This is an in-depth guide to help you create landing pages.
So, if you want to;
- Build landing pages that convert GREAT
- See examples of the best landing pages and what makes them unique
- Learn landing page best practices
Then you’ll love reading this article to the tail end.
But before we dive in, let’s get something out of the way first.
What is a Landing Page?
A landing page is a page on your website designed to encourage a specific, desired action.
The action can be;
- Entering an email address
- Joining a free trial
- Filling out a form
- Making a purchase etc.
It’s called a landing page since it’s the page where visitors “land” after clicking on a link on your newsletter, ad, social media post, or any of your other traffic sources.
With that out of the way, let’s go over 15 proven strategies for building effective landing pages.
Read on.
What Are the Best Strategies for Creating Landing Pages?
Before you crank up a landing page, you’ll want to determine a few details first.
To make your pages specific, impactful, and resourceful, ask yourself;
- What’s my goal? What do I want visitors to do when they land on my page?
- Who’s my target audience? Different target audiences require different messaging.
- How’s the audience getting to my landing page? A visitor arriving on your page from a banner or Google ad will be in a different mindset from a person coming through a newsletter.
- Which landing page(s) am I competing with? What makes the pages stand out? Can I reverse engineer the strategy?
Once you’ve answered these critical questions, it’s time to roll out your new landing page by leveraging the following strategies.
Strategy #1: Plan Your Layout
The first step to building a great landing page is to pick a good template. You can create a template from scratch or use a pre-made option.
Pre-designed landing page templates are great if you’re not a DIY enthusiast. Plus, they can help save time and increase efficiency.
Most page builders feature multiple synonyms. All you need to do is to pick and customize one that fits your requirement.
That said, a good landing page has;
- A headline
- A description of your offer
- Imagery
- Lead capture form
- A call-to-action (CTA)
Let’s analyze how you can optimize these elements to create a professional-looking landing page.
Strategy #2: Write a Compelling Copy
Keep your headline and description succinct and straight to the point. That’s crucial for user experience.
Your headline must answer one critical question your users have — what’s in it for me? A benefit-focused headline will do the trick.
The copy that follows your headline needs to be clear as well.
Use simple, plain language to tell users how they can benefit from your offer. The idea is to write a copy that drives potential customers to act the way you want them to without sounding pushy.
Speak directly to users using “you” and “your.” That way, you can connect and engage with users better.
Strategy #3: Position Your Lead Above the Fold
Keep essential info and CTA at the top of your landing page as a rule of thumb. That way, users can get the hang of what you want them to do as soon as possible.
You don’t want visitors to scroll your page to get to your offer.
And by placing your lead form above the fold, they don’t have to scan and search the page to find the form.
Side Note: “Above the fold” is a great strategy for grabbing visitors’ attention. Still, you want them to scroll the page further to learn more about your offer.
So, design the form to move with the visitor as they scroll your page. Better yet, include “below-the-fold” CTAs at regular intervals.
Strategy #4: Choose Attention-grabbing Imagery
Often, designing web pages means pretty pictures, colors, and creativity.
As you create landing pages, you need striking images coupled with vibrant colors to convert visitors.
When choosing images, consider the following:
- Where on your page do you want visitors to look?
- How will a specific image reinforce your message?
The image is the first thing immediately visible when a visitor arrives on your page. You’ll, therefore, want to use an image that drives your user’s attention toward your signup form or CTA.
Further, use descriptive images to spell out what a user can anticipate on your page.
Strategy #5: Add an Enticing Call-to-Action
Call-to-actions are the bread and butter of a successful landing page.
Below are 5 tips for creating a CTA that can capture leads:
- Use a vibrant and contrasting color
- Get to the point. Use words like “get it now,” “download,” “submit,” “see pricing,” etc.
- Focus on the benefit to users
- Create a significantly large CTA
- Avoid cramming the space around your CTA
Strategy #6: Create a Campaign-specific Landing Page
Which marketing campaign will you use to deliver your landing page to the target audience?
Will you leverage banner ads? Email marketing? Social media ads?
The best practice is to create a landing page for each channel if you’re running multiple marketing campaigns. That way, you can determine which of your marketing efforts brought the best results.
If you’re using a single source to drive traffic, ensure your landing page’s design is uniform across the board.
Let’s say you’re running ads on social media using a particular headline and imagery. You should include the same design specifics on the social media campaign’s landing page.
Strategy #7: Boost Conversion with a Valuable Offer
Landing page content that includes a helpful resource generates more leads and higher conversion rates.
For instance, it is easier to compel visitors to exchange their email for an eBook or free trial.
You’ll also want to keep your opt-in form short. You can ask for the first name and last name, for example.
You may need a little more info, depending on your goal. However, for most conversions, your landing pages lead form shouldn’t be unnecessarily long.
Strategy #8: Limit Exit Opportunities
Your landing page design should seal exit opportunities as much as possible.
You can do this by;
- Removing the navigation bar on your website
- Avoiding external and internal links
- Not mentioning related offers
Your pages should focus on driving a prospect to fill out your lead capture form.
You can include a click-through button below the fold, such as a social sharing button. Besides limiting exit points, such buttons make sharing your content easy across various platforms.
Side Note: Run A/B tests for various landing pages to determine if adding sharing buttons yield a positive ROI.
Strategy #9: Include Social Proof
Research shows that social proof effectively convinces people to take a specific action.
Below are 5 strategies to add social proof as you create landing pages:
- Logos of brands you’ve worked with
- Your product or service review by independent users
- Testimonials
- Subscriber counts
- Case studies
Adding social proof validates your offer. It also enables you to create a perfect landing page that answers users’ questions.
Side Note: Place testimonials (or whatever your social proof is) next to the call-to-action button. Think of it as a website design strategy to build a high-converting landing page.
Strategy #10: Make Your Landing Page Responsive
A good landing page can handle every viewing experience.
You don’t want to create a page whose form falls out of view on a mobile device. So, create a page that provides the best possible experience for all devices to boost conversion.
Pro Tip: Use a drag-and-drop editor integrated into your landing page builder to achieve this effortlessly.
Strategy #11: Optimize for Search
Optimize your landing page copy for search engines. That way, you can make it discoverable in search engine result pages (SERPs).
Below are 5 tips to optimize your page:
- Target the right keywords
- Create an SEO-friendly title
- Optimize the landing page URL for search
- Write a brief meta description
- Optimize your images
In addition, draw traffic using conventional online marketing strategies like social posts and email blasts.
Strategy #12: Run A/B Tests to Optimize Landing Page Conversion
The thing is,
Your business is unique. So are your target customers.
That said, how can you tell if your copy is working? Or the best images to use? Or if your CTA placement is correct?
You test the various elements of your landing page.
A/B testing may not be new to you if you’ve had digital marketing campaigns before. However, if this is your first landing page, the following A/B testing tips should get the ball rolling:
- Test one element at a time
- Test big and small variables
- Ensure variation “B” isn’t indexed
Strategy #13: Add Tracking
Creating landing pages is one thing. Knowing how good your landing page is entirely different.
So, apart from A/B testing, you’ll also want to track your page’s performance over time.
You can accomplish this by adding your Google Analytics ID to your landing page builder or marketing tool. You can also use other tools like Facebook Pixel to track Facebook ads results.
Strategy #14: Preview Your Landing Page Before Publishing
This is a no-brainer. Still, you’ll be surprised how many people publish their landing pages without fact-checking.
You want to check grammatical errors, CTA placement, typos, etc.
Also, check the overall layout to see if you’d want to redesign page elements. Simply ensure you have a great landing page.
Strategy #15: Follow-up with a Thank You Page
A thank you page is crucial because:
- It allows you to deliver your offer.
- It enables you to upsell your visitor with new, relevant content.
- It lets you thank users for their interest, giving you a head start for future promotions.
Switching gears,
Let’s now look at a few landing pages and what makes them stand out.
What are the Best Landing Page Examples?
Are you yearning to see the above tidbits in action? We’ve rounded up the best landing pages to help you see what a fabulous landing page looks like.
Example #1: SaaS Landing Page — Confetti
Why it stands out:
- Clear, benefit-focused headline
- A well-thought-out subheading that adds context
- Multiple CTAs strategically placed throughout the page
Example #2: Sales Page Landing Page — NerdFitness
Why it stands out:
- Super-clear headline
- Strong testimonials for social proof
- Enticing risk-reversal
Example #3: Newsletter Signup Landing Page — Ramit Sethi
Why it stands out
- Clear, straight-to-the-point call to action
- Media mentions for social proofs
- No exit opportunities or competing goals
Example #4: Lead Generation Landing Page — Zillow
Why it stands out
- Forms appear only after a user hits the “Start Today” button
- Nicely written testimonials
- Smartly illustrated “fine print” section
Example 5#: Ecommerce Landing Page Example — Casper
Why it stands out:
- Multiple call-to-action up and down the page
- A detailed, well-written feature roundup
- Optimization for Facebook traffic
Example #6: Free Trial Landing Page — CallRail
Why it stands out:
- Clean design. Only 26 words above the fold
- Compelling headline
- Trust badges
- Clear copy that includes features and benefits
Example #7: Appointment Landing Page — Mr. Rooter
Why it stands out:
- Large, striking imagery
- Concise form
- Information hierarchy
Bonus Point — What to do Beyond Conversion?
At this point, you know what it takes to create landing pages that drive conversion.
But what happens after a visitor gives you their email? Or complete the sign-up form? That’s where lead nurturing comes in.
That said, below are tips to help you nurture leads collected through your landing page:
Guide Them Along the Buyer’s Journey.
Since you’ve collected valuable info about your lead, you can anticipate their next need. Provide resources or content to draw them to the next phase of their journey.
Help the users decide. After all, they’ve shown you trust by exchanging their details. Prospects buy from brands they like and trust.
Foster a Relationship
Once a visitor signs up, they become a potential client. You’ll, therefore, want to form and grow a connection with the prospect.
And the beauty of it is that you already know their pain points, making it easy to target them with personalized marketing.
Scale Your Business with Great Landing Pages
Landing pages will generate most of your leads, so you should give them your full attention.
And, with the many changes, variations, and additions you can implement, there’s no reason you shouldn’t create landing pages that convert well.
The trick? … follow the strategies in this blog post.
To your success.
