Why you should love your landing pages
In recent months I have been asked about website landing pages by a few of my clients. They can be difficult to understand, because they are conceptual in nature. But, understanding them is essential for good SEO
Here are some of the most frequent questions I get on the subject.
What are website landing pages?
The term “landing page” is used to describe any page on your website which is commonly the first page a visitor sees when they arrive.
How are landing pages different to other pages?
For almost all technical purposes, “landing pages” are no different to the other pages on your website. What makes them different is their dual purpose, which is to help attract the interest of potential visitors and, once they arrive, move them towards some higher-level objective, such as a sale. Or, to put it in marketing-speak, into your conversion funnel.
On most websites, the most important and most frequently visited landing page is the home page.
Why are landing pages important?
By designating pages of your website as landing pages, you can increase the effectiveness and efficiency of your marketing activities. They are the entry point to your sales process and can make the difference between success and failure.
What is a good website landing page?
A well-crafted landing page should have the following characteristics:
- It will rank well in Google for keyword or group of keywords
- It will be designed to meet the needs of visitors with some specific intent
- It will be a fully integrated part of sales funnel and will have a high “conversion rate”
To summarise, the best landing pages on your web site will receive a relatively high level of search traffic or referral traffic and a relatively high conversion rate.
Why should I use them in my online marketing?
Efficiency is the key marketing your business successfully. Clearly defining the role of each page on your website enables you to:
- Prioritise, i.e. on which pages to invest your time and money.
- Measure their performance. Because you know what they are for, you find out how good they are at it
Most importantly, using the landing page methodology will help you to identify the pages on your site that are competing for the same ranking points, to the detriment of all.
What are the other pages called?
They are usually referred to as “utility pages”. Their role should be designed to help visitors progress toward the goal you had in mind.
How can I start to use of landing pages?
It is not difficult, but to do it well you might need some specialist help.
To make a start, write a list of the most important 5 pages of your website that you to believe are your most important landing pages. Ideally you should use Google Analytics.
For each page:
Write down what the purpose of the page is. Such as, “this page is designed to meet the needs of people who want to buy a fishing rod, but do not what type they need.”
- Identify the keywords used by people searching the web who have that intent. You can research this on Google Trends.
- Describe what you want visitors to do after they land on this page.
- Explain how you would measure the pages performance. What goals would you have to setup in in Google analytics
- Review the current page and write down three things that you could improve having completed your research
In a couple of hours this process will begin to change your perspective on how you develop your website and expose some “unknown unknowns”
Further reading is available here.
Will I need help?
Yes, almost certainly. There is plenty of information available online but getting the support of an experienced SEO would be beneficial.
There is quite a lot of technical stuff involved in SEO and few absolute certainties. Getting access to the experience of others usually speeds the SEO process and makes projects more likely to pay dividends.
Feel free to contact meusing the form below if you have any specific questions using the form below.