Add an Easy Bold Call to Action on Your Homepage.

There are so many Landing Page solutions you have to pay a monthly fee for to use, right? I’m going to show you another method that is extremely affordable and feature flexible – and you can create right on your own website.

What do I mean by “Feature Flexible”?  It’s feature rich and can do several things right from your website so you don’t have to link to another program. All that’s missing is your creative message.

I believe in keeping things simple and as inexpensive as possible.

If you’re comfortable in creating your own promotions on your website, you can spontaneously change your promotion whenever you want on your homepage.

One method I want to discuss is the “Welcome Mat”.  It can be anything you design and I’ll show you how in the video below. It serves as your homepage and replaces the default homepage of your blog. There’s a setting in your (WordPress) blog to change  making your Welcome Mat your home page instead of your theme default homepage.  It’s easy to set up and return to your homepage default when needed.

I’m sure you’ve noticed homepages on websites that have a huge image with text. And  you scroll down for more information too (and yes, you can do this tas well). Some have an opt-in form, right? The page is bold and “In your face” yet in a way simple and easy to read – to the point, clear call to action (CTA).

I like the effect. It’s loud, and elicits an immediate visual impression / response from the viewer as well as a call to action.

I looked around online and discovered that  Neil Patel offers the “Hello Bar” Welcome Mat. And the “Welcome Mat”  is one of the features Sumome  offers which is currently $39.00/month (in the video below it’s $20.00). It’s pricey. I rather create my own with no additional fees, would you? Copyblogger also uses this method

So … what “Tools”do I already have that I could simulate the same thing like Neal’s? Without purchasing a new program.

Ah HA! Of course. I have the Instabuilder  plugin. I can use this because it’s a Landing Page/Funnel creator and easy to use. I’ve had this program for years and yes, I am an affiliate – just so you know.

Let’s see …

Will it have all the “bells and whistles” that other sites have? No. But I can create the same feel, I can change it as my messages and promotions change. I can link it to any page, or post, add video, images, and more. There’s a lot of features and flexibility using this plugin, which I like.

Why would I want to create a “Welcome Mat” to override my default blog theme homepage? Because:

• I can tailor it to meet my goals
• It can be a temporary Ad
• I can promote a program, a book, an event, build a list, on the front page
• I can change the feel of the message by adding images, video, changing text
• I can use the templates that come with this plugin
• It can be a temporary message I want upfront for visitors to see
• It’s direct

Take a look, here’s Neal’s Welcome Mat home page. See how he lists areas of interest? This is just one kind of Welcome Mat design that can be created or modeled.

Simple right?

Here’s Copyblogger’s: This message is bold, right? The goal here is to build a list.

Here’s another example you’ll find on Jeff Bullas’s website. And yes, you can create a homepage like this:

Both Neal’s and Copyblogger, and Jeff Bullas,  have more information about them as you scroll down the page.  I can do this too but I want to keep it focused on the CTA for building a list.

When you have the right tools, are flexible in use, that’s GREAT! Because you can use them in different ways. Just because Instabuilder is known for creating landing pages and funnels doesn’t mean you have to use it that way. You can create one page messages that stand out as soon as your visitor hits your website.

This is a current “Welcome Mat”I made using Instabuilder for my website:

Here’s how you make the changes in WordPress: Go to “SETTINGS” on the left side dashboard menu. Go to “READING” then at the stop of the page choose “STATIC” page. Choose from the list that shows up. When you create your Instabilder page for your “Welcome Mat” it will show up in the list to choose it. This will now be your homepage. It’s easy to reverse if you no longer want to promote that page by choosing “YOUR LATEST POSTS”.

Looking at what plugins you already have and seeing if they can be used differently can save you money and time. Learning how your blog theme works is also a good idea especially if it offers customized sidebars.  Some blog themes are very limited. You’ll be able to know by the features included.

I hope you’ll explore this idea. Your blog will stand out from the crowd and capture the attention of your visitors, which you want to do.

If you have questions on how to implement a Welcome Mat, just reach out to me. I’m happy to help!

AND – Feeling creative? Learn how to create your own course on your website

Note: UX (User Experience) is becoming a major factor in search engine ranking. Quality of content is very important: Is it useful to the viewer (user) ? Does it meet their needs, solve a problem. Is the content easy to find, read, and a pleasing experience for the viewer. Some of the UX standards may be challenging to understand at first, but once understood they can easily be embedded in a bloggers content. Read this article 5 Trends to Know on SEO and Content Marketing