Everyone understands that the final step after getting people to your website is to convert them, but far too few people are using landing pages properly to achieve this. 44% of clicks for B2B companies go directly to the homepage of the website instead of landing pages (http://www.meclabs.com/training/). Your website homepage may be optimised for an organic visitor but it certainly isn't the right follow on from an advert. Here we explore the importance of landing pages and why you should use them.
What is a landing page?
A landing page is a web page that will allow you to capture the imagination of a visitor. Good landing pages will target a specific audience and will encourage this person to engage in a particular way. This may be by buying, downloading or subscribing.
How do they work?
Landing pages offer a direct route from a call to action to interaction, creating a genuine and valuable lead for your business. What a landing page does differently is that it offers your potential customer a direct route to follow. Instead of advertising one service and then taking a customer to your homepage where they can choose from a range of services, landing pages take them directly to a point of engagement with your company. Whether or not this is to sign up for a consultation or find out more, it completes the journey for the client so that they don't have to click again. This will reduce bounce rates dramatically and hugely increase interactions.
Why you need to start using them today
These simple reasons should make it clear that you should start making better use of landing pages today:
1. Generate leads easily - Landing pages can dramatically improve your lead generation by increasing your ability to convert customers.
2. Give offers a home - Offers can sit comfortably on landing pages where they are not commonly accessible. This saves you from the trap of discounting custom that was yours anyway.
3. Collect information - Landing pages allow you to start a conversation and learn more about visitors. Doing so will help you to develop your marketing strategy.
4. Understand prospect engagement - Landing pages allow you to track conversions so you can rate visitors by value and hone your marketing more effectively.
5. Fuel other channels - Landing pages can provide you with fuel for other marketing channels, giving you something to promote and drive customers towards.