In the blog, Content Creation is the Focus of Your Website Redesign, we talked about the importance of providing “premium content” that visitors would gladly go through an extra step to access. The extra step takes place on the landing page. Landing pages are what you use to convert your website visitors and capture information so that you can engage with them in the future. Landing pages are vitally important to your website redesign but the landing pages will not show up in your menu and most visitors to your site will not even see them. The landing pages are the pages where you will engage with your visitor, where they will give you information such as their name and e-mail address in exchange for valuable information from you. For more details on setting up your landing page visit my recent blog Stick the Landing Page.

A landing page is the place where you turn a website visitor into a lead. Your first offers are not where you turn the visitor into a customer, but it is where you connect with those who may be interested in your business. When you have their e-mail address you can update them about new material on your website that may interest them or tell them about new material that they can download for free. After nurturing the lead you can offer them more information or invite them to become a customer. For example a gym may send an email to someone who has already downloaded two e-books and invite them in for a free exercise and fitness evaluation at the gym. A tax preparation business may offer everyone on their e-mail list a discount for preparing their first tax return.

Landing pages are obviously special pages where the visitors become leads. This is not your home page but a dedicated page with one purpose: offer your visitors premium content in exchange for contact information.

Special Aspects of Landing Pages:

• It is a special page where visitors go to get premium content such as an e-book or white paper.
• Leave out any website navigation; you do not want to distract the visitor from filling out the form.
• Keep the description of the offer clear, simple, and concise. For example one company found that they had a 32% conversion rate with a longer description and form and increased their conversion rate to 53% when they made the description and form shorter.
• Keep the form above the fold.
• To maximize efficiency, consider these questions:
  • How fast can you launch a new landing page?
  • Can one person prepare the page in 15 minutes?
  • What is the cost of experimentation?
  • The form should capture just enough information to engage the visitor, at least their name and e-mail address.
  • After filling out the form the visitor should be able to download the content and receive a thank you.
  • Promote landing pages with Call-to-Action buttons on your website and through social media.

Landing pages are where the magic happens; they are the gateway to your conversion offers that create engaged and interested leads. Make sure you can grab their attention with an interesting offer, but also coherently explain what you are offering through the landing page! For more information about redesigning your website download our free e-book: Website Redesign for Small Businesses and Sole Proprietors: 7 easy steps to make your website more effective.

Photo Credit: NASA