Landing Page is an opportunity for the company to tell the most important thing about their products and services within a few seconds, and for a potential client – to make sure that it has hit “bullseye”. Besides, it is a powerful tool for converting traffic and generating leads.
The complexity of the task increases many times if you make a website that works as a web service that offers an access to software through the Internet (Software as a Service).
It is one question when you need to create a landing page and the optimization of it — is definitely another. In this article, we’ll show you how to optimize your landing page and will provide a “soft landing” to the user on the main resource, thereby placing him/her to act, whether buying, registering, downloading a file, subscribing, filling in the required form or simply go to the desired page.
There is a law of form and content. In our case, they are design and content. It is necessary to realize those are words that convince the potential client. It is not only the text in its pure form but also video, infographic, photographs with explanations. Your sales depend on how you present your product or service in your content marketing efforts.
#1. Offer decides everything
The first thing that strikes the visitor of a landing page is a heading. It should be made in a beautiful large font, while its content marketing is crucial for SaaS companies. The essence of the title is an offer or a unique trade proposal.
How do you differ from your competitors? What will be valuable to your client? The answer to these questions also gives the offer. Clear, concise, convincing. Did you know about the 5 seconds rule? According to the results of numerous studies, it takes 5 sec for Internet users to decide whether to stay on the page or to leave.
Ideally, the visitor’s reaction should be like: “I finally found it!” The minimum task is to scroll the page to an end.
Here are examples of value propositions from the practice of several SaaS companies:
Offers on high-conversion landings are similar in 3 parameters:
- Specificity
- Uniqueness
- Value
First, the visitor will not puzzle over what you are offering.
Secondly, there should not be an impression “here everything is like everywhere else”. Template offers cannot sell.
Finally, the central element of the offer is the value or benefit for the client. This is measured not only in money. The profit means the solution of the problem for the buyer.
Do you remember the classic plot with a drill? A person buys a tool, not for the sake of a tool, but to drill a hole. Holes are needed to hang a picture. The picture is meant to create a cosiness in the house. Trace this chain on your product, and sell coziness, not drills. See the rest of internet marketing tricks for SaaS projects here.
A bad example: “We will acquire customers via Google Adwords.”
The proposal is specific, with a hint of benefit (we’ll bring customers), but it’s painfully standard. Today thousands of agencies are engaged in setting up contextual advertising. No uniqueness.
A better variant: “Setting up Google Adwords with a conversion rate of 4%. Or we return the money.”
The value of this offer is the guarantee of a specific result (4% conversion rate) with the condition of a refund. Perhaps, for a given niche, a more accurate offer can not be invented.
#2. Offer a strong benefit in your CTA
Typically, most SaaS sites use CTA (Сall to Action) to tell the user to register. Most buttons are about “Sign Up Now”. In the preview, you explain why the user should leave his contacts. What will he receive by performing the targeted action? The most common options for targeted action:
- Request for a free audit or consultation.
- Free registration. Usually used by software services.
- Request for a free test-drive of the service.
- Request for calculating the cost of services.
- Access to information. Applicable to subscription pages as part of email marketing.
CTA button – is a “squeeze” of the main benefit in its pure form. An effective call to action is equivalent to obtaining the desired result (example 1) or is based on curiosity (example 2).
There are numerous disputes about how to make a lead-form: hidden (only the CTA button is visible on the page) or open. There is no unequivocal answer. See what works best for your target audience or test both of them.
The following example is interesting with an explanation of what will happen after sending the contact information. This increases the confidence of users.
# 3. Speak about the client, not about yourself
Landings with high conversion are not focused only on the characteristics of the company or product, but also on the benefits of the client. Many pages use blocks such as About Us, Our Advantages, Why Choose Us, How We Work.
Put yourself in client’s shoes. What would they like to receive using your product?
In approximately this way:
It is often enough to change the title “Why choose us” to “What you get”, “How to help you”. The feeling is completely different. Remember that the buyers, in the long run, do not care about your achievements. They want to satisfy their need.
#4. Use hypnotic words
These are words that subconsciously act to make a positive decision by the visitor of your landing. Shortlist:
- You
- Imagine
- Because
- Is free
- Gift
Of course, everything is good in moderation, and do not shove them into every sentence. Use these for landing page inspiration.
#5. Avoid template formulations
Probably, you know about garbage phrases like “dynamically developing company”. In fact, you can add to them the definitions that are in use on every other landing pages:
- Fast
- Qualitatively
- Professionally
- Reliable
- Inexpensive
The fact is that each person has his own ideas about speed, quality, and price. Therefore, never make conclusions about the product for the client! Let the user decide himself how profitable your proposal is, based on specific facts.
In the same list of “dismissed”, you can put any phrase that does not make sense. For example, “Comprehensive solution of your business problems”, “Simple solution of complex problems” or “Make success with us”. They are applicable to hundreds of niches and the uniqueness of the offer is not shown in any way.
Personal advice from the author: remove empty phrases full of adjectives and adverbs. Facts speak better than any words. For example, mention where your employees were trained and what experience they have.
#6. Prove what you say
Facts require careful handling. Unauthorized statements are subconsciously read by Internet users as falsity and manipulation. Remember the legendary expression of David Ogilvy “The consumer isn’t a moron; she is your wife.”? Therefore, the promises which are completely arbitrary, kill the conversion of the landing mercilessly.
For example: “Development with the high conversion! Revolutionary marketing and advertising technologies with a minimum return of 200%.”
Tim Ash would have envied. It’s time for Dan Kennedy to drop his coaching and become a member of the student’s ranks. 🙂
An example for imitation is Typeform whose advertising campaigns are built on clear evidence that users who use Typeform are all humans:
If it is possible, instead of superfluous words, make photos, videos demonstrating your product in action. Finally, post the feedback from your customers.
#7. Use only real reviews
Some entrepreneurs refer to reviews in the spirit of “we’ll write ourselves or ask a copywriter.” And do you know that phony reviews reduce conversion more than false facts? Sometimes it comes to ridiculous: people find their face on some landing under a fake name.
The reviews are so delicate that even real quotes should be treated selectively.
“Wow, it was cool!” and “Thank you, I recommend everyone” is better to miss. The ideal selling tip is built according to the scheme “The essence of the problem – Why did I turn to this company – How they solved the problem – Result – Recommendations”.
A good example of client’s reviews:
Satisfied customers, as a rule, can in detail with numbers write you good feedback. To facilitate the process, give them this 5 steps scheme.
#8. Too much or lack of text
The number of characters determines your niche and offer. The more complex the product, the more it is described. If this is a B2B area with a long decision-making cycle, provide answers to the objections, convince all possible types of evidence (photo, video, screenshots, calculations).
On the contrary, in the B2B market, there are more hot requests. Therefore, brief emotional arguments and bright visualization of the product are relevant here.
The amount of text determines not even the niche, but the consumer and the target audience. The number of symbols must be enough to convince customers. No more, no less.
#9. Check mistakes in the text
The trust of your landing page visitor is a fragile thing. Trust is very difficult to achieve, and too easy to lose because of oversights. Believe us, the “mistEkes” smear the impression of the strongest proposal. So better not to spare $19/month for the text editor, rather than losing ten times more.
Instead of conclusion
Of course, there are much more tricks of landing page optimization. But it is enough to take these nine principles as a basis, test them and choose what seems effective to you.
Wish you soft and effective landing!
