How to design a killer landing page from scratch

A landing page is like the shop window of your small business website. It’s where many customers first catch sight of you. You must know how to write effective landing pages that convert clicks into sales and signups.

Today, we’re talking about how to write a landing page from scratch—from planning your strategy to designing a call to action.

Write for your users

There is one golden rule for writing an effective landing page: write for your customers, not yourself. Start by thinking about what your customers need. What are they looking for when they find your landing page?

A good place to start your research is Answer The Public (free to access). Type in a keyword, and the tool will show you what other people are searching for.

Let’s try an example: “wedding cakes in Atlanta”.

Right away, this gives you some ideas for your landing page. Try to use these terms in headlines and meta tags.

Write in a friendly, accessible style, without too much professional jargon. Try to say “you” and “your” instead of “we” and “us.” Remember, it’s not about you—it’s about the customer!

Create a scannable headline

The most important part of your landing page copy is the headers. For every 5 people that read the headlines of your landing page, only 1 will read the rest of the text.

Think of your headers as the ultimate sales pitch: You’ve only got 5-10 words to sell your product. Don’t waste time on confusing metaphors or business-speak.

Make it snappy

Your landing page copy should be brief. It’s wise to write at least 250 words so that you can incorporate best practices for search engine optimization (SEO). But in general, a landing page should not exceed 500 words.

To break down your landing page copy, use bullet points and lists. Consider adding slides or click-to-reveal menus for more detailed information.

Establish your authority

When someone finds your landing page, they probably don’t know very much about you. So you need to establish your credentials.

Feature some short testimonials from happy customers. Use specific facts, statistics, and numbers. These sound way more impressive than vague statements about how much your business has achieved.

Check out the competition

Take a look at what other businesses in your niche are doing. Visit their landing pages and carefully review the copy.

Ask yourself: How does this copy make me feel? Is it too long, or too short? Do I know what my next steps are? Is there any information that I want, but can’t find?

Use examples from your competitors to inform your landing page strategy. If you spot something they’ve missed—use it!

Decide on a single call to action

In the early days of the internet, websites used to feature endless links and menus. But now, it’s better to keep things simple.

Target each landing page for a specific audience and action. Decide what you want customers to do, and focus all your efforts on that conversion. For instance, a user could be subscribing to your newsletter, requesting a product demo, or visiting your online store. Direct all your landing page copy to that goal, and give users a clear, obvious link or button to follow.

Last of all, don’t forget to test your landing page. Write different headlines and calls to action, then use A/B testing to find out which one is more effective. Your landing page should always be a work in progress, evolving along with your business and your customers.