I am designing a website and normally I just make the homepage attractive without much though, the only trouble is, this homepage is my homepage so I have started to double-think everything.
Does anybody know what things and elements should be included in the homepage, without cluttering it and making it SEO friendly.
Do something unique and creative. That is best.
Include the things you think (or know) your user wants on your homepage. Include one other thing you want to include as your “goal” if your users hadn’t already sent signals they want that thing.
There is no rule here. You can make a masthead, a gate to a walled garden, a hub, a big round circle, whatever’s best for you, your content, and your audience.
I agree i am been working on web sites for a while now, i am not perfect, but your homepage should reflect your website business or product, on the first look.
Keeping a clean and simple design in my opinion is the best way to go.
The home page serves one overarching purpose: to inform people of what’s on your site, and interest them enough to keep them on your site. Okay, two interrelated purposes.
It really depends. Its usualy a breif overview of the site and if its a company its your main selling page designed to hook the audience.
The homepage should - in general terms - make it clear what your site is all about, should have links to the main areas and most popular pages, and have important news and updates that returning/regular visitors might want to know.
If you were visiting the site as an ordinary user, rather than as the designer, what would you want to see? Think about it both from the point of view of someone visiting the site for the first time, and from someone using the site regularly. What would you want the site to say, to draw you in and give you a reason to explore it? Which pages are you most likely to visit? Is it relevant to have news or current offers there?
There’s no hard and fast rule as to what should be on a home page, but consider adding things like links to key/popular tasks and if applicable links to new content
Hello your home page should be user friendly, then only the visitor will come and stay for a long. Try to figure out to which category your web site relates and try to identify the competition it the same field. If so you can learn a lot about them and their strategies and that will give you an exact idea.
Wow… so much information. Thanks guys. I have now designed my homepage taking everything which was said. I just hope it does it’s job. 
As the home page mainly depends on the site theme or the kind of site you are making but it should include important internal links from home page and a total site map of the website should be visible on home page as if a user wants he can click it and directly navigate to the particular page.
you can also design your home page according category wise and you give important services in your home page with small summary. Do not stuff link too much on home page and should be easy accessible.