There's a lot of talk about the all-important fold. Simply put, above-fold ads cost more. Marketers obsess over cramming everything they can into that narrow window. And designers tear their hair out trying to maintain an ever-teetering balance between brand aesthetics and direct-response calls to action.
Fortunately, more agencies have discovered (through user performance data) something many in the interactive discipline have suspected all along: The importance of above-the-fold placement is largely a myth, and that users are smarter than everyone thinks. Heatmaps don't lie – people will scroll all the way to the end of the page if – and only if – the page has value.
It's a crucial and obvious point, one that the "Web Requirement Formerly Known as The Fold" does a good job of reminding us: Without real value, you might as well be building squatter sites (or tossing printed brochures out of a car window and hoping for the best).
Given that the web is less about "sell" and more about premeditated tasks, ask yourself: Is my site giving people what they need and want, with the best user experience possible? If you can't answer that riddle of marketing strategy, then not even users with 42-inch UXGA monitors can help you.
Happy scrolling!