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10 Landing Page Optimization Best Practices

Are the bounce rates for your landing page through the roof? A good landing page will bring visitors deeper into a website, but only if it is able to communicate that your site has value that they need to see. In order to make this happen, you’re going to need to optimize your landing page so that you can convert more people into prospects. That’s why having these landing page optimization best practices on hand is so essential. It can help you to quickly fix a problem.

It all begins when you can send visitors to a relevant page. Your home page is not a good landing page. A relevant page will give the visitor one precise message that has one action that they need to take. Make it simple, give visitors a goal that is easily obtainable, and you’ll begin the journey towards optimizing your landing page.

1. Consistency Is Best

One of the biggest problems of the landing pages that it is inconsistent with the rest of the website. A visitor should have the same expectations of success with your landing page as they do with your home page and other content. The goal is to put someone into your sales funnel so that they’ll become a customer. It becomes harder to get a person through that funnel when you keep swirling around in a world of confusion. Keep one message precise and then keep emphasizing that message.

2. Get To the Point

The best case scenario for your landing page is that you’ll get 30 seconds of reading from the average visitor. How many words can a visitor read in 30 seconds? The average person will get through one or maybe two paragraphs at best. That’s about 100-150 words. If they like what they see from this first impression, then no go through your landing page and a deeper into your website.

What happens when you put more than 150 words on your landing page? People will begin to skim the content instead of read the content. They’re trying to see where you actually make a precise point that is important to them. If they can’t find anything of value, then they will feel like you wasted their time and they will just leave. Keep it short, keep it precise, and get to the point. Highlight the most important elements and show their value. The rest of the long form content can go deeper within the website.

3. Keep It Simple

The goal of the landing page is to provide someone with simple information that doesn’t have any competition. The instant that you start putting advertisements or other forms of content along with the landing page content, you’re putting more competition in for the visitor’s attention. This means that the average visitor may not even be looking at what you want them to see on your landing page.

If you are able to keep your information simple, then you will be able to make it tempting. Simple content is attractive to the short attention span that the average visitor is willing to donate to your landing page. Because many landing pages don’t approach content in this way, being clear and precise will also help you to stand out. All of this adds up to a valuable experience that will make someone want what you’ve got, even if they don’t intend to convert right away.

4. Your Call to Action Matters

Think about the structure of the average Amazon product page right now. There is not one, but two calls to action that can be seen above the fold when a visitor hits the product page. This same concept will work for your landing page as well. The goal is to structure your call to action so that it is meaningful, but still provides a certain amount of information.

You’ll see that in the highlight box of the Amazon product page. There are several key points that are included by the purchasing buttons. These are the brief components that make the product you’re looking at stand out from the rest of the competition. If these bits of information aren’t good enough to create a sale on their own, then users have understood that they can scroll down to see reviews and more detailed information about the product they’re thinking about purchasing.

You’ll also notice that the average Amazon product page has multiple calls to action throughout the content. Every paragraph of content that you create for your landing page should have a detailed call to action that is meaningful if you are following the best practices of design.

5. Find a Way to Build Trust

Although the Internet is a public institution, it also has a certain ability to keep people anonymous still as well. Because of this, many visitors may not trust the content of the landing page because the value may seem too good to be true. This means you’ve got to be able to find a way to build trust with each visitor. The goal is to begin the establishment of a relationship. The best way to do this is to give that person authentic contact information so that you can prove you are a legitimate entity.

Having contact information present also achieves a second goal: it allows visitors who don’t want to conduct an online transaction to still be able to take advantage of the offer that you are giving them on the landing page.

6. Free Really Should Be Free

The problem with many landing pages is that they don’t live up to the promise of the initial contact. Many landing pages give visitors because they have offered something for free to someone. The only problem is that a visitor must input an email address or some sort of personal contact information to obtain the free item. This means that free really isn’t free. That will cause visitors to bounce away rapidly.

You don’t have to give away a lot without anything in return, but you still should offer something for free that doesn’t cost a visitor anything. Give away the first chapter of your e-book that you’re trying to use to build an email marketing list. Offer a free recipe from the cookbook that you are trying to sell. This will give people the option to try things out before they buy it and that’s something that every customer loves to do.

7. Verify Your Facts

Authenticity is what rules the day on the Internet. If you are not authentic, then you are not going to get a maximum amount of conversions. Visitors want to know what your story really is and who you really are. They also want to know that you’re not trying to bluff them with a bunch of made-up statistics and facts about the problem that you trying to solve. Always verify your information with outgoing links to third-party sources that are reliable and not spammy. This will let visitors to the research that they feel like they need to do on your products without needing to leave your landing page.

This also proves that you’re willing to stand up to scrutiny, something that engenders a higher level of trust amongst visitors.

8. Test Your Page Before Publication

You know there’s a 5 second rule for food that hits the ground? There’s also a 5 second rule when it comes to landing pages. One of the best practices that is often overlooked is that a landing page should be tested before it is published. How can you test a landing page effectively? Find someone that you trust and have them look at the page for 5 seconds.

When the time is up, shut down the page and asked the person what they thought the purpose of what they saw happen to be. If what they saw doesn’t match up to what you want, then you know that you’ve got to do some retooling on your landing page to make it effective. Why five seconds? Because that’s how much time it generally takes for someone to read the headline on the landing page. If visitors can’t get an idea of what you’re trying to say from your headline, then you’ve already lost.

9. Give Yourself a Second Chance

After going through your landing page, there are going to be visitors that don’t want to make a tangible purchase or conversion of what you got. Money doesn’t have to be the transaction. Visitors might choose not to give you their email address for further updates because you are not promoting enough value. Give yourself a second chance to stay at the top of their mind by offering a secondary conversion opportunity. If they don’t want to spend $3 on your e-book, let them download a brochure for free about the materials you’ve covered in the e-book.

10. Reduce the Options

Don’t give people too many options. It confuses them. Have a primary call to action for your primary conversion. Have a secondary call to action for a secondary conversion. Don’t do anything else but that.

By following these landing page best practices, you’ll be able to convert more visitors, make your information more valuable, and show off your expertise in an efficient way. Tell your story today and hopefully your ROI will start improving by tomorrow.

Optimizing Your Landing Page

About The Author
Although millions of people visit Brandon's blog each month, his path to success was not easy. Go here to read his incredible story, "From Disabled and $500k in Debt to a Pro Blogger with 5 Million Monthly Visitors." If you want to send Brandon a quick message, then visit his contact page here.