Let’s face it: direct selling and cold calling are getting trickier by the minute. Prospects don’t have the time to hear your offer. So, how can you still spark their interest and get their attention?
In comes inbound marketing. Instead of creating flashy ads for your product, you’ll write valuable content on what you know best. The next step? Giving that away for free. Really. In a way, this will make clients will come to you.
Now, it’s not that really that simple. It does require lead generation and a well-thought-out content strategy. Moreover, it requires high-converting B2B landing pages: this will be the place where the magic happens. Where prospects turn into leads, email address and all.
Those B2B landing pages are a mix of design, copywriting, psychology, tactics, and testing. That’s quite a lot, so let’s get started. We’ve collected tried and tested tips on creating really effective landing pages. Let’s get started.
What’s a landing page—and what is it not?
A landing page is one stand-alone page, revolving around one keyword, one product, or one service. It has one call to action, and generating leads is its primary function. In comparison, a webpage often has multiple functions and calls to action. Get in touch, buy, read more, and so on.
B2B landing pages are meant to convert visitors into leads by using a form. In exchange for an offer, visitors leave their email addresses and possibly more information. As a business, you can see which landing page they came from and thus what they’re interested in. That’s how you can send targeted content and lead them through that sales cycle.
People find those landing pages by clicking targeted ads, searching for relevant keywords, or through links in social media content.
What’s the difference between a B2B and B2C landing page?
On a B2B landing page, you give something away before you even sell something. There’s a reason you shouldn’t immediately sell your product on a B2B landing page. On B2C landing pages, this does happen regularly. But when it comes to B2B products and services, they’re often more expensive and require more research from the buyer.
Moreover, there might be several decision-makers involved. Directly selling on a landing page simply isn’t always the most effective technique in those cases.
When to use landing pages
Why not just use your website, the one you already put so much work and time in? That’s a great question, so here are several reasons why dedicated landing pages should be part of your marketing strategy.
When running several campaigns, you’ll be speaking to several target audiences, and probably even be selling different products or services. Guiding everyone to your homepage disrupts their buyer journey: they now have to start looking for what they were interested in.
A landing page gives them a soft landing on your website, showing them exactly what they came for—and then some. This keeps prospects engaged and allows you to measure the effectiveness of your campaigns with more precision. It allows you to test designs, copy, offers even—all while not having to touch your actual website.
Do dedicated landing pages contribute to SEO?
There’s more. If you optimize your landing pages for single keyword phrases, you’ll be doing your SEO a favor, too. If you index enough high-quality landing pages under your brand, your content will be more likely to organically appear in search engine results.
How to build an effective landing page
1. Start with a clear header
We all love good design, but a landing page shouldn’t be a piece of art. The messaging should be concise, and whatever design elements and visuals are being used should be contributing to your goals. So start with a header that shows those prospects what they’re in for.
B2B products and services can come across as complex, hard to wrap your head around. Ask yourself: what is your product really going to do for your customers? Think in terms of benefits, and less in terms of features. Then create a clear value proposition to start off your landing page with.
2. Offer something of value—completely for free
As we said, a landing page is not meant to directly sell—it’s mainly there to generate leads. That’s why most won’t have a Buy Now button, but rather a Subscribe Now, or Download Now.
Before pushing your product or service on your visitors, try to spark their interest first. Win their confidence by showing your knowledge, or helping them in a small way without asking anything in return. You can do this by creating valuable content like a free guide, e-book, or newsletters with free tips.
This content should be valuable enough for prospects to gain something from it. But it should also show them that there’s more they can gain from your expertise—except those benefits are only accessible through buying your product or service.
3. Build trust with social proof
Imagine you’re walking down a buzzing boulevard in Italy, filled with restaurants. Some of them are nearly full, with staff focusing on keeping those wine glasses filled. Others are empty. Their waiters are standing outside, showing you the menu while you pass by. Which one seems more appealing?
Social proof is crucial in any type of sale. Saying you’re trustworthy or that you put the customer first is great, but let’s face it: any brand can (and will) say that. If you want to show prospects that customers love your product, let those customers tell them that.
On your landing page, you can incorporate testimonials or reviews. Even showing logos of businesses created by sing professional or by logo maker tool builds more credibility than simply saying that you’ve helped ‘countless’ brands. Keep it real.
4. Use Call To Actions to your advantage
Often, CTAs are the last missing piece in building a landing page, and businesses settle for the first thing that comes to mind. But looking at the purpose of a landing page, you should acknowledge the importance of a strong CTA.
That means flipping the process around: build your landing page towards your desired call to action. This could make all the difference in how many people actually go to that next step.
Call To Actions should come from a strategy: what is it you want people to do? Map out exactly what steps they should take next, and how they should do that. It might seem redundant, but most visitors will only visit a landing page once, and that means they’ll only see your lead form once. Take that chance.
5. Create an effective lead capture form
Lead capture forms and call to actions go hand in hand. You might want to go with the standard option for a lead form and launch your landing page, but give it some extra thought.
Make sure your form is as clear and straightforward as it can be. People can be hesitant when leaving their information, so ask for the least amount possible. If you want someone to sign up for a newsletter or download an e-book, they’ll know that you don’t need their phone number for that. Don’t put them off by asking for too many details.
6. Make the most out of your Thank You page
Once you’ve converted a visitor into a lead, the show isn’t over just yet. You could opt for a simple, straightforward Thank You page that confirms their subscription to your newsletter or has a link to the e-book you offer. Or you could go the extra mile.
You can use this space to reinforce your message and remind them of your value proposition. On the Thank You page, you can place links to other valuable content they might be interested in. Moreover, remind them of the following steps that are coming to keep your fresh leads engaged.
7. Don’t forget visuals
While your content offer should be the star of the show, you’ll want the rest of the stage to be looking great as well. With images, design, and especially video, you can increase
- Visuals
- Video
Now, if you’re advertising a product or service, it might be hard to think of any visuals with that service—especially if it’s SaaS. However, experts from companies like http://sumatosoft.com/blog-post/everything-you-need-to-know-about-building-saas-product can give you a couple of ideas. So, show its users instead. In an analysis of more than 100 landing pages, 73% of them showed pictures or videos with people.
We simply connect more to people than we do to products, especially if those products are rather abstract.
While we’re on the subject of visuals, don’t forget video. Four times as many consumers would rather watch a video about a product than read about it. Struggle with writing what your product does? Show it in a video.
8. Test your landing pages
Landing pages rarely come ready-made. The more data you collect from your visitors, the better you can create effective landing pages. How are people interacting with your page? Is the layout clear, or rather confusing? There are several usability testing methods you can use to find out if your page is working as it should be.
If speed is your thing, you don’t necessarily have to wait for the results of a test audience. You can also create different versions of a landing page and compare data to see what works. With these learnings, you can keep improving your landing pages based on what really works.
Get started with creating landing pages today
No more annoying pop-ups on your homepage that distract visitors—and no more messy pages with several products and services. Dedicated landing pages make your marketing efforts more measurable, and give your future customers a better idea on if you’re a good fit.
