What part of the sales funnel is the most important? While this continues to be debatable, one thing is for sure – your landing page needs to convert as many visitors as possible into warm leads or direct sales. What’s the benchmark for this? That is, how many visitors should your landing page be converting? That depends on your industry...
As an advertising agency, we take great pride in our landing pages. This is where we really shine. Why do we put so much work into landing pages? Because they make our clients more money!
Our average conversion rate is 11% – that is nearly 3 times the industry average (lawyers). While your numbers may not be so high right off the bat, you should aim to double your industry average.
This article will show you how to do it.
1. Highlight Your Unique Value Proposition (UVP)
The pace of people searching the internet these days moves faster than a cheetah chasing a rain deer. You have between 3 and 8 seconds to highlight your unique value proposition – so your message has to be clear – and driven towards how your product or service will make their life better. Some of the top elements of your landing page that will boost your conversions are:
Header
This is the first text your prospect reads – make it direct and simple. You’ve got a few seconds to make a first impression. Tell them exactly what’s being offered, in the shortest way possible.
Subheader
Now that you’ve told them what the offer is, the subheader should convey what the unique value proposition is, exactly. This needs to be short and simple. Great landing pages introduce the offer with the header and further explain the offer with the subheader. Great copy is user-focused, so it’s a good idea to tell them what they get.
Value & Benefits
If your header and subheader make the impact it should, the prospect is now eager to find out more. This is where you highlight the top benefits of your product or service. Bullet points work really well, but it’s easy to get carried away, so keep these to no more than 5-7 benefits. Make sure to list the greatest benefit first. Remember, we are extremely impatient when it comes to text. Most people only read 20-28% of the text on any given page.
Clear Call To Action
What do you want them to do, exactly? This CTA button should correspond to your unique value proposition, and should always be visible. You can place it at the top of the page or the bottom of the page so no scrolling is required. You could also make the CTA button float.
Lead Generation Forms
Oh no, you have to get the user to do some work?! Sometimes it’s actually necessary, but just keep it super duper short – no more than 4-5 questions before asking them for their contact info.
2. Minimalist Design
Minimalism is at the core of great design. This is especially true with landing pages. Avoid distracting your visitor by using lots of negative space. This helps push the user’s eyes towards the main message. Fancy pants does not deliver results, so put aside your favorite artsy font and choose easy to read fonts that deliver your message with authority. Check the layout on different devices and old monitors to make sure everyone can easily read the header and subheader without scrolling.
3. Use Great Images Or Motion Graphics
90% of the information processed by the brain is visual. 80% of people remember what they see, compared to ten percent of what they hear and 20 percent of what they read. Visual cues enhance the offer you’re presenting and help the user interpret meaning. If you’re using product photos, make sure they are taken by a photographer that has experience shooting products. And, make sure the photos highlight the top feature you are using for your UVP.
4. Social Proof
These prospects don’t know you from Jack, so you’ve got to show them that other people trust you. The human mind naturally resists going into the unknown, especially when spending money. Client testimonials give the user the trust they so deeply need, while client testimonials with a picture really do the trick.
5. A/B Testing
It’s not enough to build a slick landing page and sit back. You’ve got to test it, repeatedly, in order to see how users interact with the page. This is one reason why so many people trust a digital marketing agency to create and manage their PPC campaigns. If you have the time for DIY, bravo – just stay diligent and persistent. For example, you can test is how often visitors clicked a button, filled out the lead generation form, or what device they’re using. If you notice 85% of the users are using a mobile device, for example, you could optimize the landing page just for mobile. The following elements are great to test:
Headings
Images and graphics
Trust signals (social proof)
Buttons (look, text, and location)
Calls to action
Press quotes
Arrangement of page elements (blocks)
Navigation links
6. Use Videos To Highlight Your UVP
One of the biggest challenges with landing pages is actively engaging the user. Videos are a great way to really get the user’s attention and keep them interested. Videos can also spice up boring products that are tough to sell with just an image. In addition, they can make complex products much more accessible. Very few can successfully create a great video DIY – and this is another reason why so many companies go to an advertising agency to get the job done right.
Now, one huge question naturally arises – should your video be set to auto-play? We all know how annoying it is when you land on a site only to get bombarded with some loud, unexpected sounds and images. But on the other hand, a play button that is not super obvious could keep the user from playing the video. This would certainly be a great scenario for an A/B test!
In summary, landing pages is where all the magic happens. Traffic means nothing without conversions, so you’ve got to put the work in to really make them pop. But don’t stop there, make sure you test your pages regularly so you can maximize your ROI.
