Did you know that up to 98% of your website visitors will never come back to your site once they visited for the first time? Wow! So if you don’t have either really great addictive content, or a way to connect with your visitors, you will never see them again.
Landing pages are one way to make a connection with first time visitors to your website so you can start to build a relationship with them. Granted, not all leads are created equal or are the right fit for your business, so using the best landing pages can help you filter the leads that have possibility and those who are just passing through.
First off, the best landing pages will only be as successful as the offer you are providing. Whether it is an eBook, checklist, instructional guide, how-to video, webinar, free sample, demo or consultation- make sure your offer is providing something that your buyer persona wants and is looking for.
When you have that killer offer, the one visitors will be crashing your site to get, then you MUST have a landing page to send all of the inbound traffic directly to. Don’t mess around sending them to your website homepage or your contact us page. Go directly to a landing page, do not pass GO, do not collect $100.
To make sure your landing pages are in tip-top shape before going live, here are a few features to check and make sure you have included on your landing page. Ask yourself these questions and check them off if your answer is Yes. If your answer is No, then add it to your to-do list before going live with the page.
A landing page is like a pair of horse blinders (known as blinkers) to keep your visitor headed in the direction you would like them to. It helps focus their attention on the solution or help you have to offer.
Example:
Button or Image Text: “Click here to download your 50% off coupon”
Landing page Heading: “Get 35% off on Saturday”
Website visitor: “I’m confused; that’s not what I was looking for.”
Actually do a test. Ask someone (who has no idea what you are doing) to look at the page for 5 seconds and then tell you what they think it is about, what they think the subject or focus is, if they noticed anything they would want to do, etc. This is actually a great way to filter the bad, so-so, and best landing pages.
Your goal is to direct your visitor to the action you --Look there’s a butterfly “click”-- and they’re off and running. We all get distracted and some of us get “click happy” and tend to click on links other than what you would like. Don’t give your visitors options on a landing page. Give them one option- the one you would like them to take. If they find they have landed in the wrong place or just aren’t interested, there is always the back button. If you are still not convinced check out this test HubSpot ran on whether or not to add navigation.
Edit to remove any unnecessary content. Be succinct and to the point.
Knowing what you are getting is important for your leads. Show an image of the eBook cover, a picture of the free sample, or even a thumbnail of the screen they will see. The best landing pages have the “offer” displayed.
When you ask for your lead’s historical timeline, they have better things to do and are not going to spend the time to fill out a long form. Just ask for the essential information you need to deliver what you are offering. If it is a subscription to the blog, their email address should suffice, but if they are looking for a free quote, you may have to ask for some details. Make sure your offering is equal to the information you are asking for.
Although you may not always have the time or resources to add a video, adding video can increase your success by 80%. Wow! That’s huge!
Look at the submission rates. You may get lots of views and clicks, but the submission rate is the true measurement of success for the best landing pages. An average submission rate is around 10%.
Now go create your landing pages and start watching those leads roll in. If you have questions about the tools you might need or about how landing pages fit into your inbound marketing strategy or even in your larger small business marketing plan, contact us today!