What is a Landing Page?
A landing page, as the name suggests, is a page you land on when you click on an online advertisement or result on a SERP (search engine results page). Good landing page development tends to focus primarily on two types of landing pages: lead generation and click through. The former is used to gather user information such as gender and email, and the latter is used to persuade visitors to visit another page.
The importance of landing pages is self explanatory, yet getting the right landing page is one of the most major obstacles faced by businesses even today.
Why is it a Must-have?
Landing pages are crucial to a good online experience, and Google loves relevant search results. If you search for something, then click on a link that takes you to something unrelated, that is a problem. However if you land on a page that’s highly relevant to the search someone entered into the Google search bar, that’s a highly relevant result. Despite this fact, only 48% marketers build a landing page for each of their marketing campaign. The end-goal is generally the same irrespective of whether your landing page caters to new leads or existing customers: faithfully capture their interest in something you offer and capitalize on this opportunity to drive them closer to sales by giving them a great landing page experience.
Landing pages can be built to let visitors download content such as whitepapers, eBooks, webinars etc. or sign up for product demos or limited-time offers like free service trials.
Therefore, having a great landing page lets you zero-in on your desired audience and truly offer them value. This is an important aspect of your online business to focus on since it can result in significantly more visitors converting to leads and eventually sales.
Good to know:
- Companies increasing their landing pages by 50% see a 55% increase in leads.
- Dell has over a 1000 landing pages which saw a 300% increase in conversion rate.
- 80% of your website traffic goes to the top 10% of landing pages.
How is a Landing Page Different from a Home Page?
In order to truly understand the benefits that come with having unique landing pages, we must understand how they stand apart from standard web pages such as the home page on your site.
Your home page acts the same as the front door to your home or office. People like to make judgments the moment they walk through – they take one look to understand where you’re coming from and form first impressions. They simply need to know what it is you’re offering and how it makes their lives easier. They want to know if you understand what they desire and whether you understand the challenges to offer viable solutions. The home page is all about your prospect, not you.
Landing pages, on the other hand, have one chief objective: to convert visitors into leads. People have already seen your website, they are aware of what exactly you offer and how it benefits them. The landing page takes them through the last step of the conversion process.
Conversion is the only goal here and it shows visitors what’s in it for them. There’s minimal navigation involved and all they need to do is click on your “ultra compelling” copy and start using the desired product or service.
Features Commonly Found in a Great Landing Page
Here are common features the best landing pages boast:
A Good Linking Strategy
When it comes to landing pages, simplicity reigns supreme. Links going to other sites on the homepage might make sense but in the case of the former, there should be nothing at all distracting visitors from the main goal: conversions.
A Clear CTA
The call-to-action has to be direct, clear and concise. It ought to be reiterated at least a few times throughout the page. Ideally, one CTA would suffice and it should be placed right above your contact number, in the form, at the bottom of the page and in the main body.
Mobile-friendly
The rate at which users are ditching their laptops and PCs to go mobile continues to skyrocket. Your landing pages should be completely mobile-optimized so they can be easily viewed on tablets and smartphones. All content should display in a clear and informative manner.
Immaculate Grammar
ALL your web pages need to be written using flawless grammar and sentence structure, not just the landing pages. It casts doubt and hesitancy on your visitor’s part if they come across spelling errors or sloppily structured sentences. They will not be compelled to trust you, period.
Clear, to-the-point Copy
Headlines on a landing page ought to compel users to read more and take the desired action, as opposed to being boring or vague. Focus on a unique point tied to the business which grabs and retains your visitor’s attention.
Clever Use of Keywords
A dedicated landing page should contain the keywords you want to bid on. Have multiple variations and mentions of your keyword in the landing page and you’re effectively ensuring quality as well as clarity.
Design Sensibilities
Cut to the Chase
You need to get to the point, fast.
The human mind has a short attention span, that’s just the way it is. Rarely will people check out each and every bit of information on our page. They will “forage” for the desired information by scanning the page quickly from top to bottom. Address the reason in the least amount of words possible, the reason people are visiting your landing page. Highlight the value of your offerings and how it helps solve problems or address certain needs. The use of clear headers and subheaders is a must, while using easily readable bullet points to explain what they’re getting always helps. Use italics or bold text to highlight key advantages and keep things concise.
Contrasting Colors
Your CTA really needs to “pop” on the landing page. You’re encouraging users to click on the submit button so that has to stand out. Complementary and contrasting colors are a fantastic way to get their attention.
Here are 11 landing page design examples to love and admire.
Your Brand Stamp
Every one of your landing pages should sport a catchy logo. But it need not be the focal point of each page, rather one that’s strategically placed to remind users that they’re in good hands. It should only attract enough attention to get people to recognize that landing page as a publication of the company. This is important especially when visitors arrive on your landing pages through social media or Google searches. Decide where to place your logo and maintain the same position on every page.
Zero Visual Clutter
Too many images work against you rather than for you – your reader gets distracted from the main point or points you’re trying to hit home. This unnecessary friction can be done without as it lures the user away from the main points which help to convert. So, the images or graphics you use should support the key focal points of the landing page, though again, you’d want to keep it at a minimum. We don’t want unusually long page-load times. Not everybody’s using a fairly powerful desktop PC or mobile device.
Get the Formatting Right
This is probably one of the simplest design practices to follow and perhaps should have been mentioned earlier! Crafting a great-looking landing page means clearly laying out images, headlines, form, body copy etc. to highlight the value you offer by creating a user friendly experience which will naturally compel them to complete the form.
Check out this example here; it boasts a clear headline and sub-header and one that’s easily digestible, thanks to the aesthetic formatting.
Add a Little Social Proof
Case studies, white pages and recommendations always give your landing page more authority. Why not add some social proof to cement it further? Add third-party credibility to your content and see even better conversions. Embed user tweets where they downloaded your content and great things to say about it. You can even quote someone who left an inspiring message on your Facebook business page. If you can manage to dig up date on how many people downloaded your latest eBook, that’s also social proof you can put on your landing pages.
Maintain Consistency
Page elements need to be kept consistent on every landing page. Even though it pays to do A/B testing of your landing page from time to time to get the best results, radically altering the layout each time will drive away conversions. When there’s consistency, it helps users to navigate your easily every time they visit you website. If they have to get used to the gist of things and general flow of the page each time, they will be driven away by this unnecessary friction.
How Businesses Convert Visitors through Good Landing Page Development
Your landing page should answer the following questions:
What’s being offered? Let people know what’s in it for them if they give their contact info.
What are the benefits? Explain why visitors just cannot be without it.
Why must they buy NOW? Create an uncanny sense of urgency in your offer.
How easy is it for visitors to buy the offer? It should be very easy and convenient for leads to fill out forms so they can start taking advantage of your services.
Answer these questions effectively and you’ll maximize the potential for lead conversion.
The Trulia landing page, for example, illustrates a number of good practices:
There’s a simple form which asks for a visitor’s address. Below this form filed is an orange button boasting a bright color tone which contrasts ideally with the hero image behind the form. This emphasizes the fact that estimates are personalized according to your home.
Naturally, the address itself isn’t enough to give the user an estimate of their home’s value. It simply gives a hint about the home’s surroundings. And it makes sense, because the next page has questions about the property such as floor size or number of beds. Below that you glance at the copy which says “Tell us where to send the report”, along with a disclaimer that when you enter the required information, you agree to be put in touch with a property agent.
This is an excellent example of how a business can give value to customers right from the start, all the while setting expectations so as to what happens next. Give us a call on our toll free number at 1.888.566.2577 for a FREE consultation to understand how AOK Marketing helps businesses join the number one contenders.
Top 3 Examples to Inspire Successful Landing Pages
Driscoll, the American business that’s been dealing in berries for more than 100 years, has a landing page which asks people to sign up for their rewards club to get a 50% discount on their next order.
They’ve managed to generate nearly 8,000 leads through this page with an impressive 40% conversion rate. The lead/landing page works due to the absence of a navigation bar, letting people know that they can either move forward with the offer or simply leave. The offer has a clearly defined headline which, believe it or not, boosted conversion rate exponentially.
Author of “Fit Men Cook”, Kevin Curry created his newsletter-based landing page to give away free recipes, health challenges and an inspirational message. His pages saw 6,500 leads with a 35% conversion rate. The landing page is simple and has ample white space which actually works great so as to not make users feel overwhelmed. The absence of a navigation bar and bullet points makes it quite easy to read. He also mentioned that users’ information stays confidential which further builds trust.
This online store has more than 25,000 fonts and has seen over 40,000 leads with a 45% conversion rate. It works well because it isn’t selling anything and only asking people for their email address. They have also incorporated their social media following which is a community of 120,000+ by sharing the lead page, which led to higher conversions.
Getting Ahead with Landing Page Development
In order for landing pages to be successful, they need to have a combination of accessibility, usability, persuasion and brand trust development. Let’s expand on these further.
Delivering Relevance
Visitors only arrive on landing pages with a set goal in mind and they need to see this relevance from the get-go.
A clear headline shows relevance and encourages visitors to scan further down the page to the CTA. Large fonts and a clean, responsive design also help accomplish this. It is completely normal for landing page visitors to have questions like “Can I trust you?”, “What can you do to help me?” or “Where are you located?”
Even though answers to these questions can be answered on the home page, it doesn’t hurt to have them answered on the landing page through a “Contact Us” or “About Us” link.
Referral Source Integration
The “visitor journey” to your landing page started elsewhere; delivering relevance requires complete consistency with what they have already read. They have expectations which must be met.
Think of it in terms of branding, messaging and creative – the landing page must integrate well with the original referral source. This especially applies to interactive and offline ads as well as emails. So the key message you’re displaying on the landing page must be consistent with the referral source’s message. You need to gain the visitor’s trust that they have come to the right place to find what they want. The headline must also do justice to this.
Relevant Graphics
The graphics you use on your landing page need to click well with the overall campaign and stick to a certain level of audience empathy. Put yourself in their shoes – what kind of graphic layouts over the years have worked best and which has also attracted the most traffic? Even though stock graphics aren’t the best choice, your customers might prefer that look.
Unfortunately, it is difficult at first to determine what kind of effect graphics can have on conversions, so you need to test it out extensively. Try not to veer off too much from your website’s general theme. Experimentation is always good, but in limited doses.
Menu Options Density
Having sparse menu options can increase conversions; when choices are limited, visitors are more likely to click on the desired CTA. However, not every visitor converts to a lead and might suffer from a poor experience as they would find themselves drifting to other parts of the site to get what they need. It’s up to you to find an ideal compromise – keep menu options at a minimum and include only the most crucial, top-level ones.
Take Search Marketing into Account
An offline campaign gets people searching for your brand. You need to use paid search so that visitors can be directed to the right landing pages, specifically during the campaign. If the landing page is integrated into your website and being used in the long haul, you must optimize it for the right search key phrases, utilizing standard SEO practices.
The Adbots Google robot tests landing pages for speed and relevance; the title, headings and main body must have the same keywords you’re using to trigger the ad copy. Talk to one of our consultants to better understand how it all comes into play and how the top businesses in your industry are doing it.
Keep the Shy Ones in Mind
Even the best-crafted landing pages might see visitors being non-responsive. Leave a “traceable” phone number or even a ‘live chat’ option. Provide additional options to browse or search in other parts of the site. The most hesitant ones can be converted into leads if you know how.
Landing Page Length
Landing pages are ideally suited to limited-time campaigns and you need to plan when all related links within the page should expire. Potential risks include visitors being directed to URLs which are invalid or out-of-date offers. It is recommended you use a custom 404 Error page in this case.
Landing Page Development – The Future
A great landing page and a mediocre one can mean the difference between people trusting your brand or walking away bored and unfazed.
When people can’t trust you, they are simply not interested in taking a chance on your product no matter how compelling you make it sound. This is where a superb landing page design comes in. Understand the concepts highlighted above and stay on top of current trends.
Only business with the best landing pages are going to be able to keep pace with ever evolving online business landscapes. An eye-catching landing page with the right call-to-action and a grabby headline is what makes you stand out.
The AOK Marketing Advantage
When users want to find the desired information fast, we know what makes them tick. They want nothing more than to take advantage of your offerings to make their lives easier. They are looking for consistent value, quality and long-term benefits.
At AOK Marketing we understand this all too well and incorporate the latest, cutting-edge landing page design trends to get your conversions up by the numbers.
Contact us today to embark on a journey of self-discovery and unparalleled success.
About The Author
