Above the fold

Whatever sits in that first screen is the only part of the page every visitor is guaranteed to see. If it is vague or cluttered, many visitors leave without reading further, and the proof, pricing and form lower down never get seen. Visitors do scroll, so the rest of the page still matters, but they scroll only if the first screen gives them a reason to.

• Lead with what the page offers and who it is for, in plain words that a competitor could not copy.
• Put the main call to action in view without scrolling, not at the bottom.
• Remove what competes with the headline, subheadline and button.
• Keep long case studies, certifications and detailed explanations for further down, once a visitor has chosen to read on.
• Check the page on a real phone, and on a few screen sizes, not only on the monitor it was built on.
• Use a scroll heatmap to see how far visitors really get.

The phrase comes from newspapers. Papers were folded in half on the news stand, and only the top half of the front page showed, so the best headline went there. On a website the fold is wherever the bottom of the screen falls. That line moves with the device: a large monitor shows far more than a phone, and a browser window with toolbars shows less than the screen alone.

• Filling the first screen with a large image and a vague slogan, and pushing the button below it.
• Judging the layout on a wide desktop screen only. A headline that fits on two lines there can wrap onto five on a phone and push the button out of view.