What Does a Good Landing Page Look Like?
Maybe you already understand that there are key elements to making a good landing page. But, you likely have questions as to what works, what doesn’t work, and why. In this article, we’ll cover the basics of a landing page but will get into all of the details too. Keep reading to learn how to build the best possible landing page that will
What is a landing page?
A landing page is essentially a stand-alone webpage that gets built for a specific marketing or advertising campaign. When your audience clicks through from an ad, search, or email, they get to a landing page. Yes, the website homepage can be a landing page. In fact, almost every page of your website should be thought about as a landing page. Every page of a website should be built so that when users land there, the information that they need is available.
A landing page has a single focus in mind and it has a particular desired action that it’s directing the user to take. Landing page content should be organized in a simple, clear, to-the-point way.
Why do we build landing pages?
Landing pages are often built on a website with the intent to get all the information on one page. Take note that this is not realistic! Today’s consumer is not usually convinced after seeing only one piece of media. Consumers need to see 5 to 8 marketing messages before they make a decision. They rarely make the decision the first time.
In fact, 95% of people do not make that decision the very first time that they are introduced to your brand or service. So you’ve got a 5% shot of converting a customer who gets to your landing page on their first visit.
Set the right expectation when you’re building a landing page.
Don’t assume you can “trap” people and get conversions with a landing page alone. While that works in some scenarios, where you’re driving specific traffic for a bottom-of-the-funnel ad for example, in general users are at different places in the funnel and a single landing page alone is not enough. You need omnichannel marketing to pull all of your efforts together and meet customers where they’re at!
What is the messaging on a landing page?
Messaging is a very important consideration for every landing page. Because landing pages support all the rest of the marketing you’re doing by drawing your audience to your website, the messaging has to be clear. Visitors get to landing pages from a variety of different places including digital ads, online searches, emails, QR codes, and more! The message you’re delivering on your landing page has to flow logically for the consumer.
For the best results, the messaging has to match.
Wherever a potential lead comes from, or whatever was clicked to get to the landing page has to be the same as the content on that page. If it were a Facebook ad, for example, whatever message hooked that user, got them to stop scrolling and click needs to carry through to the landing page and finish that interaction with the user. Ideally, it will have the information that the user is looking for and convert.
What do landing pages get used for?
The idea of a landing page is to create qualified leads. As marketers, what we’re hoping to accomplish with a landing page is that the user will take the desired action that you’re leading them to. Oftentimes, landing pages will have a form to collect user contact information and other data, or another very specific call to action. The point is to collect data on your audience so that they become customers. The call to action could be prompting a form fill, phone call, sign-up, or other desired action.
Landing pages have useful purposes beyond lead generation alone.
Search ads like on Google and Bing get matched with the keywords that marketers are bidding on. Search engine optimization goes hand in hand with a good landing page. A lot of times landing pages help bring out that SEO element that you are looking for. When your content highly matches the keywords you’re bidding on, and users find the information you’re presenting on your landing page helpful, the search engines reward you (or your content!).
For search ads, you can increase your quality score when the content on your landing page is recognized as useful for audiences. Your quality score tells you how much you’re going to pay per bid. So, if you match what people are searching for to your landing page, Google doesn’t charge you as much.
What’s on a good landing page?
First off, a good landing page has to have a specific, intentional goal. consider what is going to make a consumer buy your product and service. Of course, you want visitors to your landing page to buy or convert. But, you have to present what’s in it for them so that they want what you’re offering.
Here are some key questions to consider when designing a landing page.
- What is the goal or intended result?
- Who is the audience being targeted?
- How will users get to the landing page?
- What is the message at the entry point?
You have to know who you’re speaking to on the landing page so that the imagery, design, and language on that landing page are directed properly. And again, all of this messaging has to match so that there’s no breakdown in communication!
A good landing page has engaging written copy.
The copy on a landing page is the written narration or story behind the goal. The headline needs to be something that will grab your audience’s attention. The words on the page have to be on-brand and persuasive. The copy should capture visitor’s attention and give useful information. Include copy that will overcome objections. Well-written landing page copy will also instill urgency without putting too much pressure on the consumer. The overall message has to clearly explain why that user should move forward. It should be clear, direct, and convincing.
A good landing page includes quality supporting media.
How the landing page is formatted and the supporting images or video media has to be of good quality. Because our brains process images 60,000 times faster than text, the images that are used are very important. Stock images aren’t always the best option and you want to use images that evoke an emotional response that matches your message and goal.
A good landing page design is easily scannable.
Keep in mind that most users are not going to read every word on the landing page. Make sure the landing page is easily scannable by breaking it up with visuals videos, different-sized texts. There are tools like Hotjar and Crazy Egg that can help marketers understand how scannable their content is. From a design perspective, most people look at the information in a “Z” pattern moving their eyes from left to right, up and down the page. This pattern of viewing content should be considered when designing a landing page.
A good landing page explains issues and solves problems.
Be sure to present multiple reasons why this is a great product or service that helps solve a particular problem. If a landing page isn’t presented in a way that the user can fully understand what a product or service is, they will bounce quickly. The landing page should thoroughly explain what’s being offered in the way(s) that people buy. Fundamental questions have to be answered on that landing page including: What is it? How does it help? And, what are the options?
A good landing page makes your products or services stand out from competitors.
There are reasons why consumers should pick you to do business with. After a consumer understands what’s being offered, they want to know why are you a good option. Because most of the time, you’re not the only option. Therefore, you have to build trust and show why your product or service is better than the competition. One of the best ways to build that trust is through reviews. Show your audience what others are saying!
A recent HubSpot research shows that 71% of people will make a buying decision based on a recommendation online. And it can’t just be written reviews but also video reviews from real people. There’s got to be some social proof on all of your social media networks. What are people saying? Are they commenting, liking, sharing? Are they engaged? And if they’re not. He needed to dig down and find out why they’re not giving that social proof.
A good landing page offers a guarantee.
It may seem obvious that users like it when they are guaranteed something. When there’s little to no risk involved with trying a product or service, landing page visitors are more likely to convert. Nobody wants to be the guinea pig. Think about what kinds of guarantees you can offer on your product or service and be sure to include them on landing pages.
A good landing page has a clear call to action.
While as marketers, we know what we want from our audience. However, is it clear to the user? The call to action can be presented in several ways and often times it’s a button or form. It could also be filling out a quiz, signing up, or prompting a call to a sales representative. Remember to keep forms short and require the contact information you need to continue marketing to that user. It’s okay to have multiple calls to action or buttons copy. It’s also a good idea to try different types of calls to action too! While having a chat on your page is a popular option right now, that doesn’t mean it will always work or that it’s a good idea in every scenario. Testing different types of calls to action is the best way to see what will convert.
How many landing pages should you have?
The number of landing pages you should have is relative to your goals, marketing initiatives, marketing funnels, budget, and resources. Because landing pages are often tied to digital Facebook Ads or Google Ads, if you don’t have a large budget, it might be better to link those to your homepage. And if your homepage isn’t converting, that’s an issue that has to be addressed. Also when considering your marketing resources, if your team is spread thin, you won’t want to have so many landing pages that they don’t get the attention and adjustments needed for success.
Should you use a landing page builder?
No. There are some important distinctions to understand between using a landing page builder versus building landing pages on your own website. Some common landing page builders include Unbounce, Instapage, and ClickFunnels.
Your website should be laid out so that wherever a user enters, they’re able to logically get around and view all of the website content. The goal of a marketer is to move their targeted audience through the funnel of buying and make it easy for users. Landing page builders actually make it harder for users to get to the next page of content. They can even prevent users from viewing more content and from moving through the marketing funnel.
Originally, landing page builders came about because it was difficult for marketers to build a landing page. They would often have to get a developer involved for landing page creation and functionality so the builders simplified that process. But now with the tools available in most website content management systems, building a landing page is easier to do.
Another negative to building a landing page outside your website is that these types of software create a totally different domain. This means you’re not building authority with your own website URL. Thus, you’re going to have to put a different pixel on that page to collect data. This is going to fragment your data. Sometimes the look and feel of landing page builders are going to be different because being outside of your website, the design elements and options don’t match. Therefore, the branding is not cohesive.
We always recommend that you build landing pages on your own website.
Lastly, always collect marketing data on your landing pages. Be sure to allow enough time for landing page data to be statistically significant. After enough traffic has been coming into that landing page, the data will tell you what to adjust. Your unique analytics will tell you over time what works and what doesn’t work with your audience.
If you have questions about how to build a good landing page on your website, reach out to us and schedule a complimentary strategy meeting!
Want to just listen?
Ep #06 – How to Create a Landing Page that Will Convert
Listen to “Ep #06 – How to Create a Landing Page that Will Convert” on Spreaker.
This week, the Elevated team talks about landing pages. What is a landing page? What should a landing page do? How do you get a landing page to convert? Follow along as the team answers these questions.
Listen on Apple, Spotify, iHeart, Podcast Addict, and Google!
