How To Create a Landing Page That Converts

These days it’s quite easy to create your own content, your own website and landing pages.
Whether you are creating everything from scratch or using an agency to help you with the design, make sure you nail all the basics to make the most out of your landing page. A beautiful design is not going to get visitors to convert or perform an action, your content, copy and call for action along with the experience and overall sense of clarity will do that.
This article from https://unbounce.com/ shows you exactly what you are doing wrong and offers great advice on how to do it right. Since it’s quite a long read I decided to sum it up into 10 great tips for creating landing pages that convert.

1. Be clear, not clever: The headline of the landing page is one of your most valuable assets. Use it wisely. Don’t waste time on word-play or sophisticated clues, you have just a few seconds to get visitors attention so make sure they can understand who you are and what you do (or what is the benefit you are offering) as they read the headline.
2. The sub headline is part of the headline: having an additional space to convey your message doesn’t mean you have to come up with new ideas. It only means you have a chance to shed more light on the headline copy you used and make sure it’s 100% clear what you are offering.
3. One headline to rule them all: well, not really. You can’t assume people read your entire page; most people skimp, so you have think about every headline as a stand-alone and make it crystal clear. For example, don’t use “get it now for %20 off” say “Get your free copy of the beginner’s guide to landing pages now for %20 off”.
4. The money shot: visuals speak louder than words most of the time, so make sure you choose a visual that makes your content stick out, not vanish. The image or background you use can’t steal the show; they should enhance the message in the headline. Try to find original images and avoid cheesy stockphoto visuals everyone else is using. Oh, and please don’t choose images that have nothing to do with you and your service. It’s confusing.
5. Avoid distractions: every landing page has one goal and one goal alone – to get people to click a button. Adding additional navigation options, buttons and even social media links creates a distraction and lowers the chances for conversion. The biggest no-no: do not take people away from the page! You paid money to get them here, don’t make them leave.
6. One call for action (CTA): as mentioned, every landing page has one goal, and it needs to be very clear what it is. Whether it’s “get it now” or “register to get your free copy” the important part is consistency. Use the exact same call for action throughout the landing page to avoid confusion and to provide clarity. If you need some CTA ideas, try this list.
7. Video over text: in the era of too much information (more than we can ever imagine) you need to give visitors an easy way to consume your content. You may have great benefits to offer and an amazing user review section, but they won’t even get that far if you didn’t convince them it’s worth their while to continue reading. If you have a video, it may be beneficial to place it in a prominent part of the page (without risking the CTA) just because visitors find it easier to consume.
8. Lack of urgency: when something has an expiration date it suddenly becomes more attractive. A sense of urgency incentivizes people to take action, just to avoid regretting not doing it later on. You don’t to make it sound like the world will end if they don’t click now, but words like ‘today’ and ‘for a limited time’ can increase conversion. You can also use urgency to describe your service and endure people they will get a quick response or an instant offer, so the hassle of waiting for your next move is minimized.
9. Readability: I can’t emphasize this enough. Make sure visitors can read what you write. It’s not about how beautiful your page would look; it’s about how easy it is to understand what you are saying. Curly annoying fonts are not the way to go. Use plain elegant fonts and use a reasonable size. If they can read it – they will click. It’s that simple.
10. Testimonials should really be testimonials: This is not the place to fake it till you make it. Visitors will see through bullshit testimonials, so don’t use them. If you don’t have real reviews to give you the social proof you need, find another driver to increase trust (like sharing blog posts written about you, competition you won or partners you work with).

These are the basics to creating a landing page that converts. It may seem trivial, but so many marketers get it wrong. Pay attention to the details and plan before you execute!

If you want to dig deeper, read the full blog post.