Website 101: How to Build a Branded Homepage

You can use Tellie to build a beautiful website in minutes, for free, with no code required. Here’s how to make it pop.

As a creator, your homepage can (and should!) be so much more than a place to list your services, resume, or contact info. You’re an artist, after all, so it’s up to you to brand your homepage in ways that show off who you are and what you create. That’s where Tellie can help :) 

Tellie-built homepages are endlessly flexible. You can easily bring in all kinds of media—including high-res images, videos, links, embeds, galleries, audio, social posts, you name it—to create a super dynamic experience where your fans will feel fully immersed in your world. You can also use Tellie to get strategic, and use your homepage to do whatever it is that best serves you as a creator—from selling your art to building your list to crowdfunding for your next big project. The sky's the limit!

Since the possibilities are endless, we know the process of building a homepage can feel daunting. That’s why at Tellie, we make building a branded homepage super intuitive. Tellie’s interface features drag-and-drop tools that are a breeze to use, plus a host of “tiles” that you can use to upload content and embed all your pre-existing media from third-party sites like YouTube, SoundCloud, and Eventbrite.

And of course, Tellie is packed with customization options so you can incorporate the fonts, colors, and imagery that speak to you. All you really need to bring to the table is your imagination. To get inspired, check out SG Lewis’ homepage, which is a great example of how to include many media types in one branded page.

Ready to build your own branded homepage?

Make a Tellie account, and then follow these tips to get started:

Step 1: Upload a captivating background image.

This image should speak to you and your brand: Who are you, and what do you do? Pick something high-resolution, that’s also not too busy. You want your text and other media to look good over your background image, so keep that in mind when choosing. Your background image will set the mood for your site, so try experimenting with a few options until you find one that works well.

Step 2: Upload your logo.

If you have a logo, use the Image Tile to upload it. Make sure it has a transparent background so that it blends seamlessly into your page. We recommend featuring your logo near the top of your page, since it’s a strong way to instantly brand your homepage.

Step 3: Add your socials.

Use the Instant Embed tile to paste in links to your social media profiles, or to individual social posts (which is smart if there’s a specific post that you want to highlight on your page). The Instant Embed tool will work its magic and create a fully interactive tile of your linked social media, which you can resize and reposition until it’s in just the right spot on your homepage. Then, your fans will be able to follow you and engage with your posts straight from your homepage.

Step 4: Add a newsletter signup.

Collecting your fans’ email addresses straight from your homepage is an empowering way to build out your contact list. Email is the most direct way to let people know about important news, sales, and other updates, which is why we recommend including a newsletter signup form prominently on your homepage. You can do this in a few ways, depending on whether or not you have an existing email service that you like using. Learn more about the options for capturing email addresses here.

Step 5: Add an image gallery.

If you have lots of great photographs or other visual assets to highlight, use the Gallery Tile to instantly add them to your homepage. For each image, you can include a title, description, and alt text (which makes your site more accessible). You can also make each image clickable if you’d like to use them as fliers or other kinds of promotional material, and have them link to other pages on your Tellie site, or to other places on the internet.

Step 6: Include a video embed.

If you have a great video to feature, use the Instant Embed tile and add the link to where your video lives on YouTube, Vimeo, or any other third-party streaming site. Tellie supports more than 1,900 apps and sites, so you can embed virtually anything—including live streams! Once you add the link, you can drag the tile to enlarge it and position it prominently on your homepage.

Step 7: Add products for sale.

Have anything to sell, like merch or product presales? Use the Shop Tile to create a storefront on your Tellie homepage, and link out to all your products online. This is a great way to showcase your online shop, whether it lives on Shopify, Etsy, or somewhere else.

Step 8: Add music.

If you’re a musician, you can use the Audio Tile to upload your latest single, or use the Instant Embed tile to plug in a full-length album. Even if you’re not a musician, why not include a playlist to showcase your taste and set the vibe for your site? Tellie supports MP3, WAV, and AIFF files as uploads—plus embeds from any music streaming services like SoundCloud, Spotify, and Bandcamp.

Step 9: Include tour info & sell tickets.

Have an upcoming performance, or an entire tour to promote? Embed your profile from Songkick or Bandsintown to help spread the word, or include an Eventbrite embed and sell tickets directly from your site.

Step 10: Add more links for your #TellieInBio

Tellie homepages can double as link-in-bio pages. To create an easy-to-navigate list of important links, use the Links Tile to link people to whatever you’ve recently been promoting across your social media channels.

Ready to go? Tellie makes it easy to build your branded homepage in just a few minutes. Get started here.

Got a Linktree? Try Tellieport and get a head-start on building your page. With a single click we will magically turn your Linktree into a beautiful, interactive web page - complete with media embeds, links and images.

Keep Reading...
Get Started