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Repost: Read original and complete article here
Many people create landing pages as if they were just like other pages on a website. But that’s not a good approach to take. A landing page is a very special type of page, and as a result, it needs some special consideration. So in this post I want to discuss five very common landing page mistakes you’ll want to avoid.
What is a landing page?
A landing page is simply a page with a form attached to it – a form that is designed to capture a person’s name and email and perhaps some other tidbits of information, too, depending on the type of offer being extended to the page visitor. For example, you offer a site visitor a free download of a report about a topic of interest. In order to complete the download, the visitor must fill out the form. When he or she fills out the form and submits it, you get a lead with a person’s name and email address, and your visitor get the free information and the promise to keep their information private, often through a link to your privacy statement.
So landing pages are good to have. In fact, the more you have, and that means the more proprietary content you have to share, the more likely you are to capture leads of individuals who are interested in what you have to offer.
You want this transaction to go smoothly for your visitor. Otherwise, they might not complete the form. So in order to make it as easy as possible, make it a point to avoid these common mis-steps.
1. Keeping the navigation visible. Don’t do this! Once a person lands on your landing page, they should have only two options: complete the form or close the page. The last thing you want to do is give them the opportunity to switch to another page and get distracted. Removing the navigation has been proven to increase the conversion rates since visitors have fewer options available to them.
2. Burying the form below the content. Your visitor should be able to see the form clearly as soon as they get to the landing page. Don’t make them scroll down the page to see the form. This is annoying, and some visitors will jump off the bus just for this minor hassle.
3. Requiring too many fields to be filled out. Your best bet is to get just the information you really need and nothing more. The fewer fields you give them to fill out, the higher the conversion rate will be. You may decide to make some fields required and some optional, but you’re still better off asking for as few as possible.
4. Not providing a visual. A graphic on the page is absolutely essential. If you’re offering a report, show the cover, or provide some idea of what the product looks like. A high-quality, relevant graphic can pull people into the process and make them eager to get your offer. So don’t give them a page of type without something to look at!
5. Providing too much unnecessary information. If your visitor can’t grasp what your offer is within five seconds, your landing page has failed the blink test. You’ve overloaded your visitor with extraneous information that isn’t needed to help the conversion. Keep your copy to a minimum and use bullet points. Be as concise as possible to establish the value of your offer.
What are some other mistakes you’ve noticed on landing pages? What are some creative ways to increase the conversion rate of a landing page?
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