It’s no secret that optimizing landing pages are essential. After all, it’s the page users see after clicking on a link in an email, social media post, or paid advertisement. But many people don’t realize just how vital optimizing those pages can be.
There are several reasons why having an optimized landing page is crucial. First and foremost, landing pages help you get more traffic to your site. By including relevant keywords and phrases, you can ensure your pages show up in search engine results when people are looking for products or services like yours.
Second, landing pages help you build relationships with potential customers. By providing valuable content or a free trial, you can earn their trust and start to establish a rapport.
Once you have a relationship with potential customers, it’ll be much easier to sell them your products or services down the line.
To have high converting landing pages that result in more leads and sales, you need to ensure they’re optimized for both users and search engines. Here are 12 reasons why optimizing your landing pages is more important than you think:
1. It’s the first impression potential customers will have of your business
The design and layout are the first things potential customers see when they click on your landing page. If it’s not well put together or easy to navigate, they’ll likely click away and never come back. First impressions are everything, so you must ensure your landing page is up to par.
Many people also base their decision to do business with a company on their website design. If your website looks outdated or unprofessional, potential customers will also assume your products and services are.
2. It determines whether or not people will stay on your site
If users can’t figure out what they’re supposed to do on your landing page, they’ll likely leave and go to a competitor’s site. Make sure your page is easy to navigate, and the call-to-action is clear.
Your goal should be to lead users through your page, so they take the desired action, whether it’s signing up for a newsletter, downloading a white paper, or making a purchase.
3. Optimized pages have better conversion rates
The whole point of a landing page is to get users to take action, so the page must be optimized for conversions. This means including a solid call to action, using persuasive copy, and having a form that’s easy to fill out.
If your landing page isn’t optimized, you’re likely losing out on potential customers and sales.
4. You can test different versions to see what works best
One of the great things about landing pages is that they’re easy to test. You can try out different designs, layouts, and calls to action to see what produces the best results.
This is known as A/B testing, an essential part of conversion rate optimization. By testing different versions of your landing page, you can determine what works best for your business and your customers.
5. They’re a crucial part of inbound marketing
Inbound marketing is all about getting found by potential customers online. And one of the best ways to do that is by optimizing your landing pages for search engines.
By including relevant keywords and phrases, you can ensure your pages appear in search results when people are looking for products or services like yours. This will help you get more traffic to your site and, ultimately, more leads and sales.
6. They help you build relationships with potential customers
A landing page is a great way to build relationships with potential customers. By providing valuable content or a free trial, you can earn their trust and establish a rapport.
Once you have a relationship with potential customers, it’ll be much easier to sell them your products or services down the line.
7. They can be used for lead generation
Lead generation is turning potential customers into leads who can be marketed to in the future. And landing pages are an essential part of that process.
By including a form on your landing page, you can collect information like names, email addresses, and phone numbers from potential customers. This will allow you to follow up with them later and turn them into paying customers.
8. They’re a great way to collect feedback
If you’re unsure what potential customers want or need, a landing page is a great way to find out. By including a survey or form on your page, you can collect feedback from visitors about your products, services, and business as a whole.
This information can be invaluable in helping you make decisions about your business and improve your offerings.
9. They can be used to promote events
If you’re hosting an event or webinar, a landing page is a great way to promote it. Including all the relevant information on the page can increase awareness and interest in the event.
Use landing pages to sell tickets or sign people up for the event. This makes it easy for potential attendees to get all the information they need in one place.
10. They can be used for email marketing
Email marketing is a great way to stay in touch with potential and current customers. And landing pages can be a valuable part of that process.
By including an email signup form on your landing page, you can collect people’s contact information to add them to your email list. You can send them updates about your business, special offers, and more.
11. They’re an essential part of any online marketing campaign
Landing pages are a vital component of any online marketing campaign, whether it’s a paid search campaign or a social media campaign.
They provide a focused, targeted way to reach potential customers and get them to take action. Converting potential customers into leads and sales without a landing page would be much more complex.
12. They can be used to increase brand awareness
If you’re looking to increase brand awareness, a landing page can be a great way to do it. By including your branding on the page, you can ensure potential customers remember your business when they’re ready to buy.
You can also use landing pages to promote specific products or services, which can help people learn more about what you offer.
Stop interrupting what people are interested in, and be what people are interested in. Have you tried employing viral inbound marketing campaigns? In today’s socially engaged and networked marketplace, viral word of mouth marketing has moved to the top of marketing campaign elements at your disposal.
In this blog, we will discuss viral content marketing examples and lessons we can derive from them.
Viral content marketing campaigns are one of the best ways to get potential customers talking about you.
Viral content takes consumers by surprise, makes an indelible impression, and pops up where and when people least expect it. It often has a large targeted audience and often can be accomplished at reduced cost. While there are definite actions to take, it is very difficult to achieve the optimum results.
Related: Guinness Marketing Campaign Shows Their Creativity
By being a little more clever and unpredictable, you challenge consumers who appreciate a little fun in their products.
The techniques require creativity, flexibility and a willingness to take a little risk. Creating viral content that taps into the human psyche is the Holy Grail for many marketers.
Going viral is quite possibly the fastest, most cost-effective method to publicize your business on a grand scale. The beauty of a viral YouTube video that when combined with a tweet and mass media, is that your brand will make a memorable impression on a huge audience within a short time.
So a viral video is a publicist’s dream and a marketer’s hope for fame but there’s just one question:
How do you do it?
What makes something go viral in the first place? We examine this question through some of my favorite examples of viral content campaigns:
Inbound marketing … WePay
One of my favorite examples of a company going viral and creating a story worth talking about is WePay and their stunt of leaving a 600-pound block of ice in front of a PayPal conference.
WePay’s execution here was brilliant: for years, people had been complaining about how PayPal would “freeze” their accounts, locking them out from withdrawing the money they earned. If you sell goods online, your PayPal account could be a big part of your livelihood, so to be locked out and ignored was obviously enraging for many people.
No surprise, then, that WePay’s jab at PayPal’s willingness to freeze your money was so well received! Press around the story was whirling, starting with coverage on TechCrunch:
Since some of the biggest points of difference that WePay offered were dependability, security, and customer service that PayPal has often been accused of lacking. Taking a jab at their competitor with this stunt wasn’t just for random, pointless press; it got people talking about a problem WePay truly hoped to address.
Related post: Jaw-Dropping Guerrilla Marketing Lessons and Examples
Will it blend?
Blendtec will it blend?
How the heck do you promote a line of blenders? That’s the question Blendtec found itself asking when it wanted to promote its new line of blenders. It’s tough for a blender to have “social currency,” so what could they do?
Funny. Memorable. Manly. The keys to success from the ‘Will It Blend’ marketing campaign. Any certainly something you’ll want to do for a networked market. Like Blendtec did very successfully.
‘Will It Blend’ is a marketing campaign consisting of a series of infomercials demonstrating the Blendtec line of blenders. In the show, Tom Dickson, the Blendtec founder, attempts to blend various unusual items in order to show off the toughness and power of his blender.
This brilliant viral campaign was found in the series called Will It Blend?, a video collection of Blendtec blenders destroying (or not destroying) popular items that definitely should not be in a blender.
The genius of this series was not only in how it made blenders a discussion topic (seriously, kudos) but in how the videos showcased just how rugged Blendtec blenders really were.
The showmanship may have been great, but these videos were also moving products. If a blender can spit up and chew out an airsoft pistol, it can most certainly handle any fruits and vegetables that you’ll throw at it.
Inbound marketing examples … Dove
The Dove Evolution viral ad is effective because it sends a positive message about the true definition of beauty. And this video really did spread like a virus. Not only did it get nearly 2 million hits within a month’s time, but it also received attention from top TV shows.
Inbound marketing strategy … Kmart
With revenue continuing its long, steady decline, Kmart teamed with ad agency FCB to reenergize its much-maligned brand, promoting its product-delivery program by appealing to the fun personality in all of us.
The “Ship My Pants” online video embraces sophomoric wordplay to inform customers that items that are out of stock in Kmart stores may now be shipped directly to their homes for free.
Key elements of viral content
Viral content requires the aligning of the stars, but there are some key elements to look for as part of your campaign:
Play on emotion
Find content that will touch your audience’s hearts, souls or nerve endings. In a world that tends to be all business, make folks laugh out loud, cry or blink in surprise (preferably all three) and you will make them remember you.
If your industry is serious, don’t be afraid to make a joke (as long as it’s in good taste). Find ways to make people laugh.
Use simple concepts
Your message should be simple but compelling and without an ounce of excess flab. Just get your brand out there… in a good way.
High-quality content is key. Most people can tell the difference between meat and fluff, and that makes the crucial difference in what they will take the time to read or view and pass on to others.
Just be real.
Be real
There’s no need to pretty up your product or fake your viewers out. Ikea’s Herding Cats was real, wasn’t it? Relevant also helps. If you can pull it together to relate to a current event, an issue in your industry or a popular trend that will help but you’ve still got to ensure it’s relevant to your audience.
Offer help or be entertaining
Offer something in return for your viewers’ or readers’ time and attention. ‘How to (insert topic)’ tips and instructions, discounts or freebies and solid news updates are all ways to provide perceived value, which can then be tied in with your particular business.
An off-kilter, daring, funny example is the Dollar Shave Club, a parody on the fad of clubs out there, hilarious and at the same time chock full of marketing. You’ll need to watch it at least twice to catch it all.
Reach out
Your goal is not just to manufacture widgets but to make those widgets meaningful and relevant. To do this, you need to tailor your message to your audience. Use language, images and, of course, a medium that your intended customers will relate to.
The launch video for Apple’s iOS5, for instance, showed casually dressed Apple executives demonstrating the device’s new features with catchy, flashy shots of the product. Although at almost 6 minutes, this video is on the long side, it has still been viewed by more than 3 million potential customers.
Use the caring card
A project that you share the same view of the world as your audience. Connect to common concerns. For example, the International Social Survey Program found, in surveying 33 countries, that the state of the economy tops the list of issues considered most pressing.
So the themes of saving money or creating jobs are likely to resonate with your public. Keep the mood positive, even inspirational, and the chances of being liked or forwarded increase.
There are no guarantees
Now, all that being said, you can select all of the above and put them together into an “epic” vlog and then what? You post it and wait for the earth to move, yet somehow… it doesn’t. There is no way of predicting with any certainty what will go viral and what will merely make your mother happy.
As well as content, timing and sheer luck play a role in going viral. But that’s the beauty of viral; some of the best come from a crazy list of ideas, quickly thought up. They are fast projects so even if they don’t get the response you hoped for, you have not invested a major portion of your budget.
If virality can be understood through the emotional state of the sharer, and how aroused they are, the video content (and written content) can be prepared by marketers to evoke the right emotions.
In simple terms: you should not be playing it too safe. In order to evoke high levels of arousal such as awe, surprise, amusement, anger or anxiety, you are going to need to be pushing the boundaries and giving something highly original.
So what’s the conclusion? The conclusion is there is no conclusion. There is only the next step. And that next step is completely up to you. But believe in the effectiveness of word of mouth marketing created by remarkable customer service. And put it to good use.
It’s up to you to keep improving your creative marketing strategies. Lessons are all around you. In this case, your competitor may be providing the ideas and or inspiration. But the key is in knowing that it is within you already.
All you get is what you bring to the fight. And that fight gets better every day you learn and apply new lessons.
When things go wrong, what’s most important is your next step.
Try. Learn. Improve. Repeat.
Are you devoting enough energy to improving your marketing, branding, and advertising?
Do you have a lesson about making your marketing strategy better you can share with this community? Have any questions or comments to add in the section below?
Mike Schoultz is the founder of Digital Spark Marketing, a digital marketing and customer service agency. With 40 years of business experience, he writes about topics to help improve the performance of small business. Find him on G+, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
Digital Spark Marketing will stretch your thinking and your ability to adapt to change. We also provide some fun and inspiration along the way. Call us for a free quote today. You will be amazed at how reasonable we will be.
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