A_Guide_to_Increasing_Your_Landing_Page_Conversion_Rate

A Guide to Increasing Your Landing Page Conversion Rate

Carl Taylor | August 15, 2017

A beautiful and well-presented landing page is arguably only as good as its conversion rate.

After all, landing pages should be informative but they must also make it easy for users to go from browsing to buying. Luckily, optimizing your landing page conversion rate doesn’t need to be complicated.

There are a number of ways to ensure that visitors to your landing page will end up taking their interest further, whether by clicking a contact button or signing up for a newsletter or, best of all, completing a transaction. Here are some of our best tips for landing page optimization.

First Off, Why Should You Have a Landing Page?

Landing pages differ from regular websites in a number of ways. The most important difference is the purpose of the page. Your landing page might have the same branding as your website, but the content is a lot more specific.

For example, you might use a landing page if you’re launching a new product and you want your ads to take users directly to the details of the product, rather than just dumping them onto your contact or about page. Landing pages are also used very effectively for single-purpose services, such as PayPal or Airbnb.

With a landing page, you are leading your customers directly to the information they are interested in rather than frustrating them by making them first try to find it.

A specific product or service could easily have its own landing page, especially if you’re planning to promote it. This way, you can track the interest in this specific product or service and see what percentage of users end up engaging further.

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Landing Page Improvements to Boost Your Conversion Rate

The best way to improve your conversion rate is by improve the elements of your landing page. While there are a number of key attributes that make for an effective landing page, these are the most important – and the quickest way to boost your rate.

Offering

Your offering must be very specific, with a narrow focus. By way of example, it doesn’t help to have a landing page that offers multiple services, because it’s then harder to track which service people are more interested in.

h-bloom

This page not only has a specific and clear offering, it offers just enough information upfront so that the user can immediately tell what the page is offering. There’s no confusion.

Headline

The headline of your page should be clear and bold, with a narrow focus. As mentioned before, information must be upfront and easy to find. The first thing the user sees must tell them what they’re looking at so they can decide if it’s something they are interested in.

trulia

Trulia’s headline is simple and to the point. It’s impossible to miss the purpose here.

Call To Action

The call to action or CTA must be clear, easy to find and eye-catching. It can be on the page multiple times if needed, but it must be upfront and in a place where the user will definitely find it. It’s no good putting it at the end of a long landing page, where there is a good chance the user will never come across it

conversion-lab

The CTA on this page is easy to see and the color contrasts well with the background. Even better, it says what the button does on the button instead of something generic like submit.

Content

The copy on the page must also be clear and to the point as well as being easy to read at a glance. If certain information can be conveyed using a bullet pointed list then even better. Another way to present this kind of information is with well-designed and placed iconography. Icons can draw the eye to specific information and even tell the user what to expect before they even read the copy.

expense-check

 

Additional info is often below the fold on landing pages but that’s no reason to ignore good design practice. This site makes use of custom iconography and short paragraphs of copy. It’s informative but not overwhelming.

Images or Video

A simple landing page design must also be supported by good, high-quality imagery. Product shots should be easy to see and large enough to see detail. If applicable, consider using video to further illustrate your service or product. This can be an easy way for your users to get the information they need, provided the video is not lengthy or badly put together.

adobe-experience

Adobe has some of the best landing pages out there, using full screen images and videos to demonstrate their products. This is a good example of the type of product that benefits from video.

How Does Improving Your Landing Page Lead To Conversions?

It all boils down to usability, from both a design and a functionality point of view. When a potential customer or client lands on the page, it tends to be on purpose meaning they are specifically interested in what the landing page has to offer.

It’s essential that the user finds what they’re looking for quickly and that the landing page is easy to use and navigate. If a user lands on the page and is immediately confused by the contents or frustrated when they try to action something, such as signing up for a newsletter, then there is a strong chance they will simply close the browser and look elsewhere.

The Value of Split Testing

A/B testing or split testing is an effective way to test the results of your landing page based on two different criteria. You may be undecided about how best to proceed with a product launch for example. Do you offer 20% off or would free delivery be more enticing?

Two versions of the same page with this specific difference will, after a bit of time, give you the answer. The data from these two variables will clearly indicate which offer resulted in more sales.

This kind of testing can also be applied to pretty much anything on the landing page, even what colors you choose to use. It’s also a great way to test which kind of call to action works best with your product, service or special offer.

However, it’s key that you don’t try to run more than one test at a time. This will confuse the results and make it near impossible to gauge which change resulted in more conversions.

Examples of Great Landing Pages

There is no shortage of great landing pages out there, with some of the biggest brands creating beautiful and effective landing pages for their products and services. Here are a few which stand out as having excellent examples of good landing page practice.

Code Academy

code-academy

Code Academy’s landing page is a simple and clear design with an equally to-the-point offering. The headline states exactly what it’s all about and the illustration is equally indicative of the industry. Finished off with a clear call to action, there is no need to scroll further in order for the conversion to happen. If the user wants more information, it’s there below the fold but the page isn’t losing anything by it not being immediately visible either.

Square

square

Square’s landing page gets straight to the point with a bold headline and a clear image of their product. The call to action is prominent and uncluttered with all additional information being understated and unobtrusive. This is a great example of a short landing page which is still very clear about its offering. Bonus points for the second call to action at the bottom that gives you the option to download the app.

WANT TO SEE THE TYPES OF DESIGNS WE DO FOR BUSINESSES LIKE YOURS? DOWNLOAD OUR DESIGN PORTFOLIO PDF!

OfferZen

offer-zen

OfferZen also has a clear offering and an uncluttered interface which allows the call to action to stand prominently from its surroundings. The subheading is a nice touch, offering more information about the service without evolving into a heavy paragraph of copy.

Finally, when creating a landing page, it’s useful to draw on your own experience. We are all users and customers, and we’ve all used landing pages which have frustrated or annoyed us. Common sense plays a big role in determining a good landing page and, of course, user testing is essential.

About the author 

Carl Taylor

Carl Taylor is the Founder & CEO of Automation Agency. For the past 10 years Carl has been building businesses and marketing them online through the use of Sales Funnels, Email Marketing Automation, Landing Pages, and Wordpress Websites. Carl is also a #1 author and highly sought after speaker and consultant whose work has impacted thousands of businesses across various industries worldwide.

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