Whether you're new to internet marketing or a seasoned professional, your landing page is absolutely critical when it comes to online marketing and promotions.
That said, a mediocre landing page has the power to "un-sell" your prospective customers … so you need to make a spectacular one!
How can you be sure that your landing page does not repel your potential customers?
Follow these simple steps to create a landing page that will satisfactorily satisfy your prospect's emotional and rational needs, and make them confidently take the desired action!
What Is A Landing Page?
A landing page, also known as a lead capture page, is a web page where traffic is sent to convert, particularly into a lead or a sale.
For best results, your advertisements should direct to your landing page instead of your website's home page. Your ad joins the prospect's interest, but landing pages pick up where the ad left off, and leads your prospects to complete the transaction.
Generally, each landing page focuses on getting your visitors to purchase one product or service, whether it's a direct sale page or a list they can join.
If you only send traffic to your website's home page, it's a safe bet that most of your visitors will not magically find the page that prompts them to take the desired action!
(It has been said that every page of your website should function as a landing page, but that's a topic for another day.)
Crown Your Landing Page with a Headline That Addresses a Problem
But not just any problem: Address the problem that your prospect may be experiencing that prompted him to click through to your landing page from your ad.
Use your headline to enter into the conversation that he's having in his head. Involve him, and he will read all the way down to your subscriber box!
Some good examples of headlines that address a problem are as follows:
o "Are You Getting 7 – 9 Hours of Sleep, But Still Lethargic the Next Day?"
o "If You're a Lame Duck When It Comes to Dating, Look No Further …"
o "Tired of Not Getting All Of Your Taxes Back In April? Find Out How You Can Get Every Red Cent Back Next Year!"
You might have noticed that two of those headlines were questions. Using questions as headlines is a tried-and-true technique that marketers have been using for centuries-questions beg your brain to find an answer, and will relentlessly agitate it until you do.
Thankfully, the answer to your question is not far away …
Use a Subheadline That Resolves Said Problem
If you do not answer that annoying question or give them a solution right away, you will lose a substantial amount of your valuable traffic.
Remember, most (if not, all) web surfers refuse to pay attention to your page for too long … you must grab their attention and really electrify them about your product or service!
The trick is not to give them too much, however. You do not want to give away the whole farm, so to speak. Your subheadline should solve the problem described in your headline and promise satisfaction, but should leave something to be desired-the rest of your landing page will fulfill that desire, and get them to convert.
Showcase Your Credibility
Whether you're selling a product or building a list with your landing page, ease the collective mind of your customers: Prove that your business is credible and trustworthy.
This means you should convey that they can trust your company with their email address, their other contact information, and most importantly, any sensitive billing information. Put yourself in the customer's shoes: Would you feel safe after buying anything from a website without a secure payment button or badge? Of course not!
Outline Your Product's Main Benefits … Not Just The Features
There is a method to this madness, and it's not complicated: Your customer simply wants to know what's in it for them.
While benefits result from features, it is not enough that you list the best features of your product or service-you must give your visitors the experience of owning it for a little while. Let them imagine what it would be like to use it, or have it ready for them when they really could use it.
So for example, if your company specializes in web hosting and design, you may want to list the benefits as follows:
Instead of: "We are knowledgeable in HTML, CSS, AJAX and JavaScript!"
Use: "Our experts can design an attractive, professional website for you!"
You may place a page on your website, such as an "About Us" page, where you can go into detail about your certificates, but in most cases your landing page should outline the benefits rather than the features.
Support Your Claims Using Fact Rather Than Fiction!
You have a headline that addresses a real issue your customer is reasonably experiencing, a subheadline that promises a solution, displayed your credibility and illustrated the benefits … now it's time to back up your offer with cold hard facts.
Do not be discouraged, this part is incredibly easy! Just recharge your copy with a few simple fixes, like so:
Instead of: "We're cheaper than the competition!"
Use: "We can prove that we're 40% cheaper than the competition!" (Of course, provide real statistics to demonstrate this.)
Other great proof and figures to provide are: The overall return on investment your clients have experienced with your product or service, social proof (testimonials and case studies, etc.), the actual deducted percentage customers can take advantage of during a sale or promotion.
Close Your Landing Page With a Clear Call to Action
While the quality of your landing page content is instrumental to converting your traffic, it can not realistically serve this purpose if your call to action is not clear as a bell.
Your call of action can be spread as anchor links through your landing page, placed after each new topic or idea, or even just once at the end of your page. Either way, your instructions on how to take the preferred action must be foolproof.
If your prospects must click a button to purchase your product or service, show them. (You can even show them how: Research shows that secondary button feedback, such as the Submit button changing color when a cursor hovers over it, does yield more opt-ins!)
If your page requires that they submit their name and email address to receive more information or to get a free offer, let them know not only where they can do this, but re-iterate what they get for doing so.
The goal of your call to action is to get your prospect to take the desired action, and you must make it as uncomplicated as possible so that anyone can do it without much thought.
Sit Back And Watch Your Conversions Grow!
Simply put, a converting landing page is a big deal when it comes to successful internet promotions … but it's not impossible! Without a doubt, you can achieve more sales and signups by fine-tuning your content, and including a crystal clear call of action. Once you've filled the perfect landing page, trust me-you'll know!
