Top-of-Mind Marketing: Email List Strategy

1iContact in partnership with Ascend2, November 2016

What Is a Landing Page?

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Prioritizing Email List Goals 3

There Are Two Main Types of Landing Pages 4

Landing Pages Are About Conversion 5

Landing Page Best Practices 6 - 10

Stay on Target 6

Keep It Simple 6

Limit Choice 6

Use Your Real Estate Wisely 7

Make the Call to Action the Star 7

Be Consistent Across Channels 8

Pay Attention to Color 8

Include a Compelling Offer 8

Use a Great Image 9

Write Compelling Headlines 9

Test the Landing Page 10

Design with Mobile in Mind 10

Landing Pages and Marketing Automation Software 11

ABOUT ICONTACTSince 2003, iContact has been offering comprehensive email marketing solutions for businesses, nonprofit organizations, and educational institutions of all sizes. All our email marketing products offer award-winning customer support, 600+ professional email templates, and a reliable 97 percent inbox delivery rate. iContact Pro, our answer to the growing demand for marketing automation, takes email marketing a huge step forward with workflows, lead scoring, landing pages, and more. It’s the complete package to take your contacts on their journey from first interaction all the way through to marketing success.

icontact.comwww.icontact.com/pro

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Prioritizing Email List GoalsMost of us interact with landing pages, while

perhaps not being completely aware of their

function or of how carefully they are designed.

A landing page is a type of web page, but its

purpose is completely different from that of a

regular website page.

A landing page is a dedicated page designed

for visitors to “land on” after they have clicked

on a specific link related to your business or

organization. This link could be from a Facebook

ad, a Google search, a link in a social media post,

or a link within your blog or online article.

Landing pages should be kept simple because

they are designed to be a very fast read.

TIP: You only have a few seconds to gain the attention of a website visitor. Make it count with a strong CTA!

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The landing page above shows a typical example

featuring a big call-to-action (CTA) button.

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A Click-Through landing page doesn’t include a form

asking people to opt in; rather, its goal is to entice visitors to click

through to another page or window where a conversion happens,

like a shopping cart, a page that provides more detailed information about a

product, or scheduling a demo of a product or service.

A Lead-Generation landing page is exactly what its name

implies; it’s a page designed to capture data — usually a name and

email address — that you can add to your mailing list. In return, a

prospect gets something for providing that address; for instance, an e-book,

discount, contest entry, free trial, newsletter or blog subscription, etc.

There are two main types of landing pages:

1 2

Having both types of landing pages in your marketing arsenal enhances your digital marketing strategies exponentially.

If you spend any time in digital marketing, you know all about how important appearance and functionality are in a successful landing page. There are good

reasons for that. The landing page represents a critical step in the often costly process of getting people to engage with your organization. It is the page where

your potential customers decide, often in a fraction of a second, whether they want to get to know you better — or not.

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Landing Pages Are About ConversionOne of the most important benefits of marketing automation is the ability to attract and convert leads. Landing pages are a crucial part of your lead-generation process. Conversion takes place — or doesn’t — on the landing page. Therefore, a good landing page is one with a high conversion rate.

People who visit your site are window shoppers. Until they convert into actual

leads, they won’t do much to help you succeed or add to your bottom line. Since

a large percentage of your website visitors are not ready to buy, you need to

have a well-designed landing page to move them further down the conversion

funnel.

It’s important to understand what “conversion” means. Conversion is what

happens when a landing page visitor takes a desired action, such as signing up

for a newsletter, making a purchase, or giving a donation. The conversion rate

of a landing page is the percentage of visitors who convert. For example, if

three out of 100 visitors fill out your form and sign up for a newsletter, that would

be a 3 percent conversion rate.

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What defines a successful, high conversion rate? There are certain basic

benchmarks for different market segments, but industry categories may have

unique objectives, so a typical conversion rate for a car insurance landing page

might be completely different from that of a luxury boutique hotel group.

Another way to explain a high conversion rate is simply that it’s higher than the

one you are getting now. If you are already pulling in a 3 percent conversion

rate, 5 percent would be better; 10 percent might be amazing, perhaps making a

substantial difference to your bottom line. The landing page culture is all about

conversion: The better the page, the higher the conversion rate.

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TIP: Focus on branding — strong branding is important to help prospects easily identify your brand and connect it to your other marketing efforts.

This landing page serves as an invitation to subscribers to join

a lifestyle conversation.

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Landing Page Best Practices

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3 Limit ChoiceIn real life, too many options are often just as bad as too few. This applies to your prospects as well.

If you provide them with too many choices on your landing page, you risk potential disengagement.

Readers may grow frustrated with the sheer volume of options and decide not to waste further time

trying to choose.

Ask only for the information you need. The length and complexity of a landing page will absolutely have

an impact on conversion. Keep your ask to a minimum — in most cases, name and email. You don’t need

a phone number, for instance, if the only thing you will be doing is running an email campaign.

1 Stay on TargetDetermine a clear goal before building your

landing page. As previously mentioned, a single

navigational path with one purpose is vital for

keeping your visitors on target.

Landing pages can have a variety of conversion

goals, including:

• Selling something

• Growing your email list

• Increasing brand awareness

• Saying “thank you” for a particular user

action (for instance, a donation)

• Registering for a webinar

Identify your goal and design your landing page

around that goal. Landing pages are an excellent

marketing tool when used correctly, but they can

be off-putting when they aren’t designed well or

are too confusing, or if it takes too long for the

user to get the point.

2 Keep It SimpleIt may seem counterintuitive, but overall, the best landing page designs are deceptively

simple. A great landing page should be simple yet elegant, clearly highlighting both the

“ask” (for instance, asking a prospect to subscribe to an email list) and the “thank you”

(for instance, offering a free e-book or other promotional gift in exchange). The offer

should be clear and uncluttered, because a landing page is designed to be a superstar,

standout page, not an information-rich

homepage.

In general, landing page best practice calls

for no outbound links on the page and no

navigation to tie it to your website. The

landing page has one purpose and one

purpose only: to get your visitor to focus on

one action — your conversion goal. Anything

else is a distraction.

TIP: Test different offers, button copy, and button colors on your landing page to see which ones result in the highest conversion rates.

Sign Up FREE! Register

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Landing Page Best Practices

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5 Make the Call to Action the Star Your call to action (CTA) should be front and

center. Is the goal of your CTA to get your

prospect to fill out a form? Then make that

action the star of your landing page. Get

rid of other distractions and give people a

reason to engage with you. Focusing your

CTA and supporting it with information will

enhance and increase your conversion rate.

Employ text that gives your prospects enough information and the “push” they need to click on your

CTA. Keep in mind that people are going to give your landing page only five or 10 seconds to figure out

if they are interested. If they are tempted to digress into tangents because of a “busy” screen, they may

instantly lose interest.

Use attention-getting button copy. Instead of plain vanilla “Download,” try “Get your FREE e-book now!”

Instead of a terse “Register here,” test out “Register today!” A plain old “Click for coupon,” isn’t nearly as

compelling as “Send me my coupon.” You get the idea — put some oomph in your CTA.

A great choice is to highlight your headline and form by splitting the screen into two columns. By

splitting the screen in half, you can display two or more page elements with equal prominence. If you

place the form above the fold with this two-column approach, you can give equal importance to both

side-by-side page elements. The two clean columns allow you to simultaneously highlight specific

landing page elements without adding clutter.

4 Use Your Real Estate WiselyA call to action (CTA) “above the fold” (on the

screen when the page loads) is best. Take

advantage of the real estate of the page and

keep in mind your audience has not only limited

time, but also a limited attention span. Supporting

elements above the fold, such as images, videos,

text, and headings, should funnel the visitor

carefully into your CTA.

The “above the fold” content of your landing

page ideally provides your potential lead all the

information and the immediate reason they need

to engage with your CTA. Any additional content

“below the fold” needs to support the CTA with

simple and desirable information. Testimonials,

examples, and supporting facts can be artfully

included, but they should not detract from the

main action above — guiding the customer to the

finish line.

The goal of this landing page is clear here: sign up for a free trial.

TIP: Make them an offer they can’t refuse. If you have nothing of value to offer, your website visitors will leave without converting.

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8 Include a

Compelling OfferWe’ve all been there — bombarded by requests to sign

up for this or that, often with no compelling reason

provided. People may be reluctant to share their email

addresses. How can you entice visitors with a cool

content offer? One way is to make the cool content

“gated,” meaning the page visitors can get it only if they

fill out a form. The content has to be valuable enough to

make visitors want to open the gate to claim your offer.

What’s valuable content? Well, it’s usually not a heavy

sales pitch. Content is valuable if it addresses a need,

solves a problem, or gives your prospect some desired

information.

Here are a few examples:

• E-books offering comprehensive information

about some aspect of your business vertical

• A unique coupon or discount

• Informational newsletters and tips

• White papers showcasing important facts and

statistics about issues and challenges your

potential customers face

• Podcasts and webinar registration for live

online sessions

• An e-course or presentation with video or slides

• A free trial of your product or service

In other words, any content that holds value for your

subscribers — gives them something they need or

want — is valuable content.

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Landing Page Best Practices

6 Be Consistent Across ChannelsIt is vital to keep messaging between advertising and landing pages

consistent. You’ve already gotten the visitor intrigued enough to click

through to your site, so use that to your advantage by directly appealing

to what brought them there in the first place! If there is a disconnect

between promises of the ad and what the landing page delivers, you

could lose the prospect.

Many advertisers unfortunately send PPC traffic to their homepage or

take the lazy way out and send people to a generic splash page. It is

important to note that if the information provided through a CTA link

doesn’t relate or is off topic or subject, the resulting bounce rate for the

landing page will increase. Avoid the bounce!

Simple rule: If the landing page complements and matches the ad

perfectly, the result is a valuable and relevant experience for the potential

lead. And that’s your sweet spot.

7 Pay Attention to ColorColors can have an impact on a person’s mood and click behavior. Give the

color of your landing page design and buttons some thought. Remember,

it’s not about your favorite colors as much as it’s about what your audience

responds to.

Red might work with impulsive shoppers in an online store, whereas

blue reflects a sense of serenity and trust. Vibrant color works well, but if

your brand palette incorporates pastels, don’t veer too far off from your

branding. Achieving a consistent look across all your communication

vehicles, even landing pages and email templates, is always a good idea.

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9 Use a Great ImageA picture can be worth a thousand

words, especially on a landing page

where space is tight and you need

to be concise and focused on your

message. A great image can give

you a unique opportunity to engage

with an emotional appeal. This is

especially true for nonprofits.

For example, based on the specific

mission of a nonprofit, adding

an evocative photo of a child in

need or an adoptable puppy, or an

informative photo of the nonprofit

staff in action and helping others

in need, will affect the heart of the

giver and encourage engagement

from someone who relates to or

cares about the cause. Subscribers

are more likely to click on “Help

Now” if the image tells your story in

a clear and compelling way.

10 Write Compelling HeadlinesWrite headlines that play to your prospects’ needs. An effective headline

naturally affirms to the visitor why he or she clicked on the page. Conversion

often comes from an emotional, successful appeal. For instance, if you sell

exercise equipment, the headline “Be Stunning in 30 Days!” is probably

going to stimulate conversion better than “Check out our catalog of

great products.” The latter headline may be accurate, but it’s not instantly

compelling and won’t drive a successful conversion. Also, use the sub-

headline to provide further support and assure the visitors that they have

landed on the right page.

Track your results to learn which phrases lead to positive responses from

your readers. Something as simple as adding the word “please” to a

conversion request or tweaking a few key words can fundamentally alter the

conversion rate.

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Landing Page Best Practices

TIP: Your goal in creating a good landing page is to reduce or eliminate friction and anxiety for a visitor. If you confuse, overload, or mislead your audience, they will leave your landing page without converting.

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Landing Page Best Practices

11 Test the Landing PageMultiple versions of your landing page can be designed for A/B testing to see what works best for your

needs. You can compare different layouts, menus, and colors. Ultimately, you want the customer saying,

“I want that. Where do I click now?”

The challenge is that you don’t always know what will make a particular set of landing page visitors

convert. Testing different pages and assessing the conversion rates can tell you what’s working and

what’s not. Here are some of the landing page elements you can test:

• Client testimonials: consider using a client’s familiar logo instead of just pasting in a basic quote — a

logo gives a legitimate experience and a reason for your prospect to convert

• Official partner logo

• The way the offer banner is displayed

• The way the word “free” is presented

• Emphasis on prices and CTAs

• The entry form text and design

• A background photo (for instance, smiling people vs. a basic sign-up page)

• Different versions of action-oriented copy with action-oriented headlines

• Pricing and how it is presented

• Colors

• An image slider is user-friendly and interactive, and it is a non-threatening way to get more information

without an initial commitment

• Using GIFs for product demonstration — GIFs can explain how a product is used in a quick, eye-

catching way

TIP: Believe it or not, the right colors can make a huge difference — your brand story is also told by good design, not just words.

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12 Design with Mobile in Mind Sixty-six percent of all emails are opened first

on a mobile device, and a whopping two-thirds

of Americans now own a smartphone. What this

means is that if you are not designing your landing

pages with mobile in mind, you risk losing a

huge chunk of your potential subscribers — and

conversions.

As you’re testing your new landing page, even if

your editing tool says it’s mobile-responsive, be

sure to view it from your mobile phone before

pushing people to the page. A photo may look

great on the desktop version of the page, but

it might be terrible when viewed on a small

smartphone screen. Don’t hesitate to create

slightly different versions for different devices

and browsers.

11iContact in partnership with Ascend2, November 2016

Landing Pages and Marketing Automation Software You have a number of choices for landing page design. There are dedicated online landing

page services. Some developers code them from scratch, though that can get expensive.

iContact offers a richly featured landing page creator as part of its marketing automation software.

Users can create and deploy beautifully designed landing pages within the same software they

use for email marketing. This approach ensures an efficient piece of your marketing strategy.

The marketing team only has to learn how to use a single tool for both the lead capture and lead

nurture processes.

iContact lets users create landing pages from a variety of predesigned templates. Or they can

design their own forms and pages from scratch. The software enables users to take advantage of

the suggested best practices, including A/B testing, simple, striking CTAs, and the use of images

or videos. iContact also lets users place landing pages on Facebook or export embed code for use

in multiple websites. For those who want to leave it to a design pro, our Design Services team will

build custom-designed landing pages that convert.

RESOURCES

For more information about landing pages, try these resources:

• Check out our guide, By Design, which is filled with great information about landing page and email design.

• You can see the iContact Pro landing page editor in action in this short video tour.

• See for yourself — sign up for a free trial of iContact Pro and take our 60-minute Landing Page Challenge; try creating your own landing page!

• As always, if you are a Premier Services client, your Strategic Advisor is happy to help!

To learn more about iContact’s marketing automation tools, visit www.icontact.com.