Whether you’ve first found out about her through her programme, book, or the iconic ‘this does NOT spark joy’ meme, I hope we can agree that Marie Kondo is absolutely lovely and inspiring, right?

Her book, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up, did exactly what the title promised: it changed my life (duh).

After getting rid of bagfuls of items and giving clothes to charity, though, I had a crazy idea: why don’t I apply the Konmari method to websites as well?

I obviously started with mine and obtained excellent results thanks to this new perspective.

So, I thought it would be fun (and extremely useful, obviously) to show you how to declutter your website with the Konmari method, too.

What is the KonMari method?

The KonMari method is a signature decluttering and tidying up strategy invented by Marie Kondo, a Japanese author, organising consultant, and TV personality.

It consists of getting rid of and then rearranging one’s belongings by category rather than location, holding on only to items that are either useful or that spark joy.

I’ve simply decided to apply the KonMari method to websites.

How to declutter your website with the KonMari method

You won’t need any rubbish bags, but you do need a strategy.

Here’s exactly how I applied the core steps of the KonMari method to my own website and how you can do the same.

1. Commit yourself to tidying up… your website copy & layout

The reason why we end up with such a messy house and so much clutter is that we’re used to tidying every once in a while or only discarding things once we notice that we don’t need them anymore.

That’s a vicious cycle.

Like Marie Kondo says, in order to tidy your house, you must set aside some time to do all of it in one go. Yep, that’s tough but 100% effective!

It’s the same when you want to declutter your website:

if you keep tweaking a paragraph every few months or replacing a photo whenever you feel like it, you won’t be able to see the bigger picture.

When you’re ready to declutter your website with the Konmari method, set aside some time to do the bulk of the work.

2. Imagine your ideal lifestyle… in business & UX

A tidy, clutter-free house has a different meaning for everyone, which is why it’s important to imagine your ideal lifestyle first.

That way, you’ll have a better idea of what’s standing in your way to get there.

For your website, this step can be translated into: what type of audience do you want to work with?

Start stepping away from the idea that your product or service is for everyone. That’s just background noise.

For example, I work with ambitious female entrepreneurs looking to become THE go-to solution in their dream audience’s eyes.

My services aren’t ‘for everyone’. A large company looking for a copywriter who will just blow their own trumpet with the same old corporate-sounding words wouldn’t know what to do with them.

Neither would a brand that only relies on social media.

So, who are your products and services for? And, being cheeky, who do you like working with?

For this KonMari step, you also want to think of the ideal experience for your website visitors. That’s when UX (user experience) comes into play.

What’s stopping your target audience from having the time of their life and finding exactly the information they need on your website?

Is it lots of pop-up ads? A complicated structure that forces them to go through four different pages to get to the bit they were after? 

Try and look at your website as if you were navigating it for the first time.

Even better, ask someone to review it for you (you need a brutally honest friend for this!), and make a note of this for later.

3. Finish discarding first… after a website audit

One of the most famous of Marie Kondo’s eye-opening rules of tidying is that you can’t do it when the place is still cluttered.

You first need to discard everything that you no longer want to keep.

Before you start tweaking your website copy or images (again), stop. If you really want to declutter your website with the Konmari method, you need to look at the bigger picture first and tackle EVERY. SINGLE. ITEM. individually.

Reread and look at everything that’s currently on it and make a note of what you don’t think works anymore.

You have an average of 8 seconds to impress your website visitors: you can’t waste them on vague or cluttered sections!

Which takes us to the next point… 

4. Ask yourself if it sparks joy… or, better, is it useful to your target audience?

Marie Kondo has gone viral for her signature process. She gets her clients to hold every object that they own and ask themselves, “does it spark joy?” 

When it comes to decluttering your website with Marie Kondo’s method, there’s an important difference:

you should NOT focus on what sparks joy to YOU, but rather to your target customers. Or, better, is it useful to THEM?

Every single element on your website should have a purpose. From pictures to copy, get rid of any fillers and redundant repetitions.

Most importantly:

• Make sure that your home page clarifies immediately what you/your product/service can do for your target audience: what pain point does it solve? How can it make their life better/simpler/more luxurious/etc.? (Here’s how to fix this common website copywriting mistake)

• Get rid of cliches and vague descriptions of what you do (hint: if it’s got ‘solutions’ in its name, it can probably be explained with a more honest and specific word)

• Are there any repetitions that you can remove?

• Can you spot any huge blocks of text? Divide them into paragraphs or sections with clear headings!

• Does each picture have a purpose, or is it just there to look pretty? Are your images and graphic elements consistent with the tone of your copy?

The thing that Marie Kondo leaves for last is the ‘sentimental items’ category. When it comes to decluttering your website with the Konmari method, this can only mean one thing: discarding the sentences or sections in which you keep bragging about yourself.

Sure, it’s good to mention your achievements somewhere, but they shouldn’t be your main selling point. Your audience should be at the centre of your online copy.

And, while it’s definitely helpful to put a face (or more, if you have a small team) to the name, people don’t care about your entire life story. Sorry. They want to know what your business can do for them.

So... tell them! Focus on that rather than impersonal values that don’t really mean anything.

Once you’ve followed all these steps, you’ll be left with only the copy and graphic elements that truly matter. 

Now you can look at your website with fresh eyes once again and decide whether or not each element is in the best place when it comes to UX and the sales funnel (this is the ‘tidying’ part).

For example, does your Sustainability section need to stay at the bottom of your Home, or could you turn it into a separate page?

Have you used a powerful call-to-value too soon? Perhaps you can move it to the final part of your sales page to really give a final nudge to your bottom-of-the-funnel prospects?

Good luck!

Enjoyed my KonMari method for websites? Get more tips that spark joy (and sales🙌)

I hope you’ve had fun reading my take on using the KonMari method on websites and, most importantly, that you’ve found it useful.

As well as offering website copywriting and blog writing services, did you know that I send weekly tips, advice, and content prompts to other ambitious female entrepreneurs?

Perfect for women solopreneurs and female-founded businesses looking to attract and connect with their dream audience through their marketing copy.

Sounds like you?

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