How To Build a Landing Page That Actually Converts?
With multiple channels begging for attention and resources, it’s easy to forget that Facebook is not the only marketing tool these days. The email addresses and, eventually, purchases you wish to see are not going to happen through a Twitter account. They’re funneled through landing pages: attractive, intelligently designed requests for engagement. These pages can be hugely beneficial for your business, and fostering conversion requires focus, design, and a knowledge of your target audience. In this post, we’re outlining how to build a landing page that actually converts.
Make a Request
Your ad copy and visuals managed to attract visitors, but that effort
doesn’t convert unless you make a formal request. A “call-to-action” (CTA) is a clear and understandable request of the visitor that should
comprise the primary goal of your landing page. While it may not be the most
challenging component to create, it is the most important.
For this
reason, the best practice is to keep your CTA simple, understandable, and
identifiable. The most common CTAs involve a brightly colored, large-format
button that includes a message like “sign-up” or “register”, making no
mistake what’s being asked and how to fulfill the request. The copy of your
CTA can vary with your specific audience, so do some testing. “Donate Now”
and “Please Pledge Your Support” are two very different messages, each
resonating with a different audience.
Provide an Incentive
Everything about your landing page should then revolve around fulfilling
that CTA, and this begins with providing something in return. These can be
coupons, eBooks, or exclusive access to site features. Regardless of the
nature of the reward, customers should feel that their action is
appropriately incentivized, which will lead to higher conversion rates.
Rewards,
much like the landing page itself, should have a specific purpose as well.
There’s a reason your CTA isn’t backed by a gift card to some other retailer
or business, and this isn’t because of the cost involved. The aim of your
offer should be to generate further conversion. A gift card would be nice,
certainly, but by providing a discount, customers are more likely to
purchase your product and venture further down the “conversion funnel”. Even
something like access to a webinar can present the opportunity to extol the
benefits of your product, achieving the same aim with the added promise of
valuable information.
Keep it Simple
Between the specifics of your offer, the values of your company, the CTA,
and all the benefits you wish to highlight, landing pages can become a
little cluttered. That’s why it’s your responsibility to display this
information efficiently and effectively.
Begin with effective
presentation “above the fold”, or, on the page, prior to any scrolling. Your
CTA should be clearly displayed with a large and matter-of-fact headline,
and little to no visual clutter to distract from the specifics. If you
choose to list benefits, “tease” them with short, succinct copy, and then
expand on them below.
Below the fold, you have a little more
flexibility in terms of length, but with caveats. If users choose to scroll,
they are likely looking for information, which gives you the opportunity to
expand on your talking points. Present this information clearly with
attention to readability, but don’t make your copy too lengthy. The more
time it takes a visitor to fulfill your CTA, the less likely they are to do
so. Finally, repeat your CTA. As your primary goal, it should remain present
in the minds of readers, even after they’ve scrolled past the above the fold
content.
Cater to your Audie
With all of this in mind, it’s important to remember that your audience is
still the focus of your effort. Ultimately, your CTA is being vetted, and
fulfilled, by a reader, not by a designer or marketing agency. This means
that your copy, your tone, your graphics, and your offer should all focus on
your target audience, lest your hard work go wasted.
In this case, A/B
testing is invaluable. For those unfamiliar with the term, A/B testing is
the testing of two different page layouts in order to determine which one
results is the best performance. If users aren’t filling out your form,
consider removing cells and see how the conversion rate changes. If your
copy is too forceful, tone it down a bit and monitor progress. You’re
shooting for a sweet spot at the intersection of customer sentiment and
effective web practices, and hitting that mark takes patience and data.
Landing
pages are more than just a pretty collector of email information, they’re a
way to convert passive web visitors into active and loyal customers. The
voice you choose, graphics you use, and request you make will have to pass
through the lens of customer perception if you hope to curry conversion, and
that means being clear and concise, offering an incentive, and targeting
your message with the reader in mind. Ads may set the table, but your
landing page is the meal, and satisfied guests mean repeat business.
via PicsArt
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