Building a landing page for JupiterGoals required choosing the right tool for the job. While there are many ways to ship a frontend, I narrowed it down to four main contenders:

  • Create React App: Simple, but lacks built-in optimization for SEO.
  • Next.js: Excellent server-side rendering (SSR) support and ecosystem.
  • Hugo: Fast and reliable (which I already use for this blog), but can be restrictive for dynamic app-like features.
  • Astro: Exceptional performance, specifically regarding Core Web Vitals (LCP, FID, CLS).

The Decision: Why Astro?

I needed a solution that was simple to maintain, easily themed, and—most importantly—delivered top-tier performance and SEO out of the box.

Looking at real-world traffic data, Astro consistently outscores competitors in Core Web Vitals. Better scores directly translate to a better user experience and improved search rankings. You can see the comparison here.

I decided to use Astro for the marketing site (the landing page) while keeping the core application logic separate. This “separation of concerns” allows the marketing site to focus purely on SEO and speed, while the core app (which requires authentication) can focus on heavy React features without being bogged down by crawler requirements.

UX Improvements: Reducing Friction

Initially, I used Tally.so for handling signups. However, redirecting users to a third-party form introduces friction and degrades the User Experience (UX).

To solve this, I migrated to an internally managed signup flow using Firebase. Now, the input field is natively embedded in the page. I also implemented an auto-focus feature: when the page loads, the email field is automatically highlighted. The user only needs to type their email and hit enter—zero clicks required.

I also added visual examples to the page to clearly demonstrate the product’s value proposition immediately upon landing.

Current State (Screenshots)

Here is how the landing page currently looks across devices, featuring the embedded signup and new layout:

JupiterGoals Desktop View View live at JupiterGoals.com

SEO Strategy & EEAT

Technical SEO was a major priority for this update. I implemented the following:

  1. Meta Data: Added comprehensive meta keywords and descriptions.
  2. Structured Data: Integrated application/ld+json schemas to help search engines understand the product context.
  3. EEAT (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness): Google places high value on authorship. To establish authority, I linked the project directly to my portfolio at walkingjupiter.com.

Challenges & Reality Check

Despite these optimizations, organic traffic and signups remain low. The keyword space for “JupiterGoals” is naturally competitive, often overlapping with space exploration and planetary science rather than personal development.

However, I am comfortable with this pace. The service is primarily a tool for my own self-improvement. If the SEO kicks in later, great; if not, the product still serves its core purpose, helping me achieve my goals.

Key Learnings

  1. Keyword Stuffing is Dead: Modern SEO is about content quality and authority (EEAT), not just repeating phrases.
  2. Architecture Matters: Separating the marketing layer (Astro) from the app layer (React/Firebase) was the right move for long-term maintainability.

I will continue to publish updates here as I refine the platform.

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