Let’s talk about everyone’s favourite topic: landing pages. Obviously, you want your landing pages to be effective at converting prospects and generating leads — that’s the whole point of having this kind of page in the first place.
So what goes into creating a wildly successful landing page? The magic is not in the individual elements but in making a page that, as a sum, is greater than all its parts. Part of that is ensuring that each aspect of your landing page follows best practices.
Of course, you need a headline, body copy, and a call to action, but true success comes from how these are all put together. You can’t just throw together any old headline, some text, and a linked button and expect the leads to come flowing in. Successful landing pages all have a few key features in common.
So what are these crucial, must-have elements? Let’s take a look and cover some best practices in landing page design.
Key Features of Successful Landing Page Creation
Direction
As you read through this post, there’s one thing you must keep in mind: the number one feature of any successful landing page is direction. The page must feel like one cohesive item, and every element on the page must come together to compel one specific message. You should use your landing page to focus on only one message — don’t try to cram too much into the page.
Clarity
In a similar vein, successful landing pages display great clarity as to what you offer, and what the visitor should do. This means that you must have a single clear, compelling call to action that works hand-in-hand with your messaging about why the reader should take action.
Here are a few landing page creation tips for ensuring clarity:
- Have a neat, tidy web page design
- Make sure that your headline is compelling and to-the-point
- Ensure that your call to action is specific and easy to find
- Tell visitors exactly what they’ll get in return for their information
Continuity
We’ve covered that your page must have direction and clarity to be successful, but remember — not only must the landing page have one purpose, but it should match the message that got visitors to the landing page in the first place. Whether traffic comes from paid advertisements, emails, direct mail, or social media, make sure your messaging is consistent. Don’t promise one thing if your page doesn’t address it at all.
Trustworthiness
Why should visitors give you their information? Who are you? You must make sure that your landing page answers these unspoken questions and builds credibility, or few people will fill out your form. Use your body copy to address these concerns, and look for ways to make them feel comfortable with your company and product.
Here are a few areas you may want to think about:
- Show prospects how they will benefit from your product and how it fits their needs, and prove that it’s worth their money.
- Help visitors determine if your product is the right one for them. This may take the shape of a free trial, FAQ, demo, or product guide.
- Show them why your product or services are better for them than your competitors.
And, of course, remember that credibility comes from actually being trustworthy. Don’t ask for more information than you really need; they will be suspicious about why you need to know every piece of their personal data. And be transparent about the purpose of your form: if you’re going to use their email address to send them news and great deals, say so.
Great User Experience (Test, Test, Test!)
If visitors to your landing page have a poor experience, they’re going to expect the same from everything else you do. So make sure they have a fantastic experience when visiting your landing page. This means ensuring that the page is well-designed with their experience in mind. Make sure it’s visually pleasing, easy to understand, and simple to navigate.
How do you make sure that your page offers a top-of-the-line user experience? The answer lies in continually testing it. You will most likely find that your audience responds very well to specific a specific call to action, headline, form, or message.
A Compelling Call to Action
Remember that the point of having a landing page is to generate leads and convert prospective customers. Use all of the advice we’ve covered above to drive visitors to one clear, compelling call to action. When it comes to crafting this part of your landing page, consider the following:
- If it’s not easy to see what action to take, visitors won’t take any (other than leaving your page). So make the call to action visible and distinct from the rest of your page.
- Conversions are a give-and-take. Unless visitors believe you have something valuable to offer, they will not follow through. Make sure that your page supports your call to action with credible information and a promise that clicking the link (or completing the form) will give them something amazing.
- Although your call to action is why the landing page exists, make sure it doesn’t overshadow everything else. It should work in tandem with your headline, design, and body copy to provide an entire experience to your visitors.
Building Successful Landing Pages
That’s quite a bit to take in — a lot goes into a successful landing page! If you’re feeling confused, don’t worry. We trust you have enjoyed our landing page creation tips.
We’re here to help you create landing pages and web experiences that convert. Contact us to see how we can help you build your business’s online presence and make your sales sky-rocket.
Further Reading
What are Personalised URLs (PURLs) and Why You Should Be Using Them
Using Inbound Marketing to Create Valuable Leads
Small Business Tips: Getting Started With Social Media
Digital Marketing Partnership Success: How to Make the Most of Yours
The Importance of Direction in Web Design
