Creating a great landing page is an essential part of running any successful online marketing campaign. Whether it’s driving traffic from social media, giving out promotions on your website, or selling to visitors via paid search campaigns, landing pages are the key to encouraging visitors to take that next step and convert into customers.
Landing pages strike a delicate balance between design and content. It can be difficult to know how much is too little or too much with so many elements to consider. A great landing page, when done correctly, uses a simple design to encourage visitors to take action in the most instinctual way possible.
Are you wondering what you should do on your landing page? Read on for our top tips on how to create an effective landing page that converts.
The elements of a landing page that converts
A landing page with a high conversion rate is the goal and creating a landing page can be done using some simple best practices.
Landing Page Layout and Design
Your landing page design is a key determinate as to whether or not your landing page will convert visitors. If done well, landing pages create a seamless transition between ads and websites.
The user experience on your landing pages should be simple and free of distractions. The best landing page designs utilize “white space” to draw attention to what is important and eye-catching images. You can also remove the navigation from your landing page, so users are focused on the content of your landing page and don’t click out to somewhere else on your website. Minimizing external links keeps leads on your landing page where they are more likely to convert.
A landing page builder is a great way to get started if you’re new to designing landing pages. Consider using a drag and drop landing page builder with premade templates. You could also research effective landing pages to give you a sense of how your landing page should be formatted. Optimize your landing page for mobile devices to ensure that your landing page is accessible to all of your visitors, no matter where they are or what device they are using.
Value Proposition
A value proposition is often referred to as the “unique selling proposition” for landing pages. It involves clearly defining your product or service and including the benefits of what you are offering so visitors can quickly understand why they should buy from you, not someone else.
Your landing page should quickly and highlight why someone should purchase from you. Good landing pages do not try to sell people on products; they sell the benefits of using that product.
Your landing page should have a clear headline that addresses the question, “What do you offer (and how does this help me)?” Writing good headline copy for your landing page can be difficult, and it will require some trial and error to find the right headline for your landing pages.
A/B testing can transform a good landing page into a great one, increasing your visitor’s conversion rates. To help you determine the best headline that increases conversion rates with your potential customers, plan to run at least one A/B test. Create a list of headlines that highlight your offer and plan on A/B testing them one at a time until you find the one that resonates most with your visitors, leading to conversion.
Call to Action
A landing page with a call to action (CTA) is essential as it tells visitors exactly what they need to do. Every landing page should have a compelling and straightforward CTA that ideally creates a sense of urgency.
It’s best practice to place the landing page’s call to action in or near the top left corner of your landing page, as studies show that users respond better when they see a request for their information right away rather than having to scroll down.
If a visitor needs to fill out a form on your landing page, make sure your form is simple. Only ask for what’s necessary. Typically, the first name and email address will suffice. The location of your form is important too. Have it above the fold on your landing page, so visitors see it right away. The further down it is on your landing page, the lower your conversion rates may be.
When using a CTA button, be sure to make it specific. For example, if you’re a roofing company, rather than using a generic “Contact Us” button, consider using “Get a Free Estimate” on your buttons. A potential customer should easily understand the action they need to take to work with your company.
Social Proof
Social proof is the idea of showing your target audience that other people are already satisfied with your product or service. This can be done by sharing testimonials or including customer logos and awards on your landing page.
When you’re creating a landing page for paid traffic, showcasing customer reviews is an essential part of social proof as it tells visitors that there are real people out there who have used your services and are satisfied with the results.
Many companies will use testimonial videos on social media to drive visitors to their landing pages. Testimonials, in particular, tell visitors that other people like them have had a positive experience with you and continue to use your product or service. Reinforcing social proof throughout the buyer journey can increase conversion rates once someone comes to your landing page.
Creating a landing page that sells
Creating a landing page that sells is not easy. Still, it can be done by defining your products or services and highlighting the benefits of what you’re offering to entice visitors to make a purchase. A landing page should have a clear headline that addresses their question, “What do you offer (and how does this help me),” with compelling copy that emphasizes the benefit of what you’re selling.
Test landing pages with A/B testing, give visitors a sense of urgency by placing your CTA in the top left corner, and include social proof to reinforce what customers are saying about your business.
By following these best practices for creating landing pages, you can effectively increase conversion rates through better landing page design. If you need help with creating and testing landing pages for your company, our team is here to help.
