Landing Page Optimization is a skill that takes time & patience. A great landing page does two things simultaneously: it captivates users while increasing the likelihood of converting them. When it comes to conversions, the key is quality, not quantity. Putting together a landing page is almost a scientific process; it requires a keen eye for detail and the ability to hypothesize, test, and evaluate on a rolling basis.
In this article, we’ll cover a few best practices for optimizing landing pages to guarantee a higher conversion rate. We’ve broken down these best practices into three sub-groups: content, design, and testing. Let’s get started!
Landing Page Definition
It helps to start first with a definition of what a landing page is. In its simplest form, a landing page is a specific page on the website that traffic will “land” on when clicking through to your website. An optimized landing page can be designed and setup specifically to receive traffic from various traffic sources like search engines, social media platforms and email campaigns.
Let’s say you had a specific product, you were selling with an e-commerce email campaign. You wouldn’t invest time and energy in sending them to the top level of your domain, you would deep link to a product specific page that is optimized for sales.
A quick example of a landing page would be with one of our clients, The Upside. The below image shows how the landing page is setup and the following two URLs will provide an example of the specific page.
The top level of their domain would be ShopTheUpside.com, while their landing page for handbags would be shoptheupside.com/product-category/handbags/. The more specific the landing page is to what a user is searching for, the greater the likelihood of a conversion.
Content
Provide topic-related content. If you can’t sum up the purpose of a landing page in one sentence, it’s probably too complicated. The content should flow seamlessly from start to finish, and provide users with the exact product or service information they came looking for. Pick one topic and stick with it throughout the page. If the user finds the information they need, it increases the likelihood of a sale, and boosts customer satisfaction.
Create consumable content. The best landing pages convert because they demonstrate an understanding of the audience. When crafting a landing page, it’s important to consider factors like age, occupation, nationality, and native language of the target audience. Landing pages filled with salesy jargon, buzzwords, or overly technical language will not convert. Use short, concise headlines to draw people in, and ensure to include a clear and simple CTA near the top of the page.
Sell benefits, not features. Users are more likely to stick around if content shows them how they can benefit from a product or service, and not what that service does, and the technical details behind it. Brilliant landing page content finds a way to sell features as benefits.
Design
Stay consistent. Whether a landing page exists independent of a website or not, it must align with the company’s message and branding. Users are more likely to convert when the landing page is familiar, and reflects an ethos that matches a company’s website and social media presence.
Use white space to increase readability. We live in a world where content prefers to be consumed at the granular level – 140 characters or less – and where large chunks of text are considered less desirable, even downright scary. White space can be used to allow for more “breathing room” on a landing page, and to draw the reader’s eye to the important elements on a page.
Use visual prompts. Users consume visual content like images, illustrations, and infographics much faster than text. Consider using beautiful imagery to help draw the user in. It can also be used to convey additional information to visitors about a product or service. A landing page created with the purpose of selling high quality jewelry, for example, might display a photograph of a customer wearing a diamond necklace, or a video of the craftsman handmaking a pair of earrings behind the scenes.
Testing
The end goal for landing page optimization is increased conversions. Collect and analyze data as a starting point for optimization. Before changing anything on a landing page, it’s important to collect and analyze information like bounce rate, page views, sessions by source, conversion rate, average time on page, page load time, and pages per session. This will give a better idea of the page’s strengths and weaknesses, and how it resonates overall with users.
Perform A/B testing to maximize results. Once you’ve analyzed these data, you can use the information to alter certain parts of the landing page for A/B testing. Also known as “split testing,” A/B testing is the process of creating two versions of an email, landing page, or other marketing asset, and analyzing the data of each to determine which version is most successful. The differentiators between emails are often subtle, and might include switching up the headline, using a different CTA, or changing the fields on the submission form.
Use external tools to set up an ongoing testing environment. Landing page optimization is not a one-time thing. Healthy landing page optimization best practices include maintaining consistent testing to be constantly improving performance. There are a host of readily available tools we recommend using for ongoing landing page testing. At PaintedRobot, we have 10+ years of experience using tools like Google Tag Manager, Google Analytics, and others to optimize landing pages.
Landing pages are one of the main resources used to funnel leads into a CRM. Follow our best practices to optimize your landing pages for higher conversion rates, and happier customers. For further insight into landing pages, check out our article, 4 great landing page examples.
