Landing pages attract targeted traffic and have a specific purpose. The goal is converting visitors into leads or customers. You’ve probably thought through your call to action (CTA) and your headline, but there are many other features on a high-quality landing page. Some of them aren’t as obvious as others.
Conversion rates vary widely by industry, but an average hits around 2.35%. A good starting goal matches the average and then climbs from there. If your site isn’t gathering the leads you think it should, it’s probably time to rethink the design. Even minor changes can increase the effectiveness of a page, so don’t overlook those small adjustments you’re considering.
If you’re like most website owners, you’ve tweaked your landing page until you are sick of the whole thing. You’ve probably conducted A/B testing and asked for customer feedback. Perhaps you’ve spent untold hours on your website, and you still don’t feel the optimization is to the best advantage. That is where these little known factors come into play. Here are five top landing page elements you never thought about but probably should.
1. Tap into Emotions
If you’re like most business owners, you’ve researched your target audience thoroughly. You know if they work, the age range and even hobbies they enjoy. However, have you stopped to look at the psychological aspect of your buyer personas? What drives people to your site in the first place?
The thing that initiates a search is typically some problem also called a pain point. What drives the person to go to Google and type in “air filters for pet owners” or some other term? Dig deeper into what drives the initial hunt for your site. For the example above, the user is likely experiencing some allergies or a lot of pet dander in their home. The problem is unclean air, and the worry is that air quality will negatively impact their lives or those they love.
Now, you know what drove them to search for you, you can tap into the emotions. Express their feelings back to them and then explain how you have a solution for it.
Identity Guard does an excellent job of getting right to the root of the problem consumers face. They state the worry “your digital and financial identity are at constant risk.” They then present the solution and call the user to “get protection now.”
Takeaway: Once you understand your users, you can better ascertain their emotions and what drives them to your site. Restate their pain point and then provide a solution for it.
2. Lose the Clickable Graphics and Extra Links
Rather than something you add to your landing page, consider taking away things that might cause the user to click away from your mail offer. Your landing page has a clear goal, usually to convert a browser into a subscriber or lead. Anything else detracts from that goal and increases the chances the person bounces to a different place.
First, your landing pages should never link to a site other than your own. Limit the potential paths and send the user on the journey you want them to take.
3. Focus on Subtle Elements
Once you have the main features of your page perfected, such as the headline and calls to action (CTAs), it’s time to focus on subtle details. These are features you add to your page that may not be noticeable at first glance but have an effect on site visitors.
For example, you might add some background elements that match the goal for the page. A faded arrow pointing the way to the CTA button shows the way.
Thompson Tractor adds texture to their landing page that creates a subtle effect but makes it clear the type of work they do. The background image doesn’t take center stage but creates an overall impression of power and performance. The gravel rocks below the first sections also fade into the background but create an overall tone of strength, which is quite exceptional. All the parts work together to create the impression of heavy-duty equipment that stands up to heavy use.
Takeaway: Add in some subtle texture to the background of your page. Make parts of it transparent to leave visitors with an overall effect that isn’t overwhelming to the main message.
4. Understand Color Psychology
For hundreds of years, artists and psychologists pointed to tones as an impacting mood. Color is one of the most powerful tools in your communication arsenal, but an often overlooked one when it comes to landing pages.
There isn’t a lot of research on color psychology, but designers intrinsically understand it does impact people’s emotions. Split test studies prove people react to some shades better than others. A shift in hue increases conversion rates and grabs attention.
In a study by the Department of Clinical and Social Sciences in Psychology at the University of Rochester, researchers found red increased force and velocity in motor output.
Each color evokes specific emotions. Blue has a calming, steady effect. Yellow is cheerful. Red signifies excitement. Try different options that match the mood you want users to have and see what works best for your site.
5. Add Trust Factors
When users land on your page, they have no reason to trust you. Many of them have never done business with you before and may not have heard of your brand. One thing you can do to enhance your landing page is adding trust factors.
Make sure you include contact information so they know they can ask any needed questions. Place a Better Business Bureau (BBB) grade at the bottom of the page along with logos for any professional organizations you belong to. Testimonials also add another layer of trust.
Coco & Eve sells beauty products. They have a large number of customer testimonials on nearly every landing page on their website. The positive reviews show how happy their customers are with the product and encourages new customers to take a chance on ordering. In addition to the testimonials, they provide clear “Contact Us” information.
Near the bottom of their home page, they list that they offer a 100% money-back guarantee, and they’ve won 13 different beauty awards. All of these elements work together to show they’re reliable.
Takeaway: Give users a reason to trust your brand. Share information about awards you’ve won or happy customer statements. Make it clear that you’re easy to contact should there be a problem with the order.
Test and Retest Your Page
The most powerful thing you can do for your landing pages is to conduct some A/B and multivariate testing. Figure out which elements on your page get the most attention by studying heatmaps of your site. Are users getting lost before converting? What can you do to make them stay focused?
As you make changes, run additional tests. Your goal should always be to improve conversions, even if only by a tenth of a percent. Each change needs to make an impact, or it isn’t worth keeping. Some changes may also reduce your conversion rate, so keep copies of old versions and be ready to revert when needed.
Get feedback. Try different methods. Keep what works, and lose what doesn’t.
