Not sure what a landing page is or how to create one? Consider this your ultimate guide! Join me as I explain why landing pages are so important, and how to build one that gets all the clicks.
Ever clicked on an ad on Google or Facebook, only to be taken to a page with a form requesting your personal details?
You’ve just experienced a landing page!
If you’re a digital marketer, a landing page is a powerful tool to have in your box of tricks. You can use it to target specific customers, encourage them to hand over their details, and keep them warm until they’re ready to buy.
Anyone can create a landing page, but it takes lots of skill to make a good one. In this article, I’ll explain what a landing page is, how landing pages work, and how to build a page that gets conversions.
What is a landing page?
A landing page is a standalone web page on your site with one specific aim – to get visitors to convert. By convert I mean getting people to carry out a particular action like buying a product or signing up for your newsletter.
Let’s say you have an eBook you want people to download in exchange for their personal details.
The best way to encourage them to do so is to build a web page that:
- Explains the benefits of your eBook
- Displays testimonials and quotes from people who have already downloaded it
- Provides a form for them to fill in so they can access the eBook
Why are landing pages important?
The reason why landing pages work is that they’re highly targeted.
By carefully selecting your copy, images, and other page content, you can create a page that entices a specific type of customer to convert.
The majority of landing pages capture customer details. By doing this you can:
- Qualify customers to see if they’re a good match for your business
- Nurture customers by sending them additional information. So if a customer downloads a free eBook or accesses a free webinar, you can keep in touch with them, reminding them of the benefits of your product or service
How many landing pages can you have on your site?
You can have as many landing pages as you need on your website.
In fact, it’s better to have multiple highly targeted landing pages that focus on specific audiences than it is to have one that’s more generalised.
According to HubSpot, businesses with 31 to 40 landing pages get seven times more leads than those with less than five, while those with over 40 get twelve times more.
Here’s an example. I used to work for a health and safety business, and we created over fifty targeted landing pages for prospective customers in different towns and cities in the UK.
As a result, about a third of all the leads the company got came from those pages.
What is (and isn’t) a landing page?
A little while ago, I was writing a blog post about B2B landing pages for one of my clients.
They asked if I could interview a marketing manager about a landing page they created to add some flavour to the piece, so I went to HARO.
My request was reasonably straightforward, or so I thought. Send me a link to a landing page you created for your business, and tell me a bit about it.
I got about thirty requests, and I was super excited to read the results.
However, do you know how many of the pitches I could use as an example in the article?
One.
About half of the people misread the brief and talked about their top tips for creating landing pages (as an aside, keep reading for my top tips).
The other half linked to pages that weren’t technically landing pages at all.
Let’s look at what types of pages count as landing pages and which don’t.
Is a homepage a landing page?
Answer: Probably not, sorry!
The homepage of a website has a lot of different aims.
For example, take the homepage of this website. I want people to check out my services, read my portfolio, check out my blog, and reach out to me to get me to write their copy.
I know, I know, I’m greedy.
This is why homepages typically aren’t landing pages.
- A landing page has one goal in mind. A homepage has multiple goals in mind
- A landing page targets one very particular audience. A homepage appeals to multiple audiences
However, a homepage can be a landing page in certain circumstances.
If you sell an extremely specific product or service, your homepage may double up as a landing page.
If you have a single-page domain with the aim of driving conversions, your homepage and landing page may be one and the same.
But most of the time, a homepage is not a landing page.
Is a page with a form on it a landing page?
Answer: Not necessarily…
Forms are a valuable way of getting information from page visitors. For example, encouraging them to sign up for a newsletter, request a quote, or download a document.
However, does having a form on a page automatically make it a landing page? Not always.
The two questions you need to ask yourself here are:
- Does my page have one well-defined purpose?
- If the answer is yes, does the form help achieve that purpose?
So, let’s say your page encourages people to sign up for a webinar.
If you’ve designed the form to capture people’s names and email addresses so you can send them information about the webinar, it’s likely that you’ve got yourself a landing page.
It’s also important to remember that a landing page doesn’t necessarily need a data capture form on it. For example, you may want prospective customers to call or email you rather than complete a form.
So, a page with a form isn’t necessarily a landing page, and a page doesn’t always have to have a form on it to be a landing page. Clear as mud, right?
Is a pricing page a landing page?
Answer: It depends on who you ask
Here’s where the water gets murky. Some digital marketers will say that a pricing page is a landing page, while others will say it isn’t.
Why might a pricing page be considered a landing page? Typically, a pricing page has one key aim – to encourage people to sign up for a service.
These types of pages also have minimal navigation. This is a key feature of landing pages to discourage prospective customers from wandering off.
So, why might a pricing page not be considered a landing page?
The argument against this is that these types of pages are overly complex. Many pricing pages have multiple pricing tiers and go into extensive detail about the benefits of each tier.
As a result, these pages are not clear and streamlined in the way traditional landing pages might be.
My thoughts? I think pricing pages count as landing pages, as they’re all about driving conversions.
But like all things, YMMV.
Is a blog page a landing page?
Answer: Most aren’t, but some are
Nine times out of ten, a blog page isn’t a landing page.
Let’s take this article about landing pages as an example. Who is the target audience?
I wrote this article with digital marketers in mind, which is far too broad of a target audience for a landing page.
There isn’t a highly defined call-to-action unless, of course, you want to get in touch to find out more about my copywriting services.
However, let’s say my target audience was more specific, for example, female Gen-Z digital marketers in the North of the UK with a particular interest in landing pages.
Let’s also say I had a specific call-to-action at the end of the article, perhaps to fill in a form to download a landing page checklist.
In this situation, you could argue that this blog post was a landing page.
So, what makes a page a landing page?
It can be hard to gauge whether a page is a landing page or not.
However, there are a few key indicators that can help you decide. In conclusion, a landing page typically:
- Focuses on a specific, highly targeted target audience
- Has one clear purpose and call-to-action
- Has minimal navigation and distractions
How to create landing pages that convert
Building a great landing page isn’t just about creating a page, slapping a form on it, and waiting for the conversions to roll in.
The majority of landing pages have taken a long time to perfect and get right.
Here’s how to create successful landing pages that stand the test of time.
Spend time on a good call-to-action
Your call-to-action on your landing page must be as clear and understandable as possible.
Customers are impressionable, and you need to tell them what to do next. If you don’t clearly explain the next steps after visiting your landing page, they won’t act.
Think about:
- The wording of your call-to-action. Create a sense of urgency, use emotive language, and be clear and concise
- Where your call-to-action is located. Call-to-actions fare better when they’re shown above the fold, as they’re more likely to be seen
- The colours you use. Test different colour call-to-action buttons with customers to see which ones lead to the most conversions
- The size and shape of your call-to-action. Even something small like adding rounded corners to your button can have a big impact
It’s also essential to ensure you only have one call to action.
While repeating the same call-to-action multiple times on a landing page is okay, different messages can confuse your web visitors.
According to Campaign Monitor, emails with a single call-to-action get 371% more clicks than ones with multiple messages.
(While this stat is for email campaigns, the same logic still applies to landing pages.)
Optimise your lead capture form
Are people loving your landing pages but just aren’t converting? It might be that your lead capture form needs some love.
You want to make sure your lead capture form is detailed enough to capture all the information you need to get valuable insight about your customers.
However, you also want it to be simple enough so that people will willingly hand over their data.
(You might think that the fewer fields your form has, the better. However, people may be happy to provide more information as they associate this with getting a higher-value lead magnet.)
Look at your lead magnet
Your lead magnet is an item you give customers in exchange for their contact details, whether that’s an eBook, email sequence, or webinar invite.
This lead magnet needs to provide value to your prospective customer. If it doesn’t, they won’t sign up for it.
And if they do sign up for it and feel let down by it, they may quickly unsubscribe to your subsequent email marketing efforts.
Does your lead magnet resonate with your target audience? If it’s not of interest to them, you won’t get high-quality, well-qualified leads.
Is it the right lead magnet? As an example, if your target audience is stay-at-home parents, they might not have the time to read a 5,000-word eBook or attend a live webinar.
And finally, your lead magnet needs to keep your audience hanging on your every word. If it’s too dull or doesn’t tell them something interesting, they’ll delete it or log off.
Think about the customer journey
It’s not just about your landing page but the route prospective customers take to get there – whether that’s a social media post, paid ad, or email message.
Consider the wording and imagery you use in your marketing. If your click-through rate is low, making small tweaks can help you get more attention
Also think about how your target audience is likely to respond to the marketing channels you use. For example, if your target audience is retirees, advertising on TikTok probably won’t bring you high-quality traffic.
And finally, think about the frequency of how you advertise. For example if you’re sending emails – email too often, and you’ll frustrate your target audience.
However, if you don’t email enough, they might forget who you are
Keep making changes
Many people fall into the trap that once their landing page is set up, they can forget all about it.
However, you need to keep tweaking and optimising your landing page to ensure it keeps bringing you high-quality leads.
Otherwise, you might find that all those lovely enquiries you used to get start dropping off.
The average conversion rate for a landing page is just under 6%, so if your figures are a little low, it might be time to make some tweaks.
In conclusion: don’t be afraid to experiment with your landing pages!
I hope this guide has given you valuable insight into how to use landing pages for your business.
Bear in mind that what works for one business might not work for another when it comes to sales funnel optimisation.
Try new ideas, regularly check your metrics, and see what brings you the best results.
p.s Want landing page copy that gets leads? I can help with that
It’s important that landing page copy is straightforward, snappy, and persuasive. Get it right, and you’re one step closer to making sales and getting leads!
If you need support with words for your latest landing page, I have experience creating landing page copy for a variety of industries. Click the button below, and let’s talk.
