So what elements will help keep visitors on your site (and hopefully generate interest in your products or services)? The study at Missouri S&T breaks down how users spent their time into these key areas:
Logo/Brand
Users spent about 6.48 seconds focused on the logo area before moving on. A great logo is the first step in capturing and keeping a visitor's interest!
Main Navigation Menu
Coming in just behind the logo was the main navigation at 6.44 seconds. Whether the user is viewing your site from a desktop, tablet, or smart-phone, a simple and straightforward menu is important in keeping the user’s experience a pleasant one.
Main Image
Visitors’ eyes were fixated for an average of 5.94 seconds on a site’s main image. If you're looking for something professional, websites like iStockPhoto and Shutterstock are great resources for royalty free, affordable high quality images in instances where you can't come up with any on your own.
Written Content
Users spent roughly 5.59 seconds focusing on a site’s written content (which helps reinforce that 94% of a first impression is based on a site’s design).
Mobile Up!
More and more people are surfing the web on their smartphone or tablet. Today, most likely more than half of all visitors to your site are doing so with a mobile device. Having a website that's responsive to the user's viewing device means better usability for your potential new customers.
Unlike having a page on various social media sites, your website is your online property that you own. Since your website's visitors take .2 seconds to form their first impression, it's best to make that first impression count!