more quickly and because most people scan websites from left to right, it makes the most sense to display your company name and logo in the upper left-hand corner on each page of the site.
#2—Web visitors need to know WHAT YOU DO.
Now that people know who you are, they need to know what you do. More specifically, they’re asking the question, “Am I in the right place to help solve my problems and meet my needs?”
They want to make sure that their time is going to be worth the visit to your site. To accomplish this, there needs to be a short, clear, and concise statement of the service you provide, and in some cases, who you provide that service for. It’s like a branding statement that can be comprehended quickly, without too much thought.
A good example of this is the website for JBK INTERNATIONAL (www.jbk-intl.com). As soon as you land on their site, there is no doubt who they are and what they do. Their concise statement reads, “THE LEADING RETAINED SEARCH FIRM IN CASINO OPERATIONS.” That statement is toward the top of the page so that it stands out from the rest of the site.
Keep in mind that the clear and concise statement becomes less effective the longer it is. Remember, most people browse a website, they don’t park and read. The longer your descriptive statement is, the less likely they’re going to read it.
#3—Web visitors need to know WHAT ACTION to take.
One of the major goals of a recruiting website is to convert visitors into clients, candidates, or referrals. To increase the probability of this happening, the site needs to have an element on the page that grabs the visitor’s attention and elicits some type of action. This attention grabber is known as a Call-To-Action (CTA), and it needs to be obvious to the visitor within the first five seconds.
The main purpose of the CTA is to get the visitor to do something. Popular CTAs on recruitment and staffing websites include “View Hot Jobs”, “Submit Your Resume”, “Contact us”, or “Connect with Us on LinkedIn.”
Most times, the CTAs are clickable buttons that are designed with a contrasting color to the site’s main colors, causing it to stand out.
CTAs lead the visitor down a specific path to either capture their contact information by asking them to fill out a form or prompt them to contact you. Either way, the goal is to lead the visitor down a path that prompts them to take an action.
Take this test: open a browser and type in your agency’s website address. Does your site answer the three basic questions of who you are, what you do, and what action needs to be taken—all within the first five seconds?
If not, then you may be losing visitors.
As we announced recently, we’ve formed a partnership with Recruiters Websites. which offers a full suite of services:
- Website design and development
- Marketing strategy
- Digital and traditional advertising
- Copywriting and editorial content
- Search engine optimization (SEO) and management
- API and application integrations
All of these services, of course, are designed to attract potential clients and candidates and are optimized for search engines to maximize your recruiting agency’s online presence. The new year will be here before you know it, so this is a great time to consider making changes to your agency’s website, whether those are small changes or a complete overhaul.
The good news is that because of our partnership with Recruiters Websites, you can receive a free audit and evaluation of your site and also receive a quote for services! Just click this link to request all three:
I want my free audit, evaluation, and quote!
We’ll be publishing more blog posts regarding best practices for your agency’s website before the end of the year, so keep an eye out for those.
And also check The Pinnacle Newsletter Blog for announcements regarding more partnerships between Top Echelon and other top products and services in the recruiting and staffing industry!
