It’s no secret that there’s a correlation between strong writing and great marketing. When you learn to perfect the message, you can reach a broader audience and
convert more leads with less effort. Sounds fairly simple, right? Unfortunately, the marketing language isn’t for everyone. In fact, most people agree that writing compelling marketing copy is genuinely hard work.
Landing pages are no exception. In fact, they are some of your greatest assets when it comes to marketing campaigns, but many local businesses get it wrong the first time. You will either pique the interest of a visitor, in which case they will seek out more information, or they will jump off your website with a bad first impression. Here are a few ways you can improve the messaging on your landing pages to convert more visitors.
Understand the Thought Process of Your Audience
Never make an assumption about your audience, especially when it comes to their reading and comprehension level. When you are writing copy for a landing page, work under the rule “less is more.” Avoid using complex words, lengthy sentences, or going into too much detail. Most of the time, you only have a few seconds to capture the attention of a potential lead, so being short and concise is crucial. Not to mention, an overwhelming amount of content (text, images, etc.) can prevent a visitor from moving forward at all. When it doubt, resist the urge to be overzealous because it might just lose you a sale.
Do Your Keyword Research Ahead of Time
Your landing pages should be written around keywords that are proven to generate interest. Research what words or phrases people were searching for when they came across your page, and use these search terms to your advantage. This will provide your audience with the content they want and improve your search engine optimization (SEO) in the process. There are a variety of free keyword research tools out there to get you started. If your local business is limited on time and resources, you can also utilize the industry research of an independent marketing firm.
Use an Intuitive and User-Friendly Design
Design your landing pages with a flow in mind so there is no confusion about what the visitor should do next. For example, when you are promoting your brand or product, you want to educate your visitors before you try to sell them on it. If you want your visitors to join a mailing list, explain the benefits they will receive first. That way, when someone is asked to enter in their personal information, they have everything they need to make an informed decision.
You should also stay away from “busy” design elements, like certain fonts and image choices. If you overdo it in an attempt to stand out, your visitors will be distracted by irrelevant information. Example: if your visitors are flooded with pop-ups, any useful information on the page will get lost in all the noise.
This type of intuitive thinking will result in more conversions, and will also help to establish trust with your audience. Drawing out the page or creating an outline beforehand is a great way to organize your ideas.
Use Social Proof and Testimonials
Landing pages are the perfect place to showcase why your company, product or service is valuable. For local businesses, having a strong reputation in the community can go a long way, especially when there is tangible proof. Did you get a 5-star rating on Yelp? Are recommendations flooding in on your Facebook business page? Be prepared to back the claims you make with proven results. It will help you establish yourself as an authority in the community and increase the number of visitors who are willing to convert.
Don’t Overwhelm Your Visitors with Choices
Set up your landing pages with a specific goal or marketing objective in mind. This goes back to the same best practices from above – keep your framework simple and the messaging clear. Do not have multiple call-to-actions on a single page, as it could be overwhelming for your visitors. If you have multiple goals and objectives, build out a different page for each task. Using separation will also make it easier to measure the effectiveness of each individual landing page.
Learning how to optimize your landing pages will increase your conversion rate and strengthen your brand loyalty. Think of each one of these pages as a gateway to your brand. If your landing pages are built successfully, your visitors will be feel compelled to continue on their user journey. However, if they are performing poorly, it could hurt your traffic, sales, and overall reputation in the online community.
