Best Practices: Landing pages

The landing page is the final step in converting a visitor to a lead.  It starts with a valuable offer and must have a form to collect visitor information.  These 10 tips will help you optimize your landing pages to generate qualified leads.

1)  Explain Value of the Offer

The landing page must clearly explain the benefits of receiving the offer in exchange for their contact information.  The content must answer the question: “what’s in it for me?”

2)  Consistent Headers and Call to Action

Headers should clearly explain the offer and be consistent with the call to action visitors clicked on to reach the landing page.  The headers should start with an action verb like “learn” or “download”.

3)  5 Second Rule

In less than 5 seconds, visitors to your landing page should be able to understand what the offer is, the value of the offer and what they need to do to get the offer.  Make it easy for the visitor to scan the information by using 3 to 5 bullet points.

4)  Create a Short Form

Short forms are always better than long forms to make it easier for a website visitor to become a lead. Only ask for the information that will help you or your sales team follow up with or qualify the lead.

5)  Place Content Above the Fold

The content and form on the landing page should always be visible above the page’s fold.  Testing has proven you will see a higher conversion rate if visitors do not have to scroll down to see the form.