Do's and don'ts of creating a good landing page

Following last week’s look at what makes a good landing page, the next step is some hints and tips for building a killer page of your own.

How do I build a landing page?

Having established that a landing page is the right move to boost your conversion rate, we now need to consider what should be on that page – because get that wrong and you have wasted all of your work so far.

Simplicity is key here. Bearing in mind that we have already stressed the need to guide the potential lead through the action you want them to take, too many distractions or over-complicated copy at this stage hinders this.

Keep the copy on the page, particularly the opening paragraphs clear, concise and compelling  - pointing out succinctly the benefits of your product or service and what can be gained from signing up to your company. Think of this page almost like a brief press release – every word here has to count and convince your visitor not only of the benefits of your wares, but of the benefits of getting these from you rather than another supplier. This page must sell you and your business in the best terms possible, ideally in three to four paragraphs.

Common landing page mistakes

But beware of making this text overlong –this in itself can be a distraction or turn-off, and your contact or enquiry form, which should itself be as short as possible, would ideally start above the fold of the page. Conciseness in general aids friction, which in turns aids the all-important conversion rates.

The rest of the furniture on the page is also important, as distraction is certainly not an aid to conversion. Keep the navigation simple, and add share tools and links so that those who see the value of what you are offering can in turn share it with others they think might be interested.

If you want to use an image, source one that supports the topic and consider using a landing page creation tool to create and test different pages to find the one that works best for your business.

Also bear in mind, as this article points out, that your prospective clients are sceptical about what you do and whether you are the best company to meet their needs, so anticipate their questions and have honest and incisive answers ready for them.

Keep it personal

Detail and personal testimony are always better than platitudes, so steer away from corporate conference speak and instead produce a clear script with direct answers that build trust and help find common ground.

Incentivising, such as a promotional offer or free e-book, will always be a great way to convince someone to at least give you a go and also consider a surprise offer after someone signs up with you, as a way of further boosting goodwill towards you and your company.

And, finally, never brush anyone off. Whether they are sent to your page or find it by accident, you never know who that visitor is going to become and when they might become even more valuable to you – so keep an open mind.

If you want help creating a compelling landing page for your business, get in touch with our friendly team who can help you with every step of the process.

Read on... Does and don'ts of creating a good landing page.