More and more of our clients are asking us to work on campaigns that call for multiple Landing Pages. That’s nothing new or exciting, but what’s interesting, is the fact that not everyone truly understands what a Landing Page is – or how it should work as part of a social media marketing campaign. For that reason, we recently ran a webinar about it, and given the questions I’ve received since, I figured a rundown of a few of my thoughts would be of value! Here goes…

What is a Landing page?

A landing page is a standalone web page enticing you to take action. (Usually on a specific product, service or offer.) Businesses use these pages to capture leads via a form or offer, or convert leads via a sale.

They are of value when your online activity means you are intending to drive a high volume of web traffic to a single webpage. For example, when you’re running paid social advertising. Your landing pages should be considered as separate from your website and are usually hosted on a completely separate domain. (Although that may not always be the case!) One of the benefits, in this case, is that high volume traffic from adverts can often create higher bounce rates; so a landing page on a separate domain means you can protect the bounce rate of your main website.

As an FYI, there are several options when it comes to user-friendly software that can help novices build landing pages. Check out Mailchimp for a basic option, but if you’re looking to build a campaign with multiple pages and will need payment gateways, for example, check out Groove Funnels or Click Funnels.

What makes a landing page a landing page?

Landing pages should be simple, straightforward and NOT distract from their purpose (or call to action). Here are a few elements every Landing Page should contain.

1. A single call to action – Anyone arriving on the page should be instructed to do ONE thing, and one thing only! This could be ‘Sign up for your free trial’ or ‘Download your guide now’. It is important to only ask people to do one thing – don’t muddy your message or create confusion, and definitely don’t create a second option! The call to action should be repeated throughout the landing page to encourage action to be taken.
2. Clear and concise copy – Bold headlines, limited text where you can, and video where you have it available. Too much text will cause people to lose interest, so keep things simple and structured. If you have a lot to say, use sub-headers to break up text.
3. Key information is above the fold – You shouldn’t have to scroll to see key information. Anything to slow the process down between someone landing your page and completing your call to action will create friction to the landing page. Friction means fewer leads and fewer sales. (And please, don’t forget to think mobile first when you’re looking at this – keep scrolls to a minimum on mobile!)
4. A simple form needs to be included – The shorter the form the better. I’d advise a maximum of five fields in your form, but really you probably only need three – First name, last name and email address. Longer forms create friction! Keep it simple so you encourage people to complete the call to action.
5. Simple but effective design – Use clear and crisp images that don’t take attention away from the call to action. Keep imagery relevant to what you’re promoting and the audience you’re serving, quite often with landing pages the fewer images the better!

That’s enough to create a frame of reference for you for now and cover off a few must-knows. If you want to investigate and see a few landing pages in action, simply scroll through your Facebook or Instagram feed and look for the adverts. Where there’s a call to action, click through and you’ll more than likely find yourself on a landing page. Compare what you’re seeing with the list of must-haves above, and start thinking whether you should be using landing pages and how they might be of value to you. Then let me know what you come up with!