Your homepage and the 5-second test

Visitors decide in seconds whether to stay or leave. The five-second test is the fastest way to know if your homepage is working — and it's free.

The test

Show your homepage to someone unfamiliar with your business for five seconds, then hide it. Ask: What does this business do? Who is it for? What would you do next? If they can't answer, neither can your real visitors.

What usually fails it

• •A vague headline ('Welcome' or 'Excellence in everything').
• •No clear next action.
• •A hero image that doesn't say what you do.

The fix

A clear headline (what you do, for whom, the payoff), one obvious call to action, and a supporting image. Clarity beats cleverness every time.