How To Design A Landing Page
How To Design A Landing Page
Landing pages are something you frequently encounter as you navigate the web.
When you click on an advertisement, you might be directed to a specific page known as a landing page. It could be the website's homepage, the page that loads after a user clicks a button or some other special page.
Landing pages are designed to convert visitors into leads or customers and can be found in various places online. Because of this, landing pages are extremely useful tools for any company's online advertising arsenal.
So, tell me, what exactly is a landing page?
Landing pages are designed to do only one thing: convert website visitors into potential customers. There are many variations of landing pages, but they all share a common goal: to increase conversions.
The lead forms on landing pages typically prompt site visitors to provide their email addresses in exchange for a freebie or other incentives.
Consider how cautious you are with your private information. For what reasons would someone volunteer their contact details online?
And this is where sound landing page practices come in handy. Anyone can be persuaded to give their information if you direct them to a landing page that has been carefully crafted with a solid format and sound copy.
What's The Deal With Landing Pages Anyway?
Having visitors fill out a form on a separate page seems unnecessary. A simple “about” page or landing page would suffice. All valid concerns.
You should be able to answer those questions for yourself after reading this article, but in the meantime, here's the short answer: a landing page removes navigation, competing links, and alternative options so you can get your visitor's undivided attention. And with their undivided focus, you can steer them toward your lead generation form. In conclusion, landing pages are intended to result in sales.
Now that you realize how crucial landing pages are let's go over some best practices for creating them.
Tips For Creating An Effective Landing Page
- Create a headline that emphasizes the value you'll provide.
- Pick an illustration that best represents the deal being made.
- Create enticing text.
- Make sure the lead form appears above the fold.
- Include an explicit and noticeable call to action
- Make a reasonable offer to the recipient.
- Always be specific about what it is you require.
- Take out all menus.
- Adapt your site to mobile devices.
- Rank higher in search results.
- Do not forget to include a “thank you” page.
Would you say that was a lot? Best practices for creating a landing page are detailed below.
1. Create A Headline That Emphasizes The Value You'll Provide
At least 7 out of every 10 people who visit your landing page won't stick around to convert. To maintain a low bounce rate, it is essential that visitors immediately recognize and appreciate the benefits of visiting your site. When people land on your page, they first read your headline, so it needs to convey the value of what you offer in a short amount of space.
2. Pick An Illustration That Best Represents The Deal Being Made
Yes, you must include an image, and it must be representative of your ideal customer. Your picture should show how your visitor will feel after taking advantage of your offer, as that's what you want to communicate to them. You should always split-test your options (which we will review below) because some images may perform better than others.
3. Create Enticing Text
Don't put in all that effort for a weak CTA because you spent too much time worrying about the perfect headline and image. There should be no ambiguity in the copy, and it should direct the reader to the desired action. Using “you” and “your” in compelling copy makes the reader feel like the writer is speaking directly to them. Here, we'll discuss copy advice in greater detail.
4. Make Sure The Lead Form Appears Above The Fold
You don't want your visitor sifting through your landing page for your offer, so make sure your lead form is easy to find. The term “above the fold” refers to the fact that the structure is visible without the need to scroll. This could either be the form itself or a link to it. Better yet, make it, so the form follows the user down the page as they scroll.
5. Include An Explicit And Noticeable Call To Action (CTA)
Among the many factors that increase the likelihood of a conversion, the call to action (CTA) stands head and shoulders above the rest. For the call to action button to be noticed, it should be a contrasting colour from the rest of the page. Use an action verb like “submit,” “download,” or “get it now” to tell visitors precisely what you want them to do. Some recommendations for crafting effective CTAs follow.
6. Make A Useful Offer To The Recipient
Your landing page should be seen as a step along the way to your ultimate offer, which is your product or service. One way to get contact information from potential customers is to present them with an offer. It should be pertinent to your business and interesting enough to convince the visitor to give you contact information. Let's say you run a business selling horseshoes.
Since you ultimately want that lead to buying your horseshoes, your offer could be like “10 Easy Ways to Size Your Horse's Hooves.” To avoid diverting them down a different road, you wouldn't use an enticement related to organic farming. We'll go into greater detail about what makes an offer irresistible below.
7. Always Be Specific About What It Is You Require
While it's in your best interest to learn as much as possible about your lead, the depth of your inquiry will vary based on several factors, including the lead's familiarity with you, the stage of the buying process they're in, and the degree to which they trust you.
To reduce the perceived difficulty of filling out your lead form, it is recommended that you only request the minimum amount of information necessary. A lead's name and email address are all needed to start communicating with them.
8. Take Out All Menus
Your landing page's sole purpose is to generate leads from site visitors. Inconvenient links, even those leading to other sections of your site, can detract from the primary purpose of your website. To ensure that every visitor focuses on your CTA, you should eliminate any competing links.
9. Adapt Your Site To Mobile Devices
Your landing pages, like the rest of your site, should be responsive to look good on any device. Your form must remain visible on mobile devices at all times. No matter what device your visitors use to view your page, ensure they can easily convert.
To do this, you can use various instruments. You can easily make landing pages and forms that work well on mobile devices with HubSpot's drag-and-drop landing page editor, which is included in Marketing Hub Starter.
10. Rank Higher In Search Engine Results (SERP)
Emails, social media, and other forms of promotion will bring people to your landing page, but you still need to ensure it's optimized for search engines to find it in paid and unpaid results. Your landing page needs to be visible in search results for your target keyword. When using paid ads to target a specific keyword, that keyword should also appear on the landing page.
11. Do Not Forget To Include A “Thank You” Page
After a potential customer has filled out your form, you can direct them to a “thank you” page. You could skip the thank you completely or display a message of appreciation on the same page, but there are several drawbacks.
Three crucial functions are served by a thank you page:
- It fulfils the guarantee you made (usually in the form of an instant download)
- Your new lead can be piqued in the interest of further pertinent content.
- It's a great chance to show appreciation for their curiosity, which can lead to future business.
Tutorial On Creating An Effective Website Home Page
Colour, style and visual appeal are common descriptors for design work. We expand the definition of “design” for a landing page to include “functional, direction-oriented, and effective.”
To sum up, you'll need to use both your right and left brains to create a landing page with a professional design.
However, don't misunderstand me — you still need stunning visuals and enticing hues to convince your site visitors to buy. Specifically, how to apply this information is discussed below.
1. Structure Of A Landing Page
It's good news that your imagination isn't called for here. Most landing pages follow a very similar structure because it’s been proven to work. You can infuse your creativity through branded elements and images but stick to a landing page format that people are used to seeing.
A good landing page has five elements (check out the landing page example below to see these elements in practice):
- A headline that grabs the visitor's attention
- A relevant image that is relevant to your audience
- A lead form that sits above the fold to capture visitors’ information
- CTA that is action-oriented and compelling
- Content that educates and persuades the reader to fill out your form
- Hubspot landing page with hero section for capturing leads
Do you have room on your landing page for anything else? Absolutely. (Think of social share buttons that visitors can use to tell their friends about your offer.) To say this is the minimum is an understatement.
To know how much information to include, you must first understand your target market, their motivations, and the stage of the buying process they are currently in. The general rule of thumb is to provide as much detail as possible to win over potential customers.
2. Style Of A Landing Page
To your surprise, most people won't read your carefully crafted copy word for word. Instead, they scan for the most pertinent information. Your task is to draw attention to these details so the reader won't overlook them.
This implies a few things, including…
Your top priorities should remain visible without the reader needing to scroll.
Use the “blink test,” which means that a visitor should be able to understand the page's main points in fewer than five seconds (the average time it takes to blink).
Keep your reader interested and focused on what you want them to see by strategically placing white (or negative) space throughout your design.
Make your content simple to read by using bullet points and short paragraphs.
Remember that most online readers scan from left to right, so structure your most crucial text in an F-pattern. Use visual rhythms to direct attention to the conversion points.
3. The Colour Scheme Of A Website's Home Page
Colour schemes and overall design elements of your landing page should match your main website. Because you want to keep your landing page visitors around for the long haul, they must recognize and associate with your brand's colours and voice. Brand recognition increases consumer confidence (and the more they trust you, the easier it is to get them to do what you want them to do).
If you want certain elements of your page, such as your call-to-action button, to stand out, you may want to experiment with contrasting colours. The key to success here is contrast. Let's say green is one of your brand colours, and you're looking to grab users' attention.
Curious as to what colours work best? We did some digging to find the most effective colour conversions for you.
4. Photographs For Website Homepages
Since visuals are processed much more quickly than text, the image on your landing page can profoundly affect how visitors feel about the rest of their time on your site. But with millions of stock photos available and that company photo shoot eating up all your hard drive space, how do you decide?
5. Crucial Questions To Ask Yourselves
1. What Kind Of People Am I Hoping To Appeal To?
How would you describe your identity? What are their ages? What kind of clothes do they wear? Where do their passions lie? Your choices for the hero image of your landing page will depend heavily on the responses to these questions. It needs to be a reflection of your target demographic to be engaging.
2. Can I Specify Where On My Landing Page I Want Them To Focus Their Attention?
This question may seem out of place, but it is grounded in the idea that people tend to go in the direction that others are pointing or looking at. To encourage people to submit a form, you may use an image highlighting the field where they can enter their information.
3. How Well Do You Think This Picture Illustrates What I'm Trying To Say?
You wouldn't have a single thing on your landing page without reason. Your image will likely be one of the first things a visitor notices, so it should convey some information about the content of your page. Be sure your picture is helpful in some way.
In order to help you make better images for your landing page, I've compiled a list of some additional considerations.
6. Call-To-Action (CTA)
We've already talked about your call to action (CTA) a few times, but since it's the most crucial element of your landing page, it bears repeating. Designing your call to action (CTA) in a certain way will make it more appealing to your visitors, increasing the likelihood that they will take action. These guidelines apply to both the button and the accompanying text that serves as your call to action.
- Make your call-to-action pop with a contrasting hue.
- Write your call-to-actions with the visitor in mind.
- Use no more than five words to convey your point.
- Use action verbs to describe what you want the reader to do. Acquire, Obtain, and Obtain
- Put some thought into how big your button should be to stand out.
- Provide some white space around your call to action (CTA).
Place your call to action in a natural location on the page, like to the right of the copy or just below it, where your readers' eyes are most likely to travel.
It's important to put your button design and copy through rigorous testing (which we'll discuss in more detail below).
7. A Landing Page Designed For Mobile Devices
Mobile devices now account for more than half of all website traffic, so users must have a consistent experience regardless of the device they're accessing the site from. The ability to view and convert your landing page from any device, including desktop computers, mobile phones, and tablets, is greatly increased.
Writer's Advice for Your Landing Page
Fantastic writing comes next after the design is complete. Your aim should be compelling, instructive, likeable, concise, effective, trustworthy, and informative. How? Maintain your course of study.
8. Concentrate On The Essentials
Copy needs to hit a few main points regardless of the angle taken. Your solution to your persona's problem, the features and benefits of that solution, and evidence that it works are the five pillars upon which your persona's journey rests (social proof).
You need to focus on how you can help your prospect rather than bragging about how great you are (since that is assumed). Let's explore these ideas in greater detail.
Your solution should address the problem you highlight. It's not necessary to be overly pessimistic about your character's situation, but it is essential to acknowledge the difficulties they are experiencing.
Understanding one another through empathy is a powerful tool for fostering rapport. Customers' confidence in your ability to help them will increase if they feel you understand their predicament.
9. You Should Answer Possible Criticisms In Advance
Preemptively addressing potential objections is crucial to writing persuasive copy (copy that gets people to convert). This calls for some talent… or at least the assistance of a trusted companion.
Once you've laid the groundwork by covering all the essentials, put yourself in your prospect's shoes and consider where they might have objections or questions as they read. Your reader may be skeptical of a claim like “We've helped Fortune 500 companies bring in customers” if you don't back it up with evidence.
Complete this procedure for each part of your page (or enlist the aid of an objective friend) until you have answered every question or addressed every concern that could be raised about it.
Use inquiries from people who have visited your landing page to inform further revisions to the text. The best way to ensure your landing page is perfect is to ask your first few customers for honest feedback.
10. Gain Your Prospect's Trust
Take a sales page that claims, “Our product has helped 100 people and it might work for you, too!” as an example.
” Meh. I'd probably pass and look elsewhere for a firm whose solution is a better fit for my needs. If you want your visitor to trust you, you need to come across as an authority.
- Trust can be established in several different ways besides just relying on the opinions of others.
- Use natural language and speak to your readers like a real customer.
- Provide evidence by referencing relevant statistics.
- Make use of case studies that feature customers who are similar to your ideal audience.
Be approachable. Convince your listeners that you're just like them by being open and honest about your struggles and doubts. However, it would be best if you only told them what is directly related to their problem, so don't spill the beans.
11. Make Use Of Trigger Buttons
With the help of click triggers, you can ensure your visitors don't have any lingering reservations before making a purchase. A better way to put it is that they are “lick probability enhancers” (… yes, I made up that term). Simply put, they are reassuring words or phrases placed close to your call to action (CTA) that help convince your prospect to take the plunge.
12. Landing Page A/B Testing
Everything we've talked about up to this point is fantastic… in principle. Of course, your company is one-of-a-kind, and so is your intended clientele. Can you tell me how I can tell if the copy I picked is effective? Or if you have the ideal CTA placement? Or, what hues have the most success? As in, which picture should I pick?
You put it through its paces. And that's how. You, the marketer, are probably already familiar with split testing (also known as A/B testing), so split testing your landing page is just another experiment to add to your list.
Anyone who signs up to receive your emails is now a potential customer with whom you should work diligently to develop rapport and trust. Fortunately, you can now provide them with more relevant content and tailored marketing because you have a firm grasp of their interests and pain points.
If you're still having trouble coming up with ideas, look at some of the top landing pages we discovered.
Conclusion
To maximize your lead generation, focus on your landing pages. There is no excuse for not having a landing page that converts well, given the vast number of adjustments, additions, and variations you can implement.
A successful landing page is within your reach if you implement the best practices discussed above. We're here to help in any way we can if you require further direction.
Following the tips above, you can build a great landing page for your site and product. I hope you liked the information provided on this page, and I’m sure you’ll be able to use it in the future.
I trust you enjoyed this article on How To Design A Landing Page. Would you please stay tuned for more articles to come?
Take care!
JeannetteZ
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