Landing Pages at its simplest are pages that someone can ‘land’ on. But this in itself is very vague. To understand it in the context of small businesses and the marketing campaigns thereof, landing pages are standalone pages on a website with a clear objective. The intention behind landing pages is to limit the user’s options, navigation and thus distraction and steer them towards the predefined purpose. This purpose is generally to the tune of furthering the marketing or sales goals of small businesses and thus is the target goal of online ads and marketing link.
Since landing pages are where the potential customers of a business are directed, it is essential for landing pages to be optimized for conversions. What this means is that the leads or the potential customers sent to this page gives a better return in the form of more signups and consequently increased sales for the business. Since landing pages are so significant in online businesses, it is important to maximise its prospective by building the most efficient landing pages. The ways to do so are given below.
Tips For Designing Perfect Landing Pages
Layout
The most important thing to keep in mind with regard to the layout of a landing page is its simplicity. A clearly demarcated header area with boldly put text, a straightforward middle part or the body with its trust elements, an unmistakeable link to the goal that is the call-to-action along with a relevant and visually appealing image works wonders for a great landing.
Header
The header is the first element of the landing page that a potential customer puts his eyes on. It is therefore essential for the header to be designed so that it captures the interest of the visitor within the first 3 seconds of hitting the page. All other aspects of this page would be irrelevant if the header fails to do it job.
To make the header efficient, it must absolutely complement the marketing campaign and what the visitor was originally promised. If there is a mismatch between what the visitors were promised and what they find on landing page, there is a significant chance of them bouncing off the page and look for something better that suits their needs.
An important element of headers would be the product description, that should be in the form of a single message typed in bold and in eye catching colours, coupled with a catchy headline, preferably in title case.
Headers should also be creative, and use such typeface that matches the original advertisement as well as the brand image.
Body
Where the body of the landing age is concerned, it is essential to keep in mind that the majority of the visitors are just skimming through the content and not reading it per se. The text included, therefore, should reflect that and emphasise why visitors should choose to make transactions with the website. It must also be precise and to the point in nature. Since most of the customers arriving on the landing pages have never heard of the business, this text should also include trust elements or social proofs as it is so called in the form of customer reviews, testimonials, privacy policies, business certifications, awards and so forth. It adds a level of comfort to the transaction and eventually contributes to a higher conversion rate.
As for the design itself, the body element should ideally complement the header, but provide additional details to motivate people in taking the desired conversion action. Using lists, coloured sections and graphics to highlight features and value propositions also makes the page more attractive and easily attention catching from the viewpoint of customers.
Visual Element
One of the most easily discounted yet incredibly significant elements in the design of the landing page is its visual appeal. The interaction of colours, the contrast of the page and the font types and sizes used all affect the final product. Especially in the case of images, it is essential to use real photos in lieu of stock photos. Further, special offers, discounts and other concessions must be clearly highlighted to attract the customers.
Call-to-Action
The landing page conversion, usually a call-to-action or a form, is the pathway which will eventually lead the user/viewer to make transactions on your website. Hence, it is just as important as the design or the look of the page. In the case of a form, the fields should be very clear about the required information. It is important to ensure that there if not too many fields either and that only the needed information is asked for. As for CTAs, the placement of the call-to-action, be it a button or a link, makes all the difference. Using highlighted links, bold colours, and attractive image buttons make it more appealing and can lead to a higher conversion rate.
All said and done, the essence of the landing page is to drive the conversion and the overall design and all its components must reflect this primary purpose.
