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A landing page is any page on a website where traffic is sent specifically to prompt a certain action or result. Dedicated landing pages are stand-alone pages that are designed for specific marketing campaigns and users can only find them if they have clicked on content that is part of your campaign. Effective landing pages can generate more sales, make your offers more effective and maximise your marketing ROI.
When are landing pages used?
Landing pages are generally where a user will be directed to once they have clicked on a Pay-Per-Click (PPC) advert within Google, but users could have also clicked on a banner advert, email campaign, or social media post. Well-crafted landing pages almost always give better conversion rates than simply allowing people to navigate their own way through your home page. Your home page has been designed for a more general introduction to your business, designed to encourage exploration. Whereas, your landing pages should be designed for one purpose only – to convert.
The potential uses for landing pages are almost limitless but commonly they are used to collect personal information and lead generation from customers in exchange for something. The most valuable piece of information you can get from a lead generation page is someone’s email address – which gives you permission to continue talking and marketing to them.
For example, offering free reports and whitepapers full of industry strategies and statistics can be a useful technique to collect email addresses. Other examples include promoting your blog and offering users a chance to subscribe to receive on-going content via email or registering for a webinar session, often a Q&A with experts and special guest presenters.
Landing pages are also used to warm prospects up to your offering before you push them deeper into your sales funnel to purchase your product or service. These are called click-through pages. To read about more examples of landing pages, have a read of The Landing Page Conversion Course.
What makes a good landing page?
Good landing pages should be specifically optimised for the user, so having different landing page options is often a good idea. Your landing pages should provide a customised experience for the visitor, so consider where the user has come from and who they are. By providing a good match, your chances of engaging the visitor go up, as should your conversion rate.
You should never start a marketing campaign without a landing page. Give the same visitors exactly what they were looking for and you will have a captive audience. Be careful not to provide too many distractions in the form of links, or you are likely to lose them before they read your entire message.
When it comes to landing page design, less is more. A minimalist approach to design keeps the focus on your message. The messaging on the landing page needs to be clear - most visitors are impatient and will leave your page within a few seconds of arrival if you don’t offer a strong call-to-action.
In 2013, 15% of online retail sales will come from mobile and tablet devices. By 2017 this will rise to 25%*. Make sure your landing page is responsive so it looks as professional on mobile and tablet devices as it does on a monitor. Follow this link to find out more about responsive web design.
If you would like to know more about landing pages, we offer expert consultation and landing page design. Give us a call on 01743 272609 or email studio@vibecreative.co.uk.
* (source: http://www.emarketer.com/Article/Smartphones-Tablets-Drive-Faster-Growth-Ecommerce-Sales/1009835)
