Tag Archives: b to b marketing

How to Write a Landing Page That Sells

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landing page writing

There are several elements that every landing page needs in order to convert.

If you don’t know what a landing page is, it’s a page on your site that is set up specifically to ask for an action: this could be signing up for a newsletter, ordering an ebook, or registering for a webinar.

Think of it as your 24/7 sales page.  The page that works night and day, answering questions, selling your products, and helping your customers (even when your company is closed).

Start with a headline

The first thing your page will need is  a great headline.  This is the first thing readers will see when they get there, and it has to grab their attention right away.  If not, they’ll just click away.

If you’re sending readers from an ad campaign or an email message, make sure the headlines match. This tells visitors they have come to the right place.

Build on the headline

Did that headline make a big promise?  Or offer to solve a problem?  Are you directing it at a specific group of people?

Build on the attention you got with that headline.  Tell readers how you will deliver on that promise.  Show them you understand the problem they are having and that you really can solve it.

Use simple words

When you know too much about something, and how it’s supposed to work, it’s difficult to look at it without that “curse of knowledge.” Instead, use clear, simple language.  This is not the time to show off your vocabulary or lard your page with jargon.

Resist the temptation to use technical terms (unless you’re absolutely sure that your audience knows them). I recently reviewed a site discussing great PC apps – the writer talked about P2P, winamp, and VPNs.  I know what those things mean (since I speak conversational geek).  The average computer user probably doesn’t.

Talk in terms your audience will understand (without running to Google, or worse, leaving your site in frustration).

Clear instructions

See the sign at the top of the post?  It’s in a park in Canada.  Should you go left? Or should you go right?  What would you find in either direction?  Restrooms?  Restaurants?  Lodging?  Flower gardens? I can’t tell what the people who posted the signs want me to do.  Can you?

Same thing with web sales pages.  If you’re not clear about who you are or what you want people to do, they’ll click away from your page, leave your site, and never come back.

Stay focused

Have a single object in mind (that sign up for instance). Know what you want people to do when they get to your page.  Sign up for a newsletter? Buy something? Click on more articles?

Ask for one thing

Don’t overwhelm or confuse people with too many choices.  Use those big call to action buttons. Explain what readers will get when they sign up, and how often they’ll receive it.

I spoke to someone recently who set up his website with several pages discussing his services…and no clear call to action.  Instead, he had links on the side he was hoping people would click on to find out more.  No clear call to action.

Experiment and test

If your page isn’t doing as well as you’d like, experiment.  Try different calls to action.  Move the buttons around.  Test different versions of your page against each other.  Track the clicks and the sales to see which version performs better.

The 5 Step Guide to Perfect Landing Pages

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Landing shuttle

Image via Wikipedia

“The goal of a test is to get learning, not a lift,” Dr. Flint McGlaughlin, CEO & Managing Director, MECLABS. (Marketing Sherpa, June 9, 2011)

Translated from marketing speak, that means when you test something, such as a landing page, or an offer, you want to get data and information – learn something.

If you get more sales, that’s great. If not, you use what you learned to make something better.

Failure is good

One company tested two landing pages (click link to see them) against their existing page. The responses tanked (down 53% from the original page). They realized that the original page was too copy-heavy – it was slowing people down, and actually making it less likely that they would sign up.

Back to the drawing board

So, they tried a new version (click to see it) – with much less text. This one increased responses by 78%. Aha!

Best practices for landing pages

1. Write a great headline

Don’t shout too much (ME! We’re here, we’ve been in business since the Jurassic era). You don’t want to be annoying (or arrogant), you want to be helpful – and relevant.

2. Be unique and interesting

Explain why you’re different. Perhaps you’re a wedding photographer, but you specialize in exotic weddings (underwater, on ski slopes, or on board yachts).

3. Cut the friction

The test showed that less was more (in this case). Fewer fields, and fewer words. They needed fewer words because readers already had enough information; they didn’t need to read it again.

4. Show value

If you want them to download an ebook (or buy one), show how valuable it is. You can do this by assigning it a price ($29 value), by adding testimonials showing how others benefited from the product, or even just a picture of everything they’ll get (even if it’s virtual).

5. Be trustworthy

This is both social proof (those testimonials again), and reassurance that you respect your readers’ privacy. (Tip: Chris Brogan recently said that he got much better results when he promised privacy, rather than “no spam”).

How to test your landing page

If you’re not sure of the technical stuff, you can do this by creating several landing pages and tracking with Google Web Optimizer (free). Or, you can try unbounce, which helps you create and track landing pages (even if you’re not a geek).

The Connection Between Copywriting and Home Improvements

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one year and four months later

Image by eye of einstein via Flickr

Ever hear of “so long and might as” project syndrome?

It’s what happens when small projects slowly (and sneakily) turn into big ones.

It all began when a family friend started remodeling his house.  One thing led to another, and the project kept getting bigger and bigger and bigger.

Here’s what happens

For instance, the living room looks kinda grungy.  So you repaint it.  Then, of course, the dining room starts to look dingy in comparison. So you think, “well so long as I’m painting the living room, I might as well paint the dining room too.” Then you notice that the wooden floor in the hallway looks all scratched up.  So you refinish it.  And on and on and on.

This happens with copywriting and marketing projects too.  So long as you’re placing an ad  or writing a landing page asking people to download your ebook, you might as well ask them to sign up for your newsletter too. Oh, and maybe follow you on Twitter or Facebook.

Stop the scope creep!

Keep that up with home renovations and pretty soon you’ll be buried in paint, lumber, new plumbing, new fixtures, and large appliance boxes.  You’ll swiftly turn a $200 project into a $2000 project.

Let that scope creep affect your copywriting and your marketing and you’ll confuse people.  They won’t know what to do first. The danger is that they may be overwhelmed and end up doing nothing at all.

The other variation on this is when a simple project (write three blog posts) turns into three blog posts, plus a landing page, plus a newsletter, plus an email campaign.  This is great if there’s additional payment to go with the additional work.  Make sure you stop and make it clear to your client that adding to the project adds to the bill too.

Keep your call to action simple

The best thing to do is to focus on one thing.  Ask for that thing, such as downloading that ebook, or calling for a free quote.  But just that one thing, don’t add sharing buttons to your landing pages.

It’s OK to offer several ways to contact you (email, web, phone). Some people prefer to talk to someone, while others would rather just send an email and be finished with it.

Options that make your customers lives easier are fine.

Just don’t end up like the poor guy in the photo (still working one year and four months later).

Oh, and the family friend? He ended up starting a renovation business called “So Long and Mightas”

How to Write Magnetic Email Subject Lines

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Iron filings showing the direction of the magn...

Image via Wikipedia

Do you know what makes an email subject line irresistible?  What are the top email subject lines?  And how can you make sure that your emails get opened?

A great subject line is the key to your email campaign’s success. It’s the first thing your readers see. If the subject line is dull (or irrelevant), your message won’t be seen. Think of it like a news headline.  It’s got to grab attention, and grab it quickly.

Surprising top email subject lines

In some cases, the emails that get opened the most will have subject lines that are, well, dull:  “Broadcast Stat Report”, “[Company] Holiday Party, or “Your Order From [Company].”

These messages get high open rates because they’re immediate (where’s the party?), relevant (report on your email broadcast), useful and specific (how many people opened my email and how many clicks did I get?).

What makes a subject line irresistible?

Using the line “Holiday Party” is OK for just sending information. If you want people to take action, you’ll need something more compelling.

The best email subject lines (if you’re marketing something) are those that promise useful, specific, relevant information, without a hard sell or spammy promises of instant internet riches. If you want your emails to get opened, avoid continually offering “sales.”  At first, they may just hit delete.  After a while, it’s straight to the unsubscribe link.

Clean and simple headline

Use a spam checker (this should be included in your email newsletter provider’s software) to look for words that might send your message to the spam folder.

Keep it shorter (longer subject lines tend to get cut off in preview mode).

Offer solutions to immediate problems

One of my best-performing email subject lines was “Five things your website must have.” Another top performer was “How to get the fees you deserve.” Write something that excites curiosity; the only way to find out what those five things were was to open the email.

Focus on your readers

Make the subject about your readers (not you).  If you want opinions, ask “what do you think?, “rather than “help us with this survey.” Ask them to do something (in their interest), such as downloading their copy of a relevant new report.

5 Quick Ways to Improve Your Marketing

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Five Buttons

Image by Uwe Hermann via Flickr

There are a lot of complicated and time-consuming things you can do with your marketing. But, sometimes, the simple, easy things can make a really big difference.

Here are five simple tips for marketing without a lot of stress.

1. Don’t keep reinventing the wheel

Turn blog posts into reports, videos, or webinars. Add a recording or a transcript. Voila, new products!

2. Be nice

You’d be amazed how this can make a difference. Take the time to thank people for their business, or a compliment. Send an email to a client because you saw something you thought they’d like (a silly photo, or an article on the newest rose hybrids for avid gardeners).

3. Post funny or memorable quotes or sayings

People remember them and pass them on. If you don’t have a copy of Bartlett’s Quotations handy, there’s an online version at bartleby.com.  Bonus points if you know why it’s called that.

4. Write for people, not for search engines

Yes, you want to get found, but putting your keyword (in bold) in every third sentence will scare real people away. As will awkward phrasing that matches a search term, but ignores all known rules of grammar. (Sure, SEO types sneer at buttons that say “click here”, but people click on them).

5. Use an autoresponder

Put your email marketing on automatic pilot. Send regular messages, which readers can sign up for at any time.  This can be part of your regular newsletter, or a separate course.

Quote for the day

“I never met a search engine spider with a credit card” – Sonia Simone (of Copyblogger)

Image:  mzacha