Tips for Designing the Right Landing Page
The landing page is basically the first real impression that your customer or user gets off your website and your business. If they land on a page that is confusing, unprofessional, or uninteresting, then the chances are they’re going to end up taking their business elsewhere. As an online marketer, you need to keep in mind how important every stage of the online process is, all the way from your user finding your website in the first place, to him or her purchasing your product.
- Understand the Full Funnel
Typically, there will be a number of stages involved before your user hits your landing page. For example, with a generic SEM campaign, your user will start by searching for a specific keyword on Google. From there, some of them will see your advertisements, and a percentage of that number will decide to click on it and be directed towards your landing page.
When a user clicks on an advertisement or link to visit your website, they do so expect a certain result. For example, you shouldn’t have an advert covered in flowers and bouquets if you’re a company who specializes in metal work. In short, you should be sure that you are conveying the exact same message on your landing page that you are putting forth through advertisement copy. The title of your ad should be the same as the headline of your landing page, and images, sub-titles and so on should also be similar. Remember, consistency and symmetry in your messaging can be enough to boost your conversion rates by as much as 30%.
- Test your Message
Although it’s fundamentally important to make sure your message is consistent, the key to getting the best result is practice and refinement. Research has discovered that A/B testing is one of the most effective ways of analyzing and examining which versions of messaging will work best for your campaign and your business.
If you are running an A/B test on your landing page, you should make sure that each version you test is based on your ad copy.
- Moving Beyond the Landing Page
Sometimes, it’s important to take your consistency further than just your landing page. Think about the next stages in a customer’s journey after they have clicked the conversion button. The ultimate product should be customized all the way through, starting with advertisement copy, moving into your landing page, and continuing all the way until the last moment after purchase. Remember, your customer should never be confused about what they’re doing. Instead, you want them to feel as though they are being carefully and gently maneuvered through a pre-set path to their destination.
