What makes a landing page different
A landing page isn’t just any page on your website. It’s a page with a single, focused purpose. Unlike your homepage, which might serve as a general introduction to your business, or your about page, which tells your story, a landing page exists to drive one specific conversion.
That might be a form submission, a phone call, a download, or a purchase. The point is that everything on the page should support that single goal.
If you’ve read our complete guide to CRO, you’ll know that removing friction and focusing on the desired action are fundamental principles. Landing pages are where those principles get put into practice most directly.
The anatomy of a landing page that converts
A headline that earns attention
Your headline is the first thing visitors read, and for many of them, it’s the deciding factor in whether they stay or leave. As we covered in our post on the importance of well-crafted headings, the words you choose matter more than most people realise.
A strong landing page headline should:
- Be specific. “We build websites” is vague. “WordPress websites that generate leads for service businesses” tells the visitor exactly what’s on offer and whether it’s relevant to them.
- Address the visitor’s problem or desire. People don’t care about your features. They care about their problems being solved.
- Be clear, not clever. Puns and wordplay might make you smile, but they often confuse visitors. Clarity beats cleverness every time.
A supporting subheading can expand on the headline with a bit more detail, but the headline itself needs to do the heavy lifting.
Above the fold: First impressions count
“Above the fold” refers to what visitors see before they scroll. On a landing page, this real estate is prime territory. It should include:
- Your headline and subheading
- A clear call to action (button, form, or both)
- A relevant image or video that reinforces your message
- A brief value proposition or supporting statement
The goal is to give visitors enough information to understand what you’re offering and what to do next, without requiring them to scroll. Not everyone will convert above the fold, but everyone should know what the page is about.
Calls to action that actually get clicked
Your CTA is the most important element on the page. It’s the action you want visitors to take. Getting it right involves a few things:
- Use action-oriented, specific language. “Get your free quote” is better than “Submit.” “Download the checklist” is better than “Click here.”
- Make it visually prominent. The CTA button should stand out from the rest of the page. Use a contrasting colour and enough white space around it so it doesn’t get lost.
- Repeat it. On longer landing pages, don’t just have one CTA at the top. Include it at natural break points throughout the page so visitors can convert when they’re ready, not just when they first arrive.
- Reduce anxiety around the click. Add a short line near the button addressing common hesitations: “No credit card required,” “Free, no obligation,” “Takes 30 seconds.”
Your call to action should tell people exactly what happens when they click, and it should make them want to click it.
Social proof: Let others do the convincing
People look to others when making decisions. It’s human nature. On a landing page, social proof comes in many forms:
- Testimonials: Short, specific quotes from real customers. Include their name, company, and photo if possible. Generic testimonials with no attribution carry almost no weight.
- Case studies: A brief mention of a specific result you achieved for a client. Numbers help here: “Increased enquiries by 150% in 3 months.”
- Reviews and ratings: If you have Google reviews or Trustpilot scores, show them.
- Client logos: If you work with recognisable brands, their logos add instant credibility.
- Numbers: “Trusted by 500+ businesses” or “10 years of experience” provide reassurance.
Place social proof near your CTA if possible. That’s where visitors are making their decision, so that’s where reassurance has the biggest impact.
Form design: Less is more
If your landing page includes a form (and most do), how you design it directly affects how many people fill it in. We covered quick conversion wins related to forms before, but here are the key points:
- Only ask for what you need. Every additional field reduces completions. Do you really need their company name at this stage? Their job title? Think carefully.
- Use sensible defaults and auto-fill. Make it as easy as possible for people to complete.
- Label fields clearly. Don’t use placeholder text as the only label because it disappears when someone starts typing.
- Show progress if the form has multiple steps.
- Make the submit button specific. “Send my free quote” tells the visitor what happens next. “Submit” tells them nothing.
Benefits, not features
A common mistake on landing pages is listing features instead of benefits. Features describe what your product or service does. Benefits describe what it does for the customer.
“Our software has automated reporting” is a feature. “Save 5 hours a week with automated reports” is a benefit. The benefit answers the question every visitor is silently asking: “What’s in it for me?”
Structure your page content around benefits first, then support them with features and details for visitors who want to dig deeper.
Mobile landing pages: Getting it right
More than half of web traffic comes from mobile devices, and this proportion is even higher for local searches. If your landing page doesn’t work well on a phone, you’re leaving conversions on the table.
- Thumb-friendly buttons. CTAs need to be big enough to tap easily. Apple recommends a minimum target size of 44×44 pixels.
- Simplified forms. Filling in forms on mobile is more effort than on desktop. Consider reducing fields even further on mobile or using mobile-friendly input types (e.g., numeric keyboard for phone numbers).
- Fast loading. Mobile connections are often slower. Compress images, minimise code, and test on real devices.
- Readable text. If visitors need to pinch and zoom to read your page, they’ll leave. Use readable font sizes and sufficient line spacing.
- Click-to-call. For service businesses, a tap-to-call button on mobile is incredibly effective. Make your phone number a clickable link.
What to leave off a landing page
Just as important as what you include is what you leave out. Remember, the goal is a single conversion action.
- Full navigation menus. These give visitors escape routes away from your conversion goal. Consider a minimal header or no navigation at all on dedicated landing pages.
- Competing CTAs. One primary action per page. If you’re asking people to fill in a form, don’t also ask them to follow you on social media, read your blog, and download a PDF.
- Walls of text. Keep copy concise and scannable. Use headings, bullet points, and white space to break things up.
- Stock photos that scream “stock.” Generic images of people in suits shaking hands do nothing for credibility. Use real photos where possible, or at least choose stock that feels authentic.
Testing your landing pages
You won’t get your landing page perfect on the first try, and that’s fine. A/B testing lets you systematically improve by comparing different versions.
Good things to test on landing pages:
- Headlines: Test different angles, benefit statements, or levels of specificity.
- CTA button text and colour: Small changes here can have outsized effects.
- Form length: Try reducing fields and see if completions increase enough to offset the loss of data.
- Social proof placement: Above the fold vs near the CTA vs both.
- Page length: Sometimes shorter converts better. Sometimes longer does. Test to find out.
The best landing pages are never “finished.” They’re continuously refined based on real performance data.
A practical checklist
Before you publish any landing page, run through this list:
- Does the page have a single, clear goal?
- Is the headline specific and benefit-focused?
- Is there a clear CTA above the fold?
- Does the page include social proof?
- Is the form as short as it can possibly be?
- Does it load quickly on mobile?
- Have you removed unnecessary navigation and distractions?
- Does the page work on your actual phone, not just in a browser resize?
Our 10 heuristics for website design and simple guide to effective web design are both useful companions to this post if you want to dig deeper into the design principles behind high-converting pages.
If you want help building landing pages that actually pull their weight, our CRO and web design services are built around exactly this kind of work.
