Landing pages are one of the most crucial elements of your marketing funnel. Whether you’re offering a product, service, or lead magnet, the landing page is where conversions happen. A well-designed landing page can be the difference between a visitor bouncing off your site and becoming a loyal customer. In this edition, we’ll cover best practices for designing high-converting landing pages that drive results.
1. Keep It Focused
A landing page should have a single, clear objective—whether it’s collecting an email address, booking a demo, or making a sale. Avoid clutter and distractions by keeping the messaging and design focused on that one goal. Too much information or multiple calls-to-action (CTAs) can confuse visitors and lower your conversion rate.
⚓The industry average conversion rate for landing pages is 2.35%, but top-performing landing pages achieve conversion rates of 10-15%.
💡Limit your landing page to one primary CTA and remove any unnecessary navigation links or buttons that could lead users away from the conversion path.
2. Craft a Compelling Headline
Your headline is the first thing visitors see, and it needs to grab their attention immediately. Make sure your headline clearly communicates the value proposition of your offer in a concise and engaging way.
Examples of Great Headlines:
- Dropbox: “Your files, anywhere.” (Concise, clear benefit)
- Airbnb: “Earn money as an Airbnb host.” (Direct, immediate value)
- Grammarly: “Great Writing, Simplified.” (Clear benefit, solves a problem)
💡A/B test your headlines. Studies show that 80% of visitors never read beyond the headline, so it’s essential to get this part right.
3. Use Clear and Compelling CTAs
Your call-to-action should stand out both visually and contextually. It needs to be action-oriented and communicate exactly what the visitor will get if they click.
Examples of Effective CTAs:
- Shopify: “Start Free Trial” (Simple, action-oriented)
- Trello: “Sign Up – It’s Free!” (Removes friction by highlighting that it’s free)
- Netflix: “Join Free for a Month” (Creates a sense of value and ease)
⚓The average click-through rate (CTR) for a CTA button is about 4.23% across industries.
💡Use contrasting colors for your CTA buttons to make them visually pop. Ensure the CTA is clear, action-driven, and creates urgency or value.
4. Highlight Benefits Over Features
People care more about what your product or service will do for them than how it works. Focus your copy on the benefits your offer provides rather than just listing features.
Example:
- Benefit-Oriented: “Get a restful night’s sleep with our 100% organic memory foam mattress.”
- Feature-Oriented: “Our mattress is made with 100% organic materials and high-density memory foam.”
💡Use bullet points to quickly communicate the key benefits. Make it easy for visitors to understand what they gain at a glance.
5. Leverage Social Proof
Social proof, such as testimonials, case studies, and customer reviews, adds credibility to your offer and builds trust with potential customers. When people see that others have benefited from your product or service, they are more likely to convert.
Examples of Brands Using Social Proof:
- Slack: Uses customer logos and testimonials on their homepage.
- Evernote: Shares stories of how businesses use their product to stay organized.
💡Place customer testimonials, reviews, or trust badges near your CTA to reinforce credibility at the moment of decision.
6. Optimize for Mobile
More than half of all web traffic now comes from mobile devices. If your landing page isn’t optimized for mobile, you could lose a significant portion of potential customers. Mobile optimization involves fast load times, responsive design, and simplified navigation.
⚓Mobile landing pages that load within 5 seconds or less can achieve up to 70% higher conversion rates than slower pages.
💡Ensure your page is mobile-friendly by using a responsive design that adapts to different screen sizes. Tools like Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test can help you check your page’s performance on mobile devices.
7. Use Visual Hierarchy
A well-designed landing page should guide visitors toward the CTA naturally. This can be achieved through a strong visual hierarchy using elements like headlines, subheadings, images, and white space.
Brands with Excellent Landing Pages:
- Unbounce: Known for their clean, simple designs with focused CTAs.
- Wistia: Uses playful, on-brand visuals to draw attention to their offer while keeping the page clean and focused.
💡Make sure your key message, benefits, and CTA are “above the fold,” meaning they are visible without scrolling down. This helps capture attention immediately.
8. A/B Test Regularly
Constantly test different elements of your landing page, such as headlines, CTAs, images, and copy. Even small changes can lead to significant improvements in conversion rates. For example, changing a button color or headline could increase conversions by 5-10%.
⚓Brands that regularly test and optimize landing pages can achieve 30-40% higher conversion rates than those that don’t.
💡Use A/B testing tools like Google Optimize or Optimizely to test different landing page elements, but test one element at a time for accurate results.
Creating a high-converting landing page is both an art and a science. By focusing on clarity, simplicity, and the customer’s needs, you can design landing pages that drive conversions and help you achieve your marketing goals. Start with these best practices, and don’t forget to continuously test and optimize for even better results.
Want to dive deeper into strategies like these? Join our upcoming Marketing Workshop, where we’ll cover the foundations to help you create high converting landing pages. Stay tuned for more details—spots will be limited!
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