Inbound Marketing Agency Blog

Are your landing pages lackluster? | Inbound 281

Written by Mark Parent | March 18, 2016 11:03:00 AM Z

Most businesses use landing pages for a good reason: They work. They serve a very specific purpose, which makes them highly actionable, and they don't involve distracting elements that can pull your visitors' attention away from the action you want them to take.

However, if your landing pages are a little lackluster, you might need to tweak them a bit. Here are a few ideas to get your imagination revved up for landing page makeovers.

Effective landing pages have a clear cut path to guide visitors to your offer - beautiful yet concise copy and design.  


Make small changes to test what works best

If your landing pages aren't working well, you might feel tempted to scrap them altogether and start over. While the motivation behind this decision makes sense, it's usually the wrong move.

Writing for Hubspot, Ryan Lynch points out that big changes can rattle consumers and inspire them to trust you less. Meanwhile, small, incremental changes will help you evaluate the results you see without expending hours on a major overhaul.

You want your target audience to have a consistent experience. If you radically change one of your landing pages and it doesn't match the aesthetics or voice of the rest of your site, your audience will notice the disconnect and feel uncomfortable with your business. That's never a good thing.


Provide proof to build trust

Sometimes, consumers have a difficult time trusting businesses - especially those without significant brand awareness. They've seen scams, shoddy products, and other negative experiences that make them wary about parting with their hard-earned cash.

A guarantee or testimony sets the stage for a more trusting audience. When you promise to return the customer's money based on his or her dissatisfaction, the consumer feels more comfortable shelling out the dough.

Likewise, showing social proof that other customers found your offer valuable provides an extra layer of trust that cannot be replaced. Real testimonies remind us that people trust people, not companies. 

Adding a guarantee or testimony to your landing page might boost conversions and create more trust between you and your audience. Keep in mind, though, that it's not just a marketing gimmick. Never advertise a guarantee or testimony unless it's the real deal.


Add concrete data to prove your claims



 Concrete data backs up your claims and gives visitors reasons to trust that your offer delivers what you say it will.  


Most consumers are drawn to numbers and facts. They want to know that your claims are rooted in something more concrete than wishful thinking. If you can back up your assertions with statistics (preferably those compiled by an authority), your landing pages will become stronger.

Avoid vague phrases and hyperbole at all costs. Instead of saying that your product is the "best there is," say that "4,000 customers agree that [this product] is the best in the industry." The more you can substantiate your claims, the more your audience will trust you.


Draw the eye

An effective landing page needs a strategy behind its design. Use text and graphics to guide your visitors to the most important elements on the page, such as your call-to-action button.

Simply making your CTA a different color from the rest of the text can have a profound impact on its performance. Similarly, you might use arrows or straight lines to guide visitors down the page as you feed them information.

Effective landing pages are powerful tools in your marketing arsenal. Check out another one of our articles for more ways to transform you landing pages for more impact.

If you're struggling to gain traction in your field, get a free inbound marketing assessment. We'll help put you on track for increased conversions and improved inbound traffic.

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