A landing page is another useful tool in the digital marketing toolbox. They’re not easy to pin down at first, so they’re best highlighted through examples. Landing pages could be specific pages aimed at driving leads through sign-ups for an ebook or a contest. They could also be information zones that point to a range of related products or services – in effect, acting as the top of a sales funnel. If you’re creating a wider marketing campaign they’re also useful hubs to point customers at. In short, when done well, landing pages can be great at capturing data, supporting marketing activities, selling products or improving SEO. But what makes a good one?
Here are our top things to consider when creating a landing page.
Is it obvious what a user should do on the page?
One of the most important things to consider about a landing page is making it clear to people what’s expected of them. If you want their email, then make sure there’s an easy access form with a clear call to action – and make it above the fold, rather than tucked down the bottom of the page.
Put a clear headline at the top
Make it obvious what the page is about from the start – or even before then, in a Google search result – by using a clear headline. Try not to use obscure language. Help people to find what they’re looking for.
Make your value proposition is clear
What is it that your brand offers that’s different? Why should people continue to read the web page and not skip back to Google’s search listing? Be honest, authentic, up front and helpful.
Enough detail to support decision-making
Have you included the right information to help people complete their action? And have you structured that information in a helpful way? Guide people with layers of information – highlights at the top, and more detail down below. Use words, pictures or videos – but make sure they’re relevant and contribute to the purpose of the page.
Keywords included in page titles, H1, H2 tags
To adhere to SEO best practice, it’s good to ensure your page titles and other headlines use the appropriate keywords (though make sure to keep it relevant). That isn’t just good for your search results, but also helps people find what they’re looking for. (Spot the running theme here? It’s being helpful to people!)
Check spelling, grammar and punctuation
This goes without saying, but it’s a key part of your website developing trust and authority.
Clean design that’s easy to follow
There’s little point in having great content if it’s hidden away by poor design – too small a font, not responsive, cluttered and hard to read…
Strong call to action
Want people to do something? Make it easy with good signposting. Also make sure your calls to action are located above the fold, so that people don’t have to scroll too far to complete an action. Make those buttons easy to see too.
Relevant images are optimised
Pages that have an image tend to rank higher on Google, but make sure that they’re appropriate – and not generic stock imagery. Also be certain that the images contribute to the landing page experience, and that you’re not just using them for the sake of it. Make sure they’ve got the correct alt tags though, and that they’re optimised to be less than 1MB. Too many large images on a page will affect page-load times, create a poor user experience – and undo all that good SEO work you’ve been doing. Don’t forget that embedding videos can also add value to a landing page, so certainly consider them if they’re appropriate.
Check your links
Naturally, a landing page is an opportunity so connect with other information and areas of your site, but test every link before you go live so that the customer experience isn’t affected.
Trust certificates, testimonials or reviews included
Finally, anything that adds reassurance can really help drive goals on a landing page. It’s worth adding them to support the surrounding content.