

Ask HN: Homepage header links - any best practices? - matt1

When it comes to what links should be in the header of web app's homepage, is there any common wisdom on what should or shouldn't be there?<p>For example:<p>http://www.braintreepaymentsolutions.com has Services, Buzz, About, Pricing, plus a smaller nav bar with Developers, API, Blog, DevBlog, Twitter, and Contact<p>http://www.picwing.com/ has Home, Tour, Pricing, FAQ, Contact<p>http://mixpanel.com/ has Sign Up, Demo, Pricing, Documentation, Login<p>http://bingocardcreator.com/ has Home, Purchasing, Free Trial, Support, Contact Us, Blog, and Sign In<p>Not all of these apply to my app, but most do. I could reasonably have a Home, Tour, Pricing, FAQ, Contact, About, Buzz, Examples, Sign Up, Sign In, and Twitter links up there, but that seems a bit excessive, and I'm not sure how to boil it down to the essentials. The order seems important too.<p>Any recommendations?<p>PS: The site in question is http://www.preceden.com
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bdickason
I haven't done any A/B testing on this as it's not live yet, but this is the
homepage we're putting together to tease our product on GetMochi.com. It will
eventually evolve into the product home page (probably replacing the 'e-mail'
signup with a real signup button) when we launch.

<http://i47.tinypic.com/wcd0nq.png>

The mockup has undergone a few user test (5 people).

Here's the .BMML file for Balsamiq Mockups if you want to use it yourself:
<http://drop.io/mochisignup>

I'll try to update the drop when anything changes.

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mikeleeorg
Great question. Unfortunately, I think the answer is "it depends." It will
probably depend on your particular audience and the way they interact with
your site.

What I'd suggest is an A/B test with a few different header link layouts.

My guess is having the "Sign in" link at the far right is a good idea, since
it's easy to find. But what do I know? The data you get from an A/B test will
probably be more relevant than any guesses I come up with.

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minalecs
Not sure if you are asking to review your idea, but its sort of a cool
utility. Anyways, in your case, I would use Examples , Guides & FAQ , and
Login. In your case I would keep it simple, because overall your product looks
a little overwhelming.

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matt1
Not looking for a review; did that a few months ago :). Thanks though.

I've changed up the header links quite a few times, and am just looking for
pointers.

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braindead_in
Search. Always helpful.

