There are five elements to a successful, high-conversion landing page — selling proposition, images/videos, product/service benefits, social proof, and call to action. Without all five elements effectively represented, your landing page will not deliver the conversions that you wish to see. Here’s a quick look at each:
Selling proposition — The selling proposition is the message that your landing page is trying to get across to visitors, so it needs to be written with your target audience in mind. This message should be clear and easily understood, and it should also be relevant to the message from the search page they clicked through. A lack of consistency could result in visitors leaving your site quickly which would also have the effect of increasing the bounce rate.
Images/videos — Images are an essential element of any landing page. Without images, not only do landing pages look bare, but you’re also missing out on the opportunity to help potential clients envision themselves using your product or service. Choosing the perfect image/video is important as it should be relevant to your message, have a distinct purpose and provide the visitor with confidence.
Benefits — Convincing potential customers of the benefits of using your product/service is an essential aspect of creating a high-conversion landing page. Once you’ve wowed them with relevant images and videos, you then need to tell them why taking your desired course of action — buying a product/service, signing up for a newsletter, etc. — is in their best interests.
Social proof — Potential customers need convincing, they need positive social proof that the product or service you’re promoting with your landing page is going to provide real benefits. Social proof is a powerful phenomenon that increases trust and guides buying decisions by providing visitors with the evidence they’re looking for to make a purchase with confidence. However, social proof must be leveraged effectively. This means using buyer personas relevant to your target audience, testimonials with accompanying pictures, and stories which resonate and are relatable to your ideal customer.
Call-to-action — The aim of any landing page is to make the visitor respond to the call-to-action, making a strong CTA an essential element. This means it must be clear and visible — colour schemes, design elements and size are important — with short, action-oriented words. The landing page layout should guide the reader to the call-to-action message, so implement a clear linear pathway which naturally directs the visitor’s eyes to the CTA.
In addition to these essential landing page elements, a compelling offer is a must. While the other elements may be effectively implemented, without an offer that resonates with visitors and compels them to take your desired action, all the effort you’ve put into your landing page could be wasted. Research clearly shows that offers should be conveyed in a simple way with a narrow focus so that the attention of the visitor is focused on the offer and more likely to respond positively to the call-to-action.