Landing Page: 6 Mistakes to Fix Now

A landing page should generate conversions for your business, but there are some common mistakes that can reduce your conversion rate and thus your sales performance. The good news is that they are easily correctable. Here are 6 landing page mistakes you can fix right now.

Your landing page must have a single offer

You may have a lot to offer, but your consumer only wants one thing – the offer that brought them to your site. Your entire landing page content must pertain to this offer. If the content doesn’t support your offer, it doesn’t belong on your landing page.

In the same vein, avoid putting too many links on your landing page. These only serve to distract the visitor who will then get sidetracked within your site. If your visitor needs to know more about your team or your services, this content should therefore be found on the landing page. If your visitor leaves the landing page to go view other sections of your site, they won’t remember to return to complete the form in order to access your offer.

Your landing page isn’t mobile compatible

In Canada, the amount of mobile internet traffic surpassed computer-based internet traffic as of 2014. This means that your entire site must be compatible with mobile devices - especially your landing page. If visitors can’t easily view your page, or they aren’t able to select the form’s fields, they may not have the patience to download your offer.

The content must be mobile-device compatible, which means it should be legible, clear and designed for a small, vertical screen. Ditch the heavy pictures, endless text and three-column text structures. Mobile visitors must be able to understand your offer and access it at first glance.

In addition, don’t forget that mobile users look at your landing page…from their phones! If you want them to call you, make it easier for them by displaying your phone number at the top of the page with a “Click-to-call” button that enables them to call you directly.

Your content isn’t suitable for your audience

Sometimes understanding your customers is difficult. You can consult with your sales team, study your internal statistics (if you have any) or even conduct a marketing study in order to get a good understanding of who’s buying your product and services and how these people communicate. Your landing page content must speak their language and use the words they use. Otherwise, your consumers will think that your product isn’t for them.

If you want to convince veterinarians to recommend your brand of dog food, pretty pictures of puppies won’t likely be enough! Furthermore, you must use the right words to describe your consumer’s problems and your solutions for them.

You place no importance on design

A landing page’s design serves to support your offer and to convey its value to the consumer. The images displayed on your landing page will guide the users where to look. Ensure that they are directed to the right place! Use images to promote your product or service – use original photos of your business rather than boring, generic stock photos.

Your design must also look professional and assert your credibility as a business. Your landing page visitors will certainly judge you based on your site’s appearance! Just like you wouldn’t let your salespeople meet customers in jogging pants, you shouldn’t let your landing page do so with a design from 1999. Your website and landing pages represent your business as much as your employees do.

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This company doesn't seem to have an eye for details! I would not trust them as my billing solution![/caption]

Your form is too long

The length of your form should reflect the consumer’s buying cycle. It will be shorter for a consumer in the discovery phase, average length for a consumer in the consideration phase, and more comprehensive for a consumer who’s ready to buy. In general, shorter forms are easier to complete and improve conversion.

When you create your form, ask yourself what information you really need to provide your lead with the offer you promised. Do you really need a credit card number to get a free demo of your software? And do you really need your lead’s postal code to send them an email?

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These are all the fields you have to fill to download a guide that will tell you why Pentaho is better than others! Imagine if you wanted to try the product, they would ask for your grandmother's baptismal![/caption]

Your CTA is boring

In a way, the Call-To-Action button to submit the form is your final argument. Once the lead is convinced about your offer, you still have to convince them to complete the form and send it. This is why your CTA should not be a boring “Send” button. Can you imaging saying “Send” to a customer in your store whose hands are full of merchandise? The CTA text must reflect the next step or even the benefit the lead will gain by clicking on it.

In addition, your CTA must attract attention and be easy to read. It is appropriate to use contrasting colors and to give the CTA a little more space so that it is easily visible.

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"Submit" ... not very exciting! Even though it is a service that would allow me to boost my sales and answer my client's questions, all in a free demo![/caption]

Have you already made one of these mistakes on your landing pages? Do you have any other mistakes to add to this list? Feel free to share your experiences in the comments section!

Sources:

Forbes

Crazy Egg

VWO