How to build landing pages that convert

Lead Generation | Web Design

So, you are aiming to sell a particular service to a particular target audience, and a big part of that campaign is a PPC ad. Makes sense. Everyone know that PPC is a very powerful digital marketing strategy.

But, it’s easy to throw a lot of money at these without giving thought to what happens when the consumers click on your ad. It’s vital that the pages your users land on are built to convert that precious lead into a sale, and we are passionate about helping you achieve that goal.

(We are a bit sad like that). 

We think that there are six key elements that go into building landing pages that convert and in this article we’ll give you a sneaky little peak at our winning formula. 

What is a landing page?

First off, let’s just check we are all on the same page (a landing page?!). What exactly is a landing page and what makes it different to just any old page on your website. 

A landing page is simply a webpage that’s designed specifically to convert visitors into leads. This means that it should contain clear calls to action (CTAs) that encourage users to take an action such as filling out a form or downloading a file. It’s usually used as part of a lead generation campaign, attached to an ad campaign. The advert is clicked on and the website visitor lands on your linked page (which is why it’s called a landing page – genius!).

You can use a landing page to collect contact details, such as email addresses, phone numbers, and postal addresses. It should be very targeted, selling a specific service to a specific audience. 

What is a landing page not?

A landing page is not a purely informational page about your products and services. It is normally specifically designed to focus on one section of your target audience. As such, it should contain content that speaks directly to that section. 

What are the elements that make a great landing page?

Now that we are all caught up and singing from the same hymn sheet (I wasn’t allowed to use the landing page joke again!), let’s get into the nitty gritty of how to build a fantastic landing page that converts.

1. Remove distractions

A landing page should not have every bit of information about all your services and products crammed into one place. We are easily distracted creatures (she says while looking nosily out the window at something going on across the road!), it doesn’t take much for us to wander off from our original intention. To ensure website visitors remain on task, focussed on our landing page content, we need to remove all possible distractions. 

So take away any links not necessary for the landing page. It should not link to all the other areas of your website. It should have a very narrow focus. Start out by making sure you know what that focus is. 

2. Know who you are talking to

It sounds obvious but before constructing your landing page, you need to know who the target audience is. If you are driving visitors to your landing page from a Linkedin campaign, what did they click on to get there? What problems are they having that you could solve? What are their pain points and frustrations?

Knowing your target audience is very important customer segmentation is useful here. Not all landing pages are meant for your entire audience, the more targeted you can be, the better the conversion rate will be.

3. The offer

Your landing page offer should not just be the name of your service. There are different ways to structure your offer, but aim to explain the value of your service in your heading. 

What’s the reason that your service is the best? What will the client get if they use your service instead of a competitor’s? Shape your offer around this.

Your headline short be simple and grab attention and it made me followed up by a supporting statement to offer more clarity to your value and what makes you different.

4. Clear CTAs

A CTA is a “call to action”. It should tell the reader what to do next. What is the outcome you want from this landing page? Is it to call you? Is it to book a consultation? Is it to submit an email address in order to get a free download? Whatever it is, make sure you have a clear CTA so that your user knows what to do. 

Remember not to just use a ‘click here’ message in your CTA, instead make it conversational (because after all, you are a human; it’s ok to let people know that). Let visitors know what to expect by clicking the CTA, ‘grab my discount’, ‘book a call’ etc…

If you are using a form as part of your CTA its important to make it as short as possible, only include the absolute necessary information required. This marketingexperiments research from a few years ago shows how they increased conversions by reducing the number of fields

5. Social proof

You need to prove that the service you are offering is excellent. And for this we need real people, telling their stories on how good you are and why. We are all influenced by people around us (and the excuse I’m using for buying that B*witched album back in the day), so it’s important to use that to your advantage.

To do that, include direct quotes, star ratings or reviews, or even better, video testimonials. These tell the user that you’re trustworthy and awesome! It is one of the most powerful indicators that your service or product has added value to peoples lives.

To supercharge your social proof try to include as much detail about the client as possible, company, name, position and photo.

6. Write copy that presents a solution

Copy refers to all the words on the page. You need to write copy that taps into the pain points of your user and explains why your service will solve their problem better than any other. What are the unique things about your service that sets it apart from the competition? What are the key benefits and features? This is the kind of information you need.

When it comes to copy always lead with the benefit to the user. How will it improve their life? How will it take away that problem they have? Make the copy about the user and not about you as a company.

That said, it is still useful to include the features, as there may be secondary info about your service or product that is appealing to the visitor and may swing the buying decision in your favour.

Use them wisely!

Landing pages are great when used well. Define your service, define your audience and explain your offer. Make sure you give evidence that you’re trustworthy and then make it clear what you want them to do next. These are the elements that make up a great landing page. When used well, landing pages can drive leads.