12/27/2011

Landing Page Best Practices: How to Fix 5 Common Mistakes

Landing Page Best Practices: How to Fix 5 Common Mistakes:

To maximize the impact of your landing page, it’s important to spot mistakes before they make a negative impression on your visitor. Just one issue could confuse or completely turn off a prospective lead.

As a marketer who lives and breathes landing page optimization, when I see a company that doesn’t follow landing page best practices, I have to wonder about that business’ conversion rates. I know I’m usually clicking away from that site, how many others are too?

To remedy this and help you build better pages, here’s a list of the top 5 landing page mistakes and how you can fix them.

Top 5 Landing Page Mistakes & Fixes:

1. Distractions – Readers can get sidetracked away from your goal if there is too much happening or ignore it completely if it resembles every other page on your website. When trying to convert your visitor into a qualified lead, using the same old design you use for other pages only invites users to get lost.

Fix: To make things simple, cut down on the distractions – remove the usual sidebar, navigation and anything that takes your reader’s attention away from doing what you want them to do.

2. Sub-par headlines – With only a few seconds to draw someone to your landing page, your headline better be top-notch.

Fix: Just like your blog posts, press releases and email subject lines, if your headline doesn’t spark your visitors’ attention, you’ve already lost them

3. Missing the point – Remember that the reader is visiting your landing page for a reason: they have a need and you (may) have a solution. If your landing page can’t effectively help readers bridge that gap, then they will find another landing page that does.

Fix: Keep it simple and get to the point quickly or visitors will leave your page without converting.

4. Too many choices – Simply put, too many choices can hurt your conversion rates.

Fix: Don’t confuse or drive away prospects with an overload of choices. Give one action option that will appeal to your most qualified leads.

5. Not testing – This is one I see many marketers miss, time and time again. Not one particular headline, design element or word is right for everyone.

Fix: For better conversion rates, implement A/B or multivariate testing to find out what landing page combinations convert more visitors into leads.

Remember, your landing page needs to convert. If it has any of these mistakes, you need to fix them – now. Follow landing page best practices and be ready to see an increase in your conversion rates.

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