The landing page of your website is extremely important. Quite often it’s the page that most visitors come to first. It’s the page you may generate links to. It may also be the page that the search engines pay the most attention to. Therefore, it makes sense to make sure your landing page is as well designed as it can be.

There are a few key elements for a successful landing page. They each are important independently, but they work together to provide a unique and effective experience. Before you take a look at these key elements, however, it’s important to answer a question first.

Landing Page Goals

Your landing page needs to have a goal – an objective. What do you want visitors to do? What action do you want them to take? There are many possibilities. You may want them to:

Dig deeper and explore your website

Click through to a sales page

Opt-in

Once you know what you want visitors to do, then you can make sure your landing page supports that goal. Now you’ll use the seven key elements. They include:

Images – The images you choose on your landing page are important. You want them to support the overall goal. Images, in the form of graphics and photos, can quickly overwhelm a landing page and become a distraction. If you choose to use images, and they really can enhance a landing page, make sure they support your goal. Make sure they adequately represent your brand, too. A common image to use might be your photo. This helps connect the reader to you. It helps brand your business and build a relationship.

Headline – Your headline is often the very first thing a visitor will see. If it doesn’t grab their attention, then it’s not doing its job. However, in addition to grabbing their attention, it also must support your page’s purpose. Take time to craft a headline. This is also an important element to test and track. Create two landing pages with two different headlines. Determine which headline is better at helping you accomplish your goal for the page.

Emotions – Emotions are what people use to make buying decisions. They’re incredibly important if you’re trying to motivate any action. You can tap into your visitors’ emotions with images and words.

Navigation – Make sure that your visitor not only knows what they’re supposed to do, but also that they can quickly figure out how to do it. If you want people to dig deeper into your website, then make sure your buttons and call to action support that. If they cannot figure out how to get to a page that interests them, they’re going to leave.

Proof – You might notice that many of the elements of a successful landing page are also sales copy elements. This is because you are trying to motivate an action. Your landing page has a purpose. Proof can be demonstrated by:

Awards

Testimonials

Endorsements

Organization membership

Facts and statistics

The proof you use depends on your goal. For example, if you want to motivate an opt-in, then you might use facts and statistics along with a banner ad highlighting an award your site has won. This gives you credibility.

Call to action – A call to action is required for every successful landing page. It’s the only way your readers know what they’re supposed to do next. Test it and track it for success.

Opt-in form – Finally, if your goal is to motivate an opt-in, then you must have an opt-in form on your landing page. In fact, everything on that page needs to support that goal.

Your landing page is perhaps the most important page on your website. Make sure the elements on your page support your goals and your success. Test and track various elements until you get the best results. Once you’ve built your landing page, ask yourself the following questions to ensure that they are going work effectively:

A Captivating Landing Page-

Does your landing page capture attention? Ideally it will have a compelling headline followed by keyword-targeted content that supports the purpose of the landing page. Additionally, your landing page shouldn’t be distracting. Everything on that page needs to support the purpose of the page.

The Purpose of Your Landing Page-

Different landing pages have different purposes. If you have a theme-based website for example, then your page’s purpose may be to motivate visitors to dig deeper. You want them to get to the pages where your affiliate and PPC links are so you can earn money.

You may want visitors to sign up for your opt-in form. If so, then make sure that’s the action your landing page copy and graphics support. If it is designed to motivate a sale, then you want the page to sell a product or a service. Everything on the page needs to support that action. You don’t want to distract with opt-in forms or content links.

If your landing page is struggling, take a look at it and see if the entire page supports your purpose for the page. If not, rework it.

Call To Action On Your Landing Page-

Regardless of your purpose, your landing page needs a call to action. Visitors need to be guided to what to do next. If this guidance is missing, they may likely click away. Support your page’s purpose with a compelling call to action.

If you want them to sign up for your opt-in list, then ask them to do so. If you want them to dig deeper and read your content and information, then tell them to click through. If you want to make a sale, provide a number of opportunities for them to make that decision and take action.

Test and Track-

Test and track various elements to optimize your landing page to fit its purpose. Test which headline works best. Test which call to action works best. Test where to place your sign-up form for the best results. Split testing is easiest. You can use PPC ads to drive traffic to two nearly identical landing pages.

Because your landing page is the page where most of your traffic enters your site, it’s imperative that it support your goals. Make sure your landing page has a purpose. Follow it up and make sure each element of your page supports that purpose. Eliminate element that don’t and get rid of distractions. Optimize your landing page and you’ll optimize your business!

Ok, so if you can follow these few key elements for a successful landing page, you should start having a lot more conversions on your online business website in no time.

To your great success on your online business journey, Bob Edwards, Digital Business Lessons