Creating A Landing Page That Converts: The Basics

With the rise of website building platforms such as Squarespace and Weebly, getting your site up and online has never been easier. However, it was soon apparent to every digital marker that there were thousands of small to medium size business owner who started a site…left it…and wondered why customers were not buying their products or signing up for their offerings.

Let’s take a look at what makes a great landing page and unlock the secrets behind converting site visitors to customers.

1. Define A Single Purpose For Each Landing Page

A Clear CTA example on BrandFueled.com

Customer attention spans are shorter than ever and if your message or selling point is not immediately clear, you will lose a potential conversion. Many business owners try to fit as much information as possible onto every landing page and the customer becomes overwhelmed.

It is the same as trying to buy a simple product such as pasta and having 100 options staring back at you…too many options take time to sort through and you want your customers to be converting, not searching for the purpose of the page.

How to Fix 

Every landing page should serve a single purpose and have clear options for how to reach your customers desired goal. Laying out your sitemap and writing down each landing pages’ single purpose can be enlightening. If you find a few pages have 3-4 offerings, consider creating a new page for just that service and linking to it instead.

2. Become Your Own Customer

Now that your landing page is highly targeted, you must consider the user experience.

• Does the landing page appeal to your target audience?
• Are the calls-to-action clear and accessible?
• Would you personally perform your call-to-action?

I have seen many a site that looks good to the business owner, but does not connect with the target customer.

How To Fix

With a clearly defined target customer, head to each of your landing pages and ask yourself if the message is clear, the calls to action are engaging, and the visuals make sense. Have friends that match your audience look over the landing pages and provide feedback with their experiences. More often than not, they will reveal an issue or idea that you had not considered.

3. Clear Calls To Action

Many of the consultations we perform often discover websites without an easy way to convert a customer.  CTA’s can come in many forms and creating an aesthetically pleasing design and proper text can be tricky, but the payoff is huge.

How To Fix

Most CTAS fall into the categories of: Buy Now, Sign Up, Subscribe, and Learn More. There are only so many ways to attract a click, but EVERY landing page should have a clear action for your customer to take that line up with your marketing and sales goals.

Let’s use a company that sells dog treats as an example. If there is a landing page dedicated to how healthy the treats are for your dog, but does not have a ” Buy Now” button…you are missing out! If your customer has just been convinced to buy your product and there is no quick way to do so…it is a lost opportunity.

4. Simplicity is Key

Have you visited a news site lately and become overwhelmed? Ever wonder why Apple to this day has a clean “no frills” website design? With the amount of information and websites currently available, customers have more options than ever. If your web pages are cluttered and resemble an early 90’s website, customers will bounce.

How To Fix

Whitespace is your friend and even if you are no graphic designer, simple web pages can be easy to create. If you are on a template based website (Weebly, Squarespace, Shopify, etc), use a clean minimalist design that has ample whitespace and clean areas for text and visuals.

If a customer looks at your landing page and has to guess what it is about or juggle the amount of information presented, you need to simplify immediately. Yes, many companies simply have a ton of options to present, however a cluttered site will simply not convert.

5. Test Your Conversion Channel For Each Landing Page

If you are selling a product, go through the process of using your landing page, clicking your CTA, purchasing the product, and taking notes along the way. The best looking landing page does not matter if your customer hits a broken link!

How To Fix

Performing a website audit is a great way to flush out bad links, check every sales funnel, and gain a better understanding of the customer experience. There will always be issues that arise and ways to make the sales process even easier for your customers.

Final Words On Creating A Landing Page That Converts

There are thousands of ways to optimize a landing pages for conversion, but the core elements above will help steer you in the right direction. We have created hundreds of landing pages for clients and would love to discuss how we can help your small business.

Please click here, or the menu above, to start a free consultation! Thank you for reading and please leave any questions or comments you may have.