‘Converting clicks’ is a bit of an online marketing buzz word. It gets thrown around all the time, but do you actually know what it means and, most importantly, how to make it happen?
Let’s take it from the top; a landing page is a web page. It targets a specific audience, offers them something valuable and then converts leads into sales. The specific audience might be traffic from an e-marketing campaign, a social media profile or a pay-per-click advertising campaign. The valuable offering might be a free e-book, a free online tutorial or a free trial of your product or services.
You want to capture the attention of a lead (whether it’s a new lead or an existing client) with your landing page and then use it to gently coax them further down the marketing funnel, eventually securing a sale. A landing page should be the online equivalent of jumping up and down, waving your hands around like a mad man: the whole point of it is to capture the attention of a lead.
How you can increase your landing page conversions
First and foremost, each and every one of your products or services should have a customised landing page. Think about it: a landing page for a range of organic baby products is going to be the polar opposite of a landing page promoting used motorcycle parts. There’s no need to get discouraged at the myriad of possibilities though. There are some common conventions that you should keep in mind when designing your next landing page.
Know your audience
Unless you know who it is that you’re trying to entice, you haven’t got a hope in hell of launching a landing page that is going to convert clicks. So, take a deep breath, and have a think about who your primary audience might be. If it is stay-at-home Mums, then appeal to their maternal instinct to protect their children. If it’s teenage girls, then you might want to emphasise the perpetual coolness of your brand. Who you are designing, and writing, your landing page for will influence the project more than any other aspect.
Make your call to action obvious
Before designing your landing page, work out its objective. Decide what it is that you want your lead to do, and make sure it is simple for them to do exactly that. If you want your lead to request a quote, an easy-to-use online quote form should occupy the majority of your landing page. If you want them to download a trial of your software, then the ‘Download Software’ button should be larger than life.
Clean up your design
You want your lead to follow your plan for them (the ultimate goal of which is always to secure a sale). You do not want them to get distracted by flashing graphics, videos or outbound links. So, simplify your design. Make it clean and crisp and clear. Make it easy to navigate. Remember: white space is your friend. If you’re not sure about the design, test it out. Get your friends and family to act as guinea pigs before you launch.
Headlines must compel
The headline on your landing page will determine whether your lead stays on the page long enough to actually do what you want them to do. So, your headline must be compelling. It must be benefit oriented. It must demonstrate WIIFM. It must cut to the chase. Don’t try to be cutesy or amusing. Just tell your lead exactly what they want to know. For further tips, check out our recent article on crafting compelling headlines.
Copy must compel and convert
Copy is almost as important as your headline. Landing page copy should be laden with benefits. Your lead should wonder how on earth they have managed to get through their everyday lives thus far without your amazingly innovative product or service. Make sure you complete keyword research before drafting copy.
Give ‘em proof
Sometime compelling copy isn’t enough to convince the most cynical of leads. They might not be willing to take your word for it. So, give them someone else’s word. Include glowing client testimonials, or statistics that demonstrate the worth of your product or service.
Use simple contact forms
If the objective of your landing page is to collect contact details, make sure you follow the tried and true KISS method: Keep It Simple Stupid. Forms should always, always, always be short and sweet. The less fields to complete, the more likely is it that your lead will submit their details. Make forms intuitive and easy-to-use on mobile, tablet and desktop devices.
Follow through
If your lead has landed on your page via a targeted campaign (be it social media, pay-per-click or e-marketing), make sure that whatever was promised in that campaign aligns with the content on your landing page. There is nothing worse than clicking on a link in an email that promises a free e-book, only to be redirected to a landing page that promotes a new online tutorial (or something equally as irrelevant).
Don’t give leads an easy way out
Make sure there aren’t too many ways for your lead to leave your landing page; one or two at the most. You may even want to think about removing the navigation bar. Give your lead no option but to engage with your landing page.
Integrate shareability
Let your leads do your work for you: include social media sharing icons after the call to action, don’t leave them at a dead end. Presenting a custom thank you page with social sharing icons it great way to get people who are already interested to help spread the word. If you have followed our tips above, leads might even share your landing page, convinced that if they cannot live without your product or service, then none of their friends will be able to either.
Monitor your results
Once you have your landing page up and running, monitor the click-through rate, follow through and analyse the final conversion rate. Ask for feedback. If your landing page isn’t yielding the results you had hoped for, then pinpoint why. Learn from each campaign so that the next one can be even more successful.
About Sally Wood
Sally is the Chief Wordsmith at Wordly: a full-service copywriting, public relations, communications and editing agency in Melbourne, Australia. Having worked in marketing, communications and public relations roles for over ten years, Sally is well-versed in just about every aspect of message delivery. Her professional experience includes: copywriting for web, social media and print publications; marketing and public relations campaigns that deliver growth and improve brand awareness; and internal stakeholder communication programs that improve employee engagement. Sally holds a Bachelor of Arts, a Postgraduate Bachelor of Letters (Journalism and Public Relations) and is currently undertaking a Masters of Communication. For more information about Wordly’s range of services, visit: www.wordly.com.au.
Sally has worked in marketing, communications, and PR for over 15 years. She is the Chief Wordsmith at Wordly: a copywriting and content marketing agency that works predominantly with WordPress powered websites.
