Landing pages are specific pages on your website that someone lands on after they click or engage with an advertisement that are used to get a viewer to fill out a form, sign up for something, or to call someone. These actions are what we call conversions, and they are what every digital marketing campaign strives for. One of the best ways to increase conversions is to have a dedicated landing page that a viewer will be taken to when they click on one of your ads.
Why is having a dedicated landing page important? Can’t I just use my homepage?
This is a very common question. While it is possible to use your home page as the landing page for your ad, you miss out on the benefits of having a specific message and CTA (Call to Action) that a landing page can provide. For example, if a viewer clicks on an ad that is advertising an easy way to sell their car and instead they are brought to the home page of a car dealership that happens to buy used cars, they will be deterred. This disconnect between what is advertised and what is presented to them immediately distracts the viewer and will most likely lead to them quickly leaving that page or “bouncing”. When viewers spend only a few seconds to decide if they want to stay on a page, having engaging and appropriate landing pages can significantly decrease your bounce rate.
How can I make engaging and appropriate landing pages?
Great question! There are a few key things to remember when designing a landing page.
First, Be Campaign Specific – In order to have the highest engagement with each campaign, you want to make sure that the landing page for each ad is specific to that ad. This will eliminate confusion and enforce your message. Think of your landing page as a continuation of your ad. Expand upon the information within the ad and provide a strong CTA that resonates with your content. Take this ad for example by AutoLenders:
In this case, the viewer is searching for “sell my car” when this ad pops up. You can see that the ad promises a way to find out what your car is worth. When the ad is clicked, it does not take them to the homepage of AutoLenders, but instead, to an easy car valuation calculator (see below). This is an example of an effective and engaging landing page.
Second, Know Your Audience – Having the wrong design for your landing pages can lead to limited or even no conversions. By understanding the types of people that will be clicking on your ads and what their digital preferences are, you can tailor your landing pages to better engage them. Take the landing page from Groove Labs for example. Their audience is generally young adults who wish to grow their own produce. Because of this, they have done away with formal wording in lieu of whimsical text that they know their younger audience will enjoy. Aside from overall design, there are a few things that are usually safe bets when it comes to content. With every landing page, it is important to include your company name, logo, banner or header image, a very simplified or “hero” shot of what you’re offering, as well as a powerful CTA. Additionally, social media icons and sharing buttons are becoming more and more popular and can be included as well.
Third, Create Clear Copy – The copy, or words and readable content, on your landing page is what convinces the viewer to covert. When creating copy, make sure that the message is clear, concise, and easy to read with few big words. Often, a viewer will scan over this section quickly so be sure to include bullet points wherever possible and a good headline. Don’t forget to include similar wording, if not the same, as what was used in your ad. This will create a consistent experience for your viewer and let them know that they are in the right place.
Creating a landing page for your ad campaign can be the single best thing you can do to increase conversions, and you want conversions. Feel free to use my handy formula when talking with your staff about creating landing pages: Conversions = Cash. Creating a landing page is like making the perfect first impression. It will allow you to highlight the information you want and that you know your potential customers are looking for. If you wish to continue reading, CLICK HERE to read an excellent article written by our very own Leslye Schumacher about creating an effective CTA (Call to Action).
