What is a Landing Page?

What is a landing page, definition, examples, and how to create one?

In digital marketing terminology, a landing page is a dedicated page a visitor goes to after they click a PPC ad, an email link, a promotional link, or other ad formats from Google, Bing, or YouTube.

The standalone page is created to give audiences more context for the offer or information that was teased in the ad or email link they just clicked.

Contrary to websites and homepages, landing pages are independent pages that aren’t a part of your website’s navigation—they are created for the sole purpose of convincing a visitor to take an action. This action can range from signing up for a free trial, buying a product, or downloading a whitepaper.

This guide will tell you everything you need to know about landing pages, how to optimize page elements, what makes the pages different from homepages, how to drive traffic to them, and examples of pages that are doing it right.

Let’s begin.

What’s the difference between a landing page and your website and homepage?

Your website includes multiple web pages available under one domain, the pages are created to provide visitors with detailed information about all your products and offers.

Landing pages, on the other hand, are created to convince a visitor to perform a conversion goal. The single page summarizes your offer, highlights its benefits, and convinces visitors to click the CTA button.

Here’s where your landing page fits into your marketing funnel:

Now let’s see the difference between a landing page and a homepage with a real-world landing page example.

The Asana homepage allows visitors to explore all of its offerings, solutions, and resources. The page is full of navigation links and multiple CTAs.

The Asana landing page, on the other hand, focuses on just one conversion goal—to get visitors to “view the demo.” There are no navigation links or competing offers on the page.

The anatomy of a high-converting landing page (what elements to include on your page)

Your landing page conversion rate is only as strong as the elements it includes. In this section, we’ll delve deep into the elements your pages must have and how to optimize them to increase the likelihood of conversions.

No navigation and exit links

Navigation links (or a navigation menu) take visitors to different sections of your website. These links are mostly accessible in your website’s header or footer section and help visitors find particular pages.
For example, this is Asana’s website footer. The comprehensive page section includes links to all website pages, helping visitors get to their desired page faster.

Every link on a navigation menu represents an individual conversion goal, and each serves as an exit route or an excuse for the visitor to leave a page goal and arrive at another.

This is precisely why landing pages are no place for including individual navigation links or, worse, an entire header and footer filled with exit routes.

Keep your page focused on one conversion goal, as the Flaus landing page does by persuading people with mobility and coordination problems to order Flaus.

A headline and supporting copy that explains your UVP

Your headline should succinctly convey the primary benefit or your unique value proposition (UVP), leaving no room for ambiguity. Avoid using clever wordplay or jargon in your hero section as this might confuse visitors.

Instead, address your target audience’s specific pain points or desires and how your product or service can provide a solution.

Depending on your target market and the nature of your offer, your headline can evoke emotions such as curiosity, joy, fear of missing out (FOMO), or a desire for self-improvement. Understand the emotional triggers that resonate with your audience and use them to write compelling headlines.
For example, the Chomps headline and sub-headline talk about how the beef jerky helps you crush your fitness goals.

A compelling call-to-action button

The CTA button is where the last action happens on your landing page.

Your CTA needs to use action-oriented language that explicitly states what action you want visitors to take. Instead of generic phrases like “Click here” and “Get Started”, use copy that’s more relevant to your offer.

This is what Genius Litter does with their CTA button.

For CTA button designs, it’s best to use contrasting colors—colors that pop against your page background. It also helps to use sticky bars with a CTA button on your pages so visitors don’t have to scroll to find the button.

You also need to place your button strategically—make sure it’s easily noticeable and accessible without the need to scroll
excessively. Consider placing it above the fold to ensure it’s one of the first elements users see.

For more CTA button tips, watch this video:

A relevant hero image and other media

Just as your headline and sub-headline serve as the first real intro to your brand and offer, your hero image is your first visual impression—you must make it count.

Depending on your industry and offer, your hero image can be a product shot, a screenshot of your dashboard, or a quick GIF that showcases how things are done on your platform.

Four Sigmatic’s hero image features a close-up of the packaging and the coffee to immerse the visitor in the transformative experience.

Sidekick’s hero image, on the other hand, is a gif of their dashboard, letting visitors know how easy it is to create emails with the platform.

When your product is new or complicated, explainer videos can detail how it improves your customers’ lives. These short, routinely animated clips often take visitors through a PAS scenario that introduces a problem, agitates it, and then presents your offer as the solution.

The Nguyen Coffee landing page video does exactly that.

A short, offer appropriate form

Nearly every type of landing page features a form. And on all those landing pages, the longer the form, the bigger the source of friction. This is because the form is where you ask your visitors for their personal information—from name to credit card number and everything in between.

With every field you add to your form, you learn more about your prospects. However, you also add an obstacle that stands in the way of what your visitor wants. Therefore, it is essential to present your form fields in a single-column layout to keep from interrupting the user’s downward momentum unless the fields are related (like first name and last name or city, state, and zip code).

Apollo’s form is short and easy to fill out.

Add strong trust indicators in your marketing landing page

No matter your conversion goal—signups, downloads, sales, or demos—to convince your visitors to bite, you need to get them to trust you. This only happens if you include social proof, security badges, and more on your landing pages.
Each indicator communicates something different, so it’s essential to know when and where it’ll have the maximum impact on your landing page.

Customer testimonials

Testimonials from real customers and other user-generated content like videos add authenticity to your landing page. When potential customers see positive feedback from others who have used and benefited from your product or service, it instills confidence in your brand and builds trust.

Social proof serves as a powerful factor in persuading hesitant visitors to take action. Pre Lab Pro’s landing page features customer testimonials raving about how the pre-workout formula helps with their workout sessions.

The Plunge landing page uses UGC videos to showcase the many ways in which the Plunge has improved people’s lives.

Fluff Co. does the same with their UGC videos.

Security indicators

Before submitting their personal information on a landing page, visitors naturally look for signs that their information will be safe. Sure, the “https” in your URL helps, but that’s not enough.

You’ll also want to include clear signs of protection, like badges from trusted security companies (Norton or McAfee) near your credit card field. A link to your privacy policy where prospects can find out how their personal information will be used.

The Salesforce webinar landing page has links to their Event Terms of Service and the Privacy Statement underneath their form.

Statistical proof

Numbers are almost always more persuasive than words. Statistical proof of ROAS from real customers beats even the most positive testimonials because the old adage is true: Numbers don’t lie.
Squatty Potty’s “Over 8 Million Sold” section under the doctor endorsement signals to prospective customers that the product works.

Awards

Showcasing awards also helps you solidify your credibility. They convey an outside party’s acknowledgment of your excellence in a particular field or on a certain campaign.

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How to promote your landing pages with marketing campaigns

Every marketing campaign can benefit from the help of a targeted landing page, but it’s paid promotions that absolutely should not be run without one. When you’re spending valuable chunks of your budget to generate traffic, outbound links and lack of message match can translate to lost dollars. The following are campaign types that should not, under any circumstances, be run without a landing page…

Paid search campaigns

If you use Google Ads or Bing Ads to drive traffic, your campaign won’t reach its potential without a landing page. Google has made it clear in its advertising guidelines that landing page experience has a giant impact on Quality Score.

Without a dedicated landing page relevant to your visitors’ search, your campaign will be penalized, which will result in lower ad visibility and, ultimately, less traffic to your website.

Paid social media advertising campaigns

Paid social media advertising has gotten much more powerful in the last several years with the fine-tuning of pinpoint targeting (and retargeting) capabilities. But those targeting capabilities are wasted if you send traffic to a web page with general and scattered information (like a homepage or an “our services” or “products” page, for example).

Highly targeted ads need highly targeted landing pages with message match to generate maximum ROI. If you know enough about your users to reach them with laser-targeted advertising parameters, you know enough about them to deliver a

highly relevant landing page experience.
Those who click your ad do so because they’ve caught the scent of information that could help them solve a problem. That’s why it’s important you deliver exactly what you promised in your ad.

Email campaigns

Email is still marketers’ most valuable channel, delivering $36 in ROI for every $1 spent. When combined with targeted landing pages, that revenue potential gets even higher.

When a subscriber clicks on an offer in an email and is taken to a landing page, they are focused on one task and one task alone. That increases the likelihood of a subscriber following through with the action.

What happens if there isn’t a specific landing page for an email offer? Most likely, the subscriber is taken to the homepage, or a product page and has to figure out how to take action.

Of course, your homepage is also full of a dozen other links, tabs, and images. All of these things can be distracting to this particular subscriber who just wants to follow through with the action outlined in the email.

That’s why email landing pages are so effective. They cut through the clutter. A subscriber is less likely to get sidetracked, or confused because he or she arrives on a page that focuses on the offer from the email and allows him or her to take action.

Petcube’s email landing page features its emergency fund offer. The email highlights the offer’s benefits and asks subscribers to start their free trial. The email landing page details why the Emergency Fund is worth trying for users.

How to pick the best type of landing page for your campaign

Building a landing page is one thing, but building the right landing page is something else completely. The term “landing page” encompasses five different types of pages:

• Squeeze page
• Splash page
• Lead capture page
• Click-through page
• Sales page

Which one you build will depend on your goal and where your prospect is in the buyer’s journey. A sales page used at the top of your funnel will fail to convert its visitors nearly 100% of the time, while a squeeze page in its place will see much more success. Learn how the five types of landing pages fit into your marketing funnel and when to use each:

Squeeze page

The top of your marketing funnel is an unsure place for both you and your prospects. At that point, they’re not sure that you’re the right solution to their problem, and you’re not sure that they’re seriously interested in your product or service.

Squeeze pages are particularly valuable at the top of your funnel because they’re made solely to capture a prospect’s email address, which you can use to begin a lead-nurturing initiative.

Splash page

Normally, prospects click through a paid advertisement with the expectation that they’ll be directed to a landing page on which they can evaluate your offer. That’s not the case with a splash page.

Instead, visitors land on a splash page after being redirected by you, the advertiser, for one of a few different purposes (which you’ll learn in a minute).

A few goals of a splash page might be:

1. To earn a conversion
2. To make an announcement
3. To allow visitors to choose their preference for interacting with your site (language preference, for example):

Whatever the goal of your splash page, it needs the following to accomplish it:

• A good reason for redirecting your visitor. Earning attention is hard enough to do without an intermediary step between your ad and the landing page. If you don’t have value to add to your splash page, you shouldn’t be using one.
• A clear route of the page. Unlike other landing pages, a splash page should draw attention to the exit.

For example, the Dollar Dollar Shave Club splash page asks visitors to fill out a quick quiz to personalize products for them:

As long as it has a clearly defined purpose that adds value, a splash page can work throughout the funnel and beyond on both first-time prospects and recurring customers.

Lead capture page

Lead capture landing pages are the most versatile and widely used of the five landing page types. These can be used at the top, middle, and bottom of your funnel. Their main distinguishing characteristic from other landing page types is their form, which every lead capture page needs to accomplish its goal: capture leads.

Generally, though, top-of-funnel lead capture landing pages ask for less information—strictly what your team needs to begin a lead nurturing initiative.

Remember: No matter where your leads are in the marketing funnel, they shouldn’t be frightened by the size of your form. Only request what is absolutely necessary. The fewer fields you feature, the less friction involved in converting, and the more likely visitors are to claim your offer.

Click-through landing page

Click-through landing pages are most valuable at the bottom of your funnel for warming up your leads to a particularly high-scrutiny offer. They can be used at all stages, but most often they pre-empt pages that feature the most friction-causing element known to marketers: the credit card form.

This landing page type allows visitors to read persuasive information about an offer without being distracted by the terrifying “buy” button. If and when they click through, they’re directed to a page where they can claim the offer via a form.

The Animoto click-through landing page showcases how visitors can create DIY professional videos with the platform and that they can get started for free.

Landing pages that offer free ebooks or tip sheets can get away with skimping on testimonials or authority badges. However, when credit card information and, ultimately, money are on the line, your visitors will look for any reason to distrust you. It’s your job to make sure they can’t find one.

Sales page

Of all landing page types, the sales page is the most difficult to get right; and that’s because it goes after the conversion that’s most valuable to marketers and most intimidating to visitors: the sale.

The primary goal is to drive conversions and generate sales for a particular product, service, or offer. Sales pages are an essential part of digital marketing and are commonly used in e-commerce, online courses, software sales, and other direct-response marketing campaigns.

The SomniFix sales page explains why mouth breathing is bad and how the “gentle mouth tape” helps you sleep better and promote nose breathing.

Landing page examples that are doing it right

We’ve covered everything you need to know about landing pages—from how they differ from your homepages to the types of landing pages you can add to your campaigns. It’s now time to showcase how brands are doing right by their landing pages. All the elements on these landing pages are optimized for conversions.

Sweetkick landing page

The Sweetkick landing page headline showcases the primary benefit users get from using the Sweetkick, “Starting your day has never felt better.” While the headline focuses on the product benefits, the sub-headline introduces visitors to what the product does. The page also includes plenty of trust indicators—customer testimonials, user reviews, a list of publications, and user videos.

The free shipping and 30-day risk free money-back guarantee also persuades visitors to click the personalized and contrasting CTA button.

Nettie landing page

The Nettie landing page also includes all the elements that make a high-converting landing page. A fun headline that sets the stage for the Nettie retro-designed paddles. All the page elements revolve around the retro fun theme—from the headline to the images. The page also includes the founder’s story that showcases just how much passion has gone into creating the paddles.

The comparison chart between Nettie paddles and competitors help visitors see why they should choose the paddles to experience all the PickleBall fun.

Dollar Shave Club landing page

The Dollar Shave Club page is minimal and gets straight to the point. It tells users what the offer is, the discount they’re getting, and a bright CTA button that gets them the 85% off discount.

Butcher Box landing page

The ButcherBox page headline describes the service’s UVP—high-quality meat delivered straight to your door. The hero shot shows pieces of scrumptious proteins and the above-the-fold copy gives visitors ample reasons to click the CTA button.

Use these examples as inspiration for your next landing page campaign.

How to create your landing page

Putting all your newfound knowledge to work can be a hassle. Creating a landing page from scratch isn’t easy. There are wireframes to be built and coding to be done, and the process can routinely drag out for days at a time. There is a way, though, to shorten that process to a matter of minutes.

With Instapage, you can pick from over 500+ fully customizable templates by industry and use cases. We analyzed billions of conversions to build the world’s most advanced conversion design system.

You can also quickly scale multiple landing pages with Instablocks® + Global Blocks that you can save, reuse, and update globally.

Use the intuitive drag-and-drop builder to create impactful landing pages. You can add new elements to those templates by dragging and dropping from the top menu bar:

You can also Instantly generate content for each audience and ad group with AI-made headlines, paragraphs, and CTAs. Access AI Content Creation directly in the Instapage builder without interrupting your workflow.

You can click to fine-tune any element or section of your page to keep the design 100% on-brand, right down to the style of your typeface with pixel-precision design features and a library of global brand assets to ensure that your pages are always on-brand.

Deliver an unparalleled mobile experience with built-in AMP support. Plus, get the fastest landing page load speeds in the industry with our proprietary Thor Render Engine technology.

Integrate your page with 120+ of today’s most-used third-party advertising, analytics, CRM, email marketing, and marketing automation platforms.

With Instapage, you can even build pages together to simplify your team’s workflow by using the Collaboration tool. Easily share your landing pages with stakeholders and clients to get their feedback, while ensuring pages are never seen by an unauthorized user.

Eliminate frustrating and unnecessary revisions by ensuring everyone is working on the latest page versions using real-time edits and Efficiently consolidate feedback in one place so stakeholders know the status of requests and can weigh in if needed.

When you’re done, you can preview your design on both desktop and mobile, then easily publish to a custom domain, CMS, Facebook, or our demo server.

See why we’re the choice of brands like HelloFresh, honey, Gartner, and Vimeo. Start converting more ad clicks into customers with all the intuitive experimentation, optimization, reporting, and growth tools you need—all in one place.

Sign up for an Instapage 14-day trial and see the impact a powerful landing page platform can have on your campaigns.