What is a landing page?
Every consumer occasionally receives links to a landing page by mail. This is a page with a specific offer. For example, the promotional email contains a promotional rate, or a one-time offer. Clicking on the link takes you to a landing page with the named offer.
So the whole idea of a landing page is to offer a specific product. This can be based on the product or service, but also, for example, on a visitor’s data.
For example, what many companies do is create landing pages for specific regions. Take, for example, a company that sells electric charging stations. This company wants to reach potential customers in as many locations as possible. What a smart marketer does next is create different landing pages for charging stations in different cities. One page is titled “Charging stations in Amersfoort,” the other “Charging stations in Harderwijk.”
Sebastian Smeenk
Business developer
The moment people search on Google for charging stations in either location, the appropriate landing pages come up. So the landing page specifically targets a particular group of customers.
If a website possesses many landing pages, then this in turn is good for its ranking in Google’s algorithm. This is because, as a company, you show that you provide a lot of information for different audiences.
Difference between homepage and landing page
You can think of the home page of your website as the general entrance. It is the general page where visitors land if they link from your website. A landing page is something else.
Landing pages are created specifically for a particular purpose. A landing page can be temporary. Compare it to a promotional brochure for your digital store. It can be a temporary design that you send to a specific target audience. Links to landing pages are also often placed in advertisements.
Yet many companies let the benefits of landing pages slip. According to research 44% of B2B companies only use home pages. This is a missed opportunity, as the conversion rate for home pages is many times lower. In short, if you as a company do not have landing pages then you are missing out on opportunities for high conversion.
Why you need a landing page
Landing pages are literally the easiest way to generate leads. Promoting links to your homepage are not effective. With this, you are throwing away leads. In fact, your homepage is too general; it does not always provide a trigger to buy a product. Or that particular trigger is too general and not relevant to everyone. By creating multiple landing pages, you can offer something targeted to your audience.
For example, with three different landing pages, you can appeal to three different audiences. Each target group gets access to its own landing page with an offer relevant to that group. As a result, leads are more likely to convert. By creating specific offers, you respond better to customer needs.
In addition, landing pages can collect demographic information about your leads. With landing pages for specific locations, you can see exactly where different leads are coming from. This is important for your data analysis. To optimize your UX design, you want to know exactly where conversion rates are high – and where improvement is needed.
With landing pages in ads, mailings and through backlinks at third-party sites, you have multiple channels for leads to access your site. This allows you to measure exactly which landing pages convert well and which do not. That way you’ll know exactly which places will give you value for money.
Landing page and the UX process
Whatever industry your company operates in, one thing is certain: the market is constantly changing. So this is where your brand needs to respond well. So your offer, when necessary, must also know how to adapt. The UX process must therefore focus on certain products. The customer journey also plays an important role in this. You want to create a smooth flow from your landing page to checkout.
A landing page is the first place where specific leads land. So the content on this page should be well organized and readable. Research shows that 79% of visitors scan the information on the page first, and only 16% read the information first.
Important checklist
There are some important questions a marketer asks himself or herself when creating a landing page. The answers to these questions provide a clear picture of the target audience.
- Where do visitors come from? Visitors can come from a mailing, as well as from an advertisement or simply through Google.
- Who is going to visit the landing page? As with the rest of creating a customer journey map, the target audience should be as specific as possible.
- What is the action you expect from visitors? Is it about ordering a product, or signing up for a newsletter? This goal should be clear so you know exactly when a lead has successfully converted.
Essential elements of a landing page
With a landing page, you have a unique opportunity to bring in leads. So you have a few seconds of their attention to make a good impression. So everything about the landing page should be right. You should pay attention to the following points:
Offer
What exactly are you offering? How is your offer different from the competition, and why should customers accept this offer? Maybe give away discounts. Then be smart and make the offer enticing. If necessary, put in that the discount expires in a week and is a one-time offer.
Advantages of the offer
To describe the benefits, you don’t have to work out a long article. Simply sum up why this offer is unique. They can be product specifications, but you can also make the offer “special” for visitors. This offer may be unique to residents of a particular region, for example. Be psychologically smart in responding to the visitor’s emotion.
CTA
The call-to-action (CTA) is a subtle call to place the order. You can do this by succinctly listing the benefits. Then a special button calls the customer to initiate the order. This button should contain the correct words. Instead of “start now,” you can put down “Start your free trial.” The words “begin” and “free” evoke a positive emotion in the user. This is smart UX copywriting.
What is important to remember: one good CTA is enough. Don’t bombard the visitor with multiple CTAs. From a
survey
shows that a landing page with only one CTA has higher conversion rates.
Language
As with good copywriting, good language and vocabulary are always important to observe. Think carefully about who you are writing for. Are these millennials, or retirees? Your target audience matters. So be sure to use good and appropriate language. Short, powerful and relevant. That’s how you bring in leads.
How many landing pages do I need?
What number of landing pages you need depends on your business and what you want to achieve. Producing multiple landing pages never hurts. Remember well that landing pages are not just ads. Consider the example of charging stations. Imagine what someone will search for via Google. Does the person live in Amsterdam? Then chances are he or she will search on “charging station locations Amsterdam.”
Perhaps your company is based in Amersfoort. Still, you want to know how to reach customers in Amsterdam. By creating a specific landing page for residents in Amsterdam, you still manage to reach leads. Want to rank higher in Google? Then immediately have pages created for Utrecht, Hilversum, Rotterdam and the rest of the Netherlands.
This has several advantages. You both know how to reach customers in those cities and rank higher in Google. A good marketer knows that creating landing pages is not copy-paste work. Each landing page should have some unique value. Google recognizes when pages contain the same content. In that case, it does not have an immediate positive effect on ranking in Google. It is fine to tell the same story, but in different words. Unique content for maximum reach. That’s what you want to go for!
How much time should I put into creating landing pages?
Nothing has to, but it is wise to include landing page development in your marketing plan. At least good UX designers and specialized agencies do. Landing pages contribute to your findability in Google and lead to higher conversions.
If you choose to have your website or web shop developed by Dusver, then creating landing pages is always an option. During the development of your website, but also afterwards.
After reading this article, do you have any questions about landing pages in general, or about our services? Please contact us without obligation. Whatever your question, we are happy to serve you.
