The Importance Of A Good Landing Page

The following is a guest post by Trace Ronning.

Something I didn’t immediately factor in when getting involved in PPC management was that without a good landing page, all your ads are worthless, no matter how well-written they are. It makes perfect sense though, doesn’t it? If you send someone to a confusing or unclear landing page, they’ll probably just leave and find someone else. You’ve got a few seconds at best to rope in these potential customers with something catchy, otherwise you’ve wasted your money on a paid click and you’ve wasted their valuable time.

Here are some steps to take that will ensure your landing page conversion friendly.

1. Make Sure There is a Clear Call to Action

This is best explained with an example. If you’re trying to book vacation rentals, and there isn’t a big button on your page that says, “Book today!” you’re doing something wrong.

2. Keep Your Page Simple

Try to avoid flashy banners or AdSense ads, don’t overwhelm your visitor with too many photos or any other visuals and definitely keep the text to a minimum. A good way to communicate via text on a landing page is with bullet points, they keep readers engaged and it doesn’t feel like too much work to read a series of bullets. You’d be surprised at how well you can convey your message in a few bullet points.

3. Keep Your Promises

If you’ve advertised a promotion, the page that the ad takes visitors to should ensure that that promotion is intact. Whether it includes a unique coupon code, or if it’s made clear that orders taken via that page, the customer needs to know that you still plan on delivering your promise, whatever that may be.

4. Short Forms

If you must use a form on the landing page, make it a short one. Seeing a long form on a landing page is usually a good enough reason to click the back button right away for most searchers. If you are going to use a form, I’d recommend just asking for a name and e-mail address on the first page, you can ask for the rest of the details on the next page. This way, they’ve qualified themselves as an interested individual in your product and if nothing else, you’ve gained an email address for your database.

5. Include Your Badges

Have you won an award for something lately? Maybe you’re part of the BBB. Put the badges you’ve earned for your efforts on your landing page to make sure that customers feel safe buying from you. Flaunt your credibility, but don’t go overboard.

If your AdWords campaigns aren’t going as well as you’d like, your ads might not be to blame. Check your landing pages and make sure they’re conversion-friendly, your customers and wallet will thank you.