Landing Pages – How To Do it Right

 

Some claim that landing pages and sales letters are the same thing.

Now, most landing pages are sales letters, but not all sales letters are landing pages.

Therefore, not the same thing.

And the two terms aren’t interchangeable.

Not all landing pages are created equal – I could also say the same of sales letters but one thing at a time …

A landing page is a stand-alone page that isn’t a permanent part of your website, and it doesn’t link to your website, it only links to the order device for your product or service.

It is written for a specific purpose, to cater to traffic sent from a specific source.

It’s the sales page where your traffic lands after they’ve clicked through from an online ad, an email, a social media post, or even an organic keyword search.

They’ve clicked through because they want more information, and they want to buy what you’re offering.

You’re already halfway to making the sale so make it easy for your visitors.

Use these tips to increase your conversion rates:

• Know what you want to achieve.
• The source of your traffic can give you an insight into your visitor’s intentions. A single landing page can’t address a broad range of intentions. Use as many different landing pages as you need to target specific visitors.
• The better you know your target audience the more relevant you can make your landing pages. You know what drove them to your page, so you already have some information about them.
• If you have a campaign targeting 10 different keywords, you may need to have 10 different variations of your landing page – do what works for you.
• Always test different versions of the landing page to find what works best. Use different versions based on how much the visitor knows about your business, your product or service.
• Make sure the visitor arrives with one intention, and they can satisfy that intention on your landing page.
• Use the same words and phrases. The same look and feel as the traffic source that sent them there. It’s about continuity. Your landing page must be an extension of your ad. This has a significant impact on conversion.
• Whatever the call to action was in your ad/email, it needs to be repeated on the landing page so they know they’re in the right place. If the landing page looks different they’ll get confused, frustrated and click away.
• The headline must be connected to the headline you used in the ad – again, continuity.
• Keep it clean and focused. No links to other pages. Just the link to the buy now, or sign up device.
• Offer immediate gratification – people want things instantly. Remove all obstacles – make it easy to them to get what they came for.
• The more complex the item, the longer the landing page. You need to include all the information people will need, plus address any questions they may have.
• Overwhelm the reader with your promise.
• Don’t waste people’s time. They’re there because they showed an interest, keep them interested and engaged.

What about those landing page templates you’ve seen others use?

Sure, they’re fine if you want to look like every other business out there.

Most of them can’t be customised your way to ensure best practice and high conversion.

If you don’t care about your brand and your reputation then I say go ahead and use an instant landing page. There are plenty to choose from, and they all look similar …

But, if you’re reading this, I know you want more. And I know you have high standards, too high to use generic products that brand you as a me-too business.

A good copywriter can write landing pages that you can re-use. Your own customised master landing page …

To keep your brand looking professional and polished.

Not a cheap, one-size-fits-all template …

Your business is better than that …

Here are some design features you’ll get when you have your landing pages written by a professional:

• Always single column pages. No sidebars. No other ads. You want your visitors to start at the top of the page and read to the bottom, with no distractions.
• Just like any sales page, your headline needs to get their attention and keep them reading to the next line, and the next … In eye-tracking tests, the further people look down a web page, the more their eyes drift to the left side of the page. So write your key phrases and benefits at the beginning of heads and subheads, even links. Most people don’t read the entire subhead, they look for the benefit – put it first.
• Use the same colours and fonts as your branding.
• Use images to hold interest. Have a ‘hero shot’ of the product, or a representation of the main benefit of your service. On the left side so people can see what they’re buying. Even if it’s only a download, people want to see what it looks like. People like to see something visual. Many e-books are shown as a hard cover book but it doesn’t seem to matter to people. It just adds to the appeal of the product, and the urge to buy.
• Make the cover appealing and easy to read – obviously the same as the cover on the product they’ll be getting.
• Nest your opening copy around the hero shot against the left margin. Because the text is written from left to right, the image draws the eye to the left and keeps people reading. Placing the image on the right draws attention to the wrong side of the page.
• The image attracts the eye so it’s a great place to add information to get the reader excited about buying. Remember, some people will scan the page for key text before reading the entire page. Always cater to the scanners. Be sure to communicate the main promise, features and benefits in the scannable text. People need to be able to find the information they want with a quick glance/scan.
• Everything that matters should be at the beginning of all your scannable text – headline, subheads, captions, and links.
• Add a caption to the image. Say what matters most, don’t just restate what’s on the image. State or repeat key sales points, urgency, benefits, your guarantee, or main features if it’s B2B.
• Never put a link under your image. You want people to read from top to bottom and then take the desired action. Links in other places will distract them and they’ll click away to another page.
• If your page is short and focused put your call-to-action at the bottom of the page. However, if it’s longer you can sprinkle Buy Now buttons throughout, for people who don’t need to read the entire page to make a buying decision. Don’t use giant, brightly coloured buttons throughout your text – people will feel like they’re being rushed. Use a Buy Now link. You want to build trust and confidence, and reduce the level of perceived risk.

By using best practice and customising your landing pages for maximum functionality and conversion, you’ll attract new, high-quality leads and customers.

Remember, you’ve worked hard to build your good reputation. Always protect your brand. Don’t take shortcuts, and don’t do anything sneaky or underhanded.

And, as always, make it as simple as possible, but no simpler.

 

KEEP THE FAITH