50 landing page best practices
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50 of our most coveted landing page best strategies: from templates to testing, targeting, messaging, and more!TRANSCRIPT
50 Landing Page Best Practices
1. Not part of your website
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© i-on interactive, inc. All rights reserved • www.ioninteractive.com
Website Landing page
• Browsing• Discovery
• Topic-focused• Designed for
conversion
Dedicated landing pages are designed specifically to drive conversions & ROI.
2. Campaign Specific
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© i-on interactive, inc. All rights reserved • www.ioninteractive.com
The best landing pages are targeted, specific & contextually relevant.
• Seductive design
• Highly relevant &
valuable
• Deeply engaging
• Generic content
• Poor targeting
• No value prop
3. Traffic Source Specific
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© i-on interactive, inc. All rights reserved • www.ioninteractive.com
Tailor experience to the needs of the visitor, based on their "traffic source" origination.
4. Experience, not pages
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© i-on interactive, inc. All rights reserved • www.ioninteractive.com
Think beyond the page to deliver amazing digital experiences to visitors.
• Progressive conversion
• Propels through funnel
• Personalized experience
• No imagery/no design
• No call-to-action
• Painful form
5. Have a clear goal and strategy
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© i-on interactive, inc. All rights reserved • www.ioninteractive.com
A solid methodology ensures your strategy is aligned with your goals.
• Discover: Conduct research &
information exchange
• Plan: Develop program plan & test
strategy
• Execute: Design & launch
conversion-focused experiences
• Analyze: Perform analysis, share
knowledge, plan next steps
6. Grade and score visitors
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© i-on interactive, inc. All rights reserved • www.ioninteractive.com
Grade A
Grade B
Grade C
All clicks are not created equal. User segmentation can help you identify your most profitable leads.
7. Use real-time analytics
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© i-on interactive, inc. All rights reserved • www.ioninteractive.com
Real-time analytics mean agile, test-and-learn capability.
• Traffic• Bounce rate• Conversion rate• Segmentation• Behavioral "tags" (what
people are clicking on)• Confidence intervals• Day parting• Geolocation
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"As soon as we get statistical significance on a test, we drive immediately to a champion in real time. On Mother’s Day alone, the real-time change in traffic splits resulted in over $45,000 in incremental revenue. "
Real-time analytics mean agile, test-and-learn capability.
8. Constantly test everything
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© i-on interactive, inc. All rights reserved • www.ioninteractive.com
Radical redesigns & bold testing result in BIG lifts.
Radical innovation test wavesresults in
264% lift for Marian
University!
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A dedicated landing page lifts lead conversions 320% over website
320%
Radical redesigns & bold testing result in BIG lifts.
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Iterative testing drives incremental lifts.
8%
Step indicators on form increase Dell's lead conversions 8%
9. Integrated
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© i-on interactive, inc. All rights reserved • www.ioninteractive.com
Great post-click experiences help you generate more value from your other marketing investments.
10. Message Match
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© i-on interactive, inc. All rights reserved • www.ioninteractive.com
Better message match is probably the single greatest tactical improvements you can make!
• Are you delivering on your promise?
• Are you maintaining visual continuity in your banner advertising?
• Do your words and phrases match pre- to post-click?
11. Conversion focused
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A sharpened focus on your conversion goalcan lend to higher conversion rates.
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Testing a conversion-focused microsite against the Long Term Care product page increased leads 700%
700%
12. Streamline the experience
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Don’t make your visitors jump through hoops! Eliminate any
unnecessary hurdles.
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• Device-optimized
• Clear message
• Intuitive design
• Finger-friendly
13. Be user-centered
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A lot of thought goes into designing great user-centric interfaces for your visitors. What do your visitors want to see?
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ObserveBuild Challenge
Put your visitors in thedriver’s seat with real time testing.
Promote winningpage elements andeliminate potential obstacles.
Focus on what yourtarget audiencewants to accomplish.How can your page help to make thatpossible?
14. A strong, clear call-to-action
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A strong call-to-action draws the attention of the visitor and clearly tells them how they can convert.
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Glance at your page and blur your eyes.
Can you distinguish your call-to-action from the rest of your content?
If not, strengthen it!
15. Relevant, streamlined forms
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Internally-focused forms feel like work.
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Questions are obviously designed for the company to obtain additional information
LOTS of required fields is high barrier to form completion
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Content customized based on responses
Multi-step form guides user through quote process, providing relevant content along the way
User-focused forms feel easy to complete.
Step 1
Step 2
Step 3
16. Clear value position
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© i-on interactive, inc. All rights reserved • www.ioninteractive.com
Your value proposition answers the question "why should I buy from you instead of them?"
• Clear• Differentiated • Genuine • Supported
17. Strong headlines matter
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Your headline may be the single most important element on your landing page. Test to find the type that works the best.
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Testimonial
Direct
Attention-grabbing Question
Offer-specific
Benefit-driven
18. Differentiation
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© i-on interactive, inc. All rights reserved • www.ioninteractive.com
• Hyper-targeted• Highly focused• Contextually relevant
Lead gen landing pages don't need to be "one size fits all"!
19. Above the fold
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Keep your call-to-action above the fold.
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Don’t assume that visitors will scroll down and explore everything that your page has to offer.
The ‘Fold’: The point on your landing page where visitors must scroll down to see more
80% of time is spent 'above the fold'20% of time is spent 'below the fold'
If using a long page format, repeat your call-to-action (at least once) at the very bottom of the page.
20. Visual, directional cues
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© i-on interactive, inc. All rights reserved • www.ioninteractive.com
Good design can help lead visitors toward your conversion action.
Implicit directional cues are implied.
Ex. direction of gaze, color, visual weighting, repetition of color, shape and size.
See how the gecko’s body is angled to the conversion point and his eyes look at the call to action?
Explicit directional cues are obvious.
Ex. lines, arrows, curves, etc.
See how the arrows tells the user where to start?
21. Remember to say thank you
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© i-on interactive, inc. All rights reserved • www.ioninteractive.com
Thank you pages can create valuable post-conversion experiences.
Personally thank your visitors
Create next steps
Provide additional resources/value to continue engagement with your brand
22. Benefit-driven copy
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© i-on interactive, inc. All rights reserved • www.ioninteractive.com
Benefits almost always outperform product-focused copy!
28% • Make a list of your product features
• Then, determine how those features make your visitor's life or job easier!
• Transform your features into tangible benefits
23. Keep your promises
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© i-on interactive, inc. All rights reserved • www.ioninteractive.com
• Doesn’t fulfill on promise
• Too much content, too little focus
• No repetition of words/language from ad
Mismatch increases the odds that the user will land and then quickly leave.
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• Delivers on promise• Visual continuity• Highly specific
When the ad and the landing experience match, promises are kept.
24. Trust is a must
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Use trust assurances to clearly communicate trustworthiness.
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Great use of social proof to communicate trust: customer logos, “global leader,” third-party trust assurances.
25. Give good brand
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© i-on interactive, inc. All rights reserved • www.ioninteractive.com
A brand is most important an emotional connection between a user and a product or
service.
• First impressions matter• Seductive design• Relevant and compelling
content• User-friendly across all
devices
26. Timely
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© i-on interactive, inc. All rights reserved • www.ioninteractive.com
Ensure your landing pages (and offers) are timely and relevant.
• Consider seasonality of offers and promotions, especially for retail
• Remove, change or update offers as they expire
• Agility in your marketing + disposable landing pages = timely campaigns
27. Value button copy
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© i-on interactive, inc. All rights reserved • www.ioninteractive.com
Test gain-focused or “value” buttons agains effort-focused buttons.
Gained-Focused or “Value” Button Copy
Effort-Focused Button Copy
GetViewEnjoy
DiscoverSeePlay
SubmitStart
ActivateLearnPayGo
28. Meaningful segmentation
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Use segmentation to get to know your landing page visitors.
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Directional copy
Easy choice
Mutually exclusive
29. Frictionless choices
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Avoid choice paralysis. Give intuitive, limited choices.
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A B 13%
Reducing choices from three to two options increased leads 13% for TimeTrade
30. Don’t link away
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© i-on interactive, inc. All rights reserved • www.ioninteractive.com
Remove distraction. Reduce the opportunity for visitors to leave without converting.
Many calls-to-action, distracting navigation, lots of friction.
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Lots of great content to share?
Break it into digestible chunks across multiple pages
31. Device optimized
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© i-on interactive, inc. All rights reserved • www.ioninteractive.com
Whether you choose responsive or native, make sure your experiences are device-optimized.
Responsive design automatically optimizes for device
Native mobile landing pages are designed specifically for mobile devices
32. Show your product
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Don’t be afraid to show your product!
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• For services, this may mean demonstrating results, offering case studies or testimonials
• Testimonials demonstrate real-world results & can communicate the relative value of an intangible
• Show in various formats: image galleries, video, interactive tours, etc.
33. Context of use
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© i-on interactive, inc. All rights reserved • www.ioninteractive.com
Context of use put the visitor in the driver's seat.
"Works the way you do"…video demonstrates product features
Shows product in the hands of the users
34. Social proof
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© i-on interactive, inc. All rights reserved • www.ioninteractive.com
Social proof is the influence of others in a social situation.
Testimonials provide user proof
Press coverage provides "expert" social proof
"Over 8 million singles…" = wisdom of the crowds
35. Avoid information overload
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© i-on interactive, inc. All rights reserved • www.ioninteractive.com
Adding content to a landing page can become a slippery slope. What starts as a simple page…
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...then all of the sudden includes 4 paragraphs of copy, bullets, a long form, social links, a product shot...and the list goes on.
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A focused page...
...tells the user what we want them to do and why.
36. Spice it up
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© i-on interactive, inc. All rights reserved • www.ioninteractive.com
Lead gen landing pages don't have to be boring!
• Seductive design• Highly relevant• Highly valuable• Deeply engaging
37. High image quality
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Quality matters to your visitors. Use of high-quality imagery and fonts conveys a strong message about your brand and product.
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high quality+ accurately showcases products+ lends to credibility and confidence- increases page load time- not always optimal for mobile
reduced quality- can appear dated- negatively impacts first impressions+ loads fast (fewer bounces)
38. Interactive content
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© i-on interactive, inc. All rights reserved • www.ioninteractive.com
Find interesting ways to display important information. Test microsites, tabbed content and other types of interactive content.
Tabbed interface allows visitors to read content in a digestible format
39. Incorporate keywords on PPC landing pages
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© i-on interactive, inc. All rights reserved • www.ioninteractive.com
Incorporate the search terms that your visitors use to increase relevancy on landing pages.
• Improve message match• Increase relevancy• Improve quality score• Take it to the next level with
targeted imagery and content
40. Design matters
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© i-on interactive, inc. All rights reserved • www.ioninteractive.com
Radically re-imagine the user experience, focusing on intuitive, user-centered design that communicates value.
41. Be strategic
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Planning is the single greatest influencer in testing success.
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• Start tests by aligning your landing page testing objectives with your overall marketing strategy
• Determine your desired outcome• Use testing to maximize revenue from
marketing expenses
42. Methodically plan
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A well-designed roadmap will help you ensure you are on the path to success.
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Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4
PPC Campaign
Mobile PPC Campaign
SEO
43. Wait for statistical confidence
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80%-99% statistical confidence is a best practice for A/B & multivariate testing.
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Monitor your landing pages for immediate campaign performance insights.
Wait until your tests achieve statistical significance. A test result is typically statistically significant if the results are unlikely to have occurred by chance.
Allocate your traffic to winning pages and reap the benefits of higher conversion rates.
44. Be cyclical
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Testing is cyclical: it’s done in a wave pattern consisting of innovations and iterations.
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• Innovate by A/B testing contrasting landing pages:• Different templates, layouts
or styles• Interactive content• Image or text-heavy pages
• Iterate your champion by testing different combinations of page elements• Button styles, text, or
colors• Messaging• Form fields
45. Use both A/B and MVT
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© i-on interactive, inc. All rights reserved • www.ioninteractive.com
A/B to find big winners. Multivariate test to refine those winners.
A/B MVTJust getting started Ready to refine
Low volume of traffic High volume of traffic
Multi-page experiences Single landing page
Conversion lift, limited learning
Want to determine influence of page element
46. Test BIG
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© i-on interactive, inc. All rights reserved • www.ioninteractive.com
Experiment with BIG ideas to get big results.
47. Avoid unproductive, ------------- -----unending tests
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Beware of the never-ending test!
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• Decide on a test duration (2-4 weeks, depending on traffic volume)• Stick to two or three alternatives in a test wave• Consider the traffic volume
• Higher volume, the faster you can reach significance• A/B best for low volume pages• MVT good for high volume pages
48. Timing matters
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© i-on interactive, inc. All rights reserved • www.ioninteractive.com
Say NO! to sequential testing.
• Isolate your tests to remove the possibility of confounding variables skewing your results and giving you bad data
• Only run real-time, parallel tests• Sequential testing is a no-no!
49. Don’t stop
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Scale your program methodically and effectively.
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opportunity
conversion
optimization
• Determine areas of opportunity for testing
• Decide where to test• Decide what to test• Create your test plan• Run your test• Analyze your test• Gather insight, learning &
formulate the next hypothesis• Repeat!
50. Landing pages should be ----- -----flexible and disposable
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© i-on interactive, inc. All rights reserved • www.ioninteractive.com
Your website vs. Your landing pages
ExpensiveTime Intensive
High InvestmentInflexible
InexpensiveDisposable
Easy to TrashAgile
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We help brands create, test and optimize amazing landing pages.
90% of customers report positive ROI.
Find out more:http://www.ioninteractive.com
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