Landing pages drive site visitors toward converting into customers. Put yourself in the mindset of the average person visiting your site. They see numerous landing pages day after day. Most landing pages have a similar structure by necessity, but many also look almost identical. Not only does this detract from your branding, but consumers also grow bored with seeing the same thing over and over.
In a recent New York Times article, students from two high schools were polled and asked for their thoughts about 2020. One thing that stood out is their belief that social media will continue to dominate. One teen called it “brainwashing” and said it gives a false sense of joy. Youth often have a fresh take on the world around them, and this teen seems to understand just how distracted people are. The situation doesn’t only apply to teens, but to everyone. You’re competing for the attention of a very distracted public.
If your landing page doesn’t grab the attention of your visitors, then your business may flounder. Figuring out how to best optimize website pages is one of the top challenges for most marketers. It takes a lot of effort to drive traffic to your site. Figuring out just how to keep the traffic there and convert visits into leads means the difference between success and failure.
- Trump Everything With UX
A bold look or unique layout is all fine and well, but if your page isn’t very usable, it won’t make a difference. Before you focus on the unique factors of your landing page, you must make sure everything works well for all of your site visitors. UX involves not only the look and layout of your page but also whether everything functions the way it should.
Good UX includes elements such as site speed, audience preferences and skimmable content. Put yourself in the shoes of your average buyer and think about which elements make their life easier. The decision to convert to a lead should be almost automatic. If you want to improve your UX, improve your landing page.
I Done This has excellent UX throughout the landing page. Not only is the site visually appealing, but the calls to action (CTAs) are also clear and easy to use. Sign up simply by entering your email or using your Google account. The page clearly lists which platforms the program integrates with to make it an easier decision for users.
- Fill the Background With Motion
Thanks to higher-resolution screens and faster load times, many websites have added features such as video hero backgrounds. Fill the background with motion — even subtle movement adds another detail to the page that captures user attention and encourages engagement. People are used to seeing white backgrounds with CTAs and text, so thinking outside the box and making the action a bit different will draw users in.
SSI Aeration uses a video to add motion to the top of their landing page. You immediately know the page has something to do with water. The sunlight streams through the surface of the water, highlighting the logo, name and tagline of the company. The page is very simple at first glance, with an arrow to gather more information. The design is bold but easy to absorb.
- Add Explainer Videos
Another way to utilize videos on your landing pages is to explain in detail what product or service you offer and how it benefits your customers. Consultation businesses, in particular, might benefit from a video explaining how the service works and what results clients might expect from them.
Wyzowl’s 2020 Video Marketing Report uncovered the fact that about 89% of marketers felt video gave them a good return on investment (ROI). Video can help increase sales. Because each video is as unique as the business that creates it, the medium is still bold enough to grab interest. When users don’t have a lot of time, they may turn to your videos to better understand your product.
Aura Transformation is a dating academy rather than a matching service. What does that mean? The personality behind the brand teaches men how to have confidence so they can meet the woman of their dreams. The video works well because it highlights his expertise and then he explains how he can help his target audience gain confidence. The page above the fold also includes a call to action button with first-person language to further meet the needs of site visitors.
- Show Happy Customers
Use your landing page as an opportunity to show how happy your customers are. There’s a variety of ways to do this, but the two most common are testimonials and case studies. With a testimonial, you gather a quote from one of your customers explaining why they love you. You can then share this information in a video, with text or with a combination of images and text.
For case studies, you have a chance to provide an example of what you’ve done for others. You might include a screenshot of sales figures, a white paper studying the improvement in their business or life since they started working with you or a story about how your product impacted them for the better.
3dcart does a great job of showing some of their current clients and how their product has helped them. Notice how they concentrate on how their product has increased sales for a number of their clients. They then show an image of each business, highlight the name and offer a short explanation of an element of their plan for that store.
- Refine Your Funnel
You may have more than one buyer persona visiting your site. If you want your landing page to meet the needs of all your users — and you can certainly have multiple landing pages instead — you must consider the start of the funnel for each customer type. Think about the question that buyer has when they land on your page and create a CTA that directs them to the right location to get the info they need.
The more specific each journey is, the better your chances of personalizing the buyer’s experience. Personalization allows you to address concerns that person is likely to have and move them more rapidly through the phases until they turn from a browser into a lead and a convert.
Merrill Edge does a good job of refining their sales funnels. Notice how they break the journey into two paths. The first path is an online brokerage account for general investing. The second is a retirement account with some points about the differences between the two. The CTA button reads the same on both types of accounts with the words, “Open an account.”
- Add Relevant Photos
Photos help break up some of the text on a landing page and they can add to the overall message of your brand. You’ve likely heard the saying that a picture is worth a thousand words. The human brain processes visuals faster than text, so it makes sense that you can say a lot more with an image.
One A/B split test comparing a painting image and a photo of the artist uncovered that photos of real people increased conversions by 17% or more. Think about the photographs that are unique to your company and how you can integrate real-life people into your images. Your conversions may increase simply by adding some images of staff or clients.
The Mansion on Main is a senior living community. When deciding where one might like to live, it’s natural to look at photographs of floor plans and the exterior and interior of a facility. In addition to images of the building and the apartments, they highlight staff members so you know who runs the location.
- Follow a Few Trends
While you don’t want to make your page so trendy that it becomes outdated quickly, it’s okay to use a few current design trends to show you are in the modern age. As technology changes, new capabilities emerge for designers as well. Adding in some trends keeps your landing page fresh and current. For example, you might add a gradient to your page, create an animated logo or add a live chat feature.
The University of Illinois uses some color to grab user interest. Since those visiting their site are likely students looking for information on a college they might like to attend, keeping the design current makes sense. They stick with school colors of orange and a deep blue. They use the orange for a pop of color and then fade into the blue over the image of a young student. The effect is dramatic and interesting.
Experiment With Different Features
Don’t be afraid to try new things for your landing pages. Create A/B split tests and see which additions perform best with your site visitors. Get rid of anything that doesn’t gain results and keep the things that do. Try new designs as they come along and always make sure the UX of your page is at the forefront of any design. With a little practice, your landing pages will hit top numbers for conversions and bring you new leads and customers.
