What to remove from a page before adding anything else

5 days ago
3 min read

Introduction

Pages only ever grow. Somebody wants a banner, somebody wants a testimonial section, somebody wants the awards, somebody wants a chat widget, somebody wants the newsletter box. Each request is reasonable, each has a person behind it, and nothing has an advocate for its removal. Three years later the page is a committee document that serves everybody internally and nobody externally.

Removal is consequently the most under-attempted improvement available, and frequently the most effective. Deleting the third-best element on a page makes the best one more prominent, the page faster and the decision simpler, all without writing anything new.

1. What to remove from a page before adding starts with what it is for

The criterion.

One objective, written down. Without it there is no basis for removing anything, which is precisely why pages accumulate indefinitely. The written objective is also what lets you decline the next well-intentioned addition without an argument.

2. Remove anything serving a different objective

The first pass.

Newsletter boxes on a service page, social follows on a checkout, unrelated articles beside a form. These serve somebody's metric and compete with the page's purpose. Ask what each element was added for and whether that reason still applies.

3. Remove the elements nobody looks at

The evidence-led cut.

Rotating banners, badge rows, long footers, sidebar widgets. Where you have any behavioural data it will show these being ignored; where you do not, the prior is strong. Rotating banners in particular are among the most consistently ignored elements on any website.

4. Remove duplicated content

The tidy-up.

The same reassurance in three places, three variations of the same claim, two overlapping sections. Say it once, well, in the right position. Repetition of an action is useful; repetition of an argument is padding.

5. Remove anything you cannot substantiate

The credibility cut.

Expired accreditations, old awards, claims about being the leading provider. These are checked occasionally and cost more when found than they ever gained. Anything you would not want raised in a complaint should come off the page.

6. Remove the interruptions

The highest-value removal.

Self-opening chat, overlays, newsletter prompts on arrival. Each intercepts somebody at the moment of intent, and removing them requires no design work at all. Count how many a first-time visitor must dismiss before reading anything.

7. Remove weight, not just elements

The technical half.

Oversized images, unnecessary scripts, embedded videos nobody plays. Speed is a conversion factor and these are the usual causes, particularly on a phone. Removing an unused tracking script can do more than any copy change.

8. Remove decisions before removing content

The priority.

A choice costs more than a paragraph. Where you must keep something, converting a decision into a default is frequently better than deleting the content. A recommended option preserves the information and removes the work.

9. Remove one thing and observe

The method.

The least defensible element first, then a quarter of observation. Removal is low-risk, reversible and almost never makes things worse, which is what makes it the right place to start. It is also free, which is rarely true of anything else on a conversion list.

Be careful about removing things that serve a minority who genuinely need them. Accessibility features, contact routes for people who dislike forms, and information required by regulation all look removable on a traffic report and are not. Usage is not the only measure of whether something earns its place.

Conclusion

Decide what the page is for, then delete what does not serve it.

Remove elements that serve a different objective, cut the ones behavioural data shows nobody looks at, delete duplicated content and unsubstantiated claims, eliminate self-opening interruptions, reduce page weight as well as element count, convert decisions into defaults before deleting content, take out one thing at a time and observe, and keep what a minority genuinely needs even when it looks removable.