Design a hero image to make your website stand out

Almost every website has a hero image design, the big prominent image that you see first when landing on a website. It functions as both a banner and an introduction to your website and in turn, your brand. It also plays a larger role in keeping your visitors on your page, turning them into potential clients.

So how do you design a hero image that can do all of these things? In this article, we are going to discuss what a hero image can do for your website and five factors that you need to consider when designing one for your website.

What can a hero image do for your website?

Visitors will see your hero image every time they land on your homepage. This is the perfect place to create brand engagement and hook visitors’ attention to keep them scrolling.

A well-designed one will showcase your brand clearly. It can be animated, clickable, with or without text. What’s most important is that it catches attention and reassures the visitor that they are in the right place and can get what they want. To help you get this right, we have created a guide on how to design a successful hero image.

How to design the perfect hero image for your website.

A great hero image will show what your website is about without telling. Even the ones with text. They display your brand in a different way to your logo by offering a peek of the experience that a visitor can expect from the rest of the website and your brand.

To get you started on designing a hero image for your website, here are our five factors that need to be incorporated every time:

• Use relevant images.
• Set the tone for your website.
• Work with your heading.
• Work with a clear CTA.
• Hero image size for mobile design.

Use relevant images.

The image you use for your hero image needs to be relevant to your website and your brand. This doesn’t matter if it’s a photo, video or an abstract image. It needs to speak for your brand and remind the visitor why they want to buy from you.

Quality is critical. This is not something you can cheap out on when planning your website. You need a high definition image that will look great on big and small screens. Trust us, people will notice an image that is too low in quality. This will immediately sell your brand as low quality and they will bounce.

While there are restrictions you have for the image, you can still make a lot of unique choices for your website. Photo, animation, video and even interactive design are all open for choice. So long as they support your brand, you can consider them as an option.

Set the tone for your website.

From the moment of landing, there are only a precious few seconds to hook the visitor before they make the decision to stay or leave. This time can be less than 15 seconds, so the experience your hero image gives needs to be convincing.

It should set the tone of your website and what you offer. Make sure to incorporate the way you want your clients to feel when they experience your brand. If your hero image can make your ideal customer feel excited, happy or inspired, you have a winning formula.

Work with your heading.

While not all hero images incorporate a heading into their design, many do and it’s important to make them work together. When done successfully, the two can work synergistically to create an even stronger message.

The heading in turn needs to work with the image. Just like it, it must show and not tell. You can do this by talking about what your client will feel about your product or service instead of what it is they are getting. Instead of “High-quality development,” you can say “Develop your future.”

Make sure that the heading is placed in a logical position and can be easily read over the image.

Create a clear CTA.

The call to action (CTA) is the text that tells the viewer what they need to do next. It can often be found on a button but depending on the functionality of your website, it can come in many different forms. What is important is that it shows visitors what to do after landing on your home page to continue their journey.

It is important that the hero image is designed in a way that makes that next step obvious. To do that, you must consider the hierarchy and balance of the design to have it all lead to where the call to action is. Put careful effort into this step and you will have a clear path for your visitors’ eyes to travel.

It is also important to make sure that there is no excess clutter in the hero image around the call to action. It needs to stand out and the hero image needs to help that.

Hero image size for mobile design.

It’s no secret that most internet browsing is done from mobile phones. This means that it is reasonable to say that most of your website traffic comes from mobile and you need to design for it. Included in that design is your hero image.

Responsive website design makes your website look great, no matter how big or small the screen viewing it is. When it comes to the hero image, you need to make sure that your design responds to different sizes just as well as the rest of the website. It needs to keep its effectiveness and message, so be sure to test multiple screen sizes.

Have your home page taken care of by our experts at Web2Web.

Your website is an extension of your business, so making sure it functions at its best is important. With an expert team of designers and developers, you can rest assured know that your website is in the best hands that will allow your business to soar online.

If you want results from your website, contact Web2Web and you will be put in touch with one of our experts.