Making a Good Digital First Impression

Our last post prompted an obvious question from a few readers, “So what makes a good digital first impression?” It’s a good question as external factors dictate how you can present yourself. From a technical perspective there are three areas that drive most previews.   The page title serves as the primary text, the URL is displayed below that, and the page description drives the short depiction of what’s on the page. Good digital first impressions are a result of properly focusing on these elements and customizing them for maximum impact.

There are a few categories that help make a good digital first impression:

Concise

Just like interpersonal interaction, the clock is ticking on a first impression as soon as someone encounters your digital presence. Space is also at a premium for your first impression so it’s critical get to the point.  The page title on your website or social profile is typically only viewable for about the first 60 characters.  Descriptions cut off around 250 – 300.  So you have to concisely convey why someone should want to engage further.  Search engine company profiles offer limited text as well, so make sure to include a professional image and accurate information.

Legible

It’s not uncommon for Search Engine Optimization tactics to negatively impact your digital first impression.  Many times trainers, consultants, and professional coaches want to load their titles and descriptions full of keywords for their products and services in an attempt to drive profitable traffic to their website or social media accounts.  That makes for a convoluted first impression because the preview content is illegible to people.  It’s difficult to make a positive first impression when your preview is spitting out gibberish designed to appeal to computers.

On Topic

First impressions are often unique and tailored to the situation in which you meet someone.  A good first impression at a formal business event is very different than a good first impression when casually meeting a friend of a friend socially. Your previews have the same opportunity.  Make sure that the preview is fitting for the unique page or profile that the user has found in their search.  The preview should be a direct representation of what the user will find on the page or profile.

Consistency

Consistently building your previews is an extension of being on topic.  Many times businesses will settle on a “homepage description” as the face they want to present to the world.  That description is then used across all pages and profiles. However, many pages like blog posts have a specific focus that has little or nothing to do with a general value proposition statement.  Keeping the general description on these targeted pages makes all the previews appear to be a meaningless mission statement rather than confidently presenting the content. We can’t control what preview someone might encounter and many will find their way to your content on a channel other than the website homepage.  Make sure that you are consistently completing preview content so that your pages can match their desired search.

Making a good digital first impression is more of an exercise in diligence rather than any sophisticated formula.  Pay attention to the titles and descriptions on your pages and profiles because any one of those could be your next digital first impression.