What is a landing page — and what are they for?

Landing pages are important tools for businesses that want to convert curious visitors into paying customers or generate valuable leads. Good landing pages have the advantage of being laser-focused on a single goal, making them an indispensable part of any successful marketing campaign. 

In this article, we dive into what landing pages are and how your business can benefit from them. And of course, we’ll also provide a few concrete examples! 

What is a landing page?

A landing page is a page that focuses on a single goal, namely getting visitors to do something. The goal might be to get the visitor to sign up for a newsletter, buy a product, download an e-book, or reserve a ticket for an event.  

On a landing page, you should only ask your visitors to do one thing. It’s this sharp and targeted focus that makes landing pages so effective. Fewer choices, quicker decisions! 

Before we move on, here are a few examples of good landing pages from the real world: 

Landing Page from the WordPress Plugin WP Rocket 

Landing Page from the Rental Platform Airbnb .

Homepage vs. landing page—what’s the difference? 

You can think of your homepage as your website’s main entrance and lobby. It’s where the visitor gets an overall impression of the options and navigation on your website. On the homepage, you guide your visitors to the rest of your website using links and menus. The visitor has multiple choices. 

On a landing page, you focus the spotlight on a single product, service, or action you want the customer to take. The design of the landing page should be simple and straightforward, with a clear and obvious CTA (call to action) such as ‘Sign up for the event here’, ‘Buy this yoga course’, ‘Book a meeting with me’, or whatever it is you want your visitors to do. The visitor has one choice. 

Does my landing page need its own domain?

A landing page does not need its own domain. In certain cases, it can be advantageous, such as when launching a new product that differs significantly from the products in your current range, but it is usually not necessary.  

Whether you use our Website Builder or WordPress, you can easily create a landing page on the domain you already have by adding a new page to your website: 

How to add a new page with Website Builder 

How to add a new page in WordPress 

The two most important types of landing pages

The two most important types of landing pages are lead generation landing pages and click-through landing pages. We’ll take a closer look at each of them below. 

Lead generation

The purpose of lead generation websites is to get potential customers to share contact information such as name, email address, or phone number with you. This can be achieved by offering them something in exchange for their information, such as an e-book, a whitepaper, or a webinar. 

Lead generation landing pages should have a lead form and a catchy headline that clearly communicates what the visitor will get in return for sharing their contact information with you.  

The information potential customers share with you when they fill out the form on your landing page can be used for targeted marketing if the user has given consent on the form. 

Click-through pages

Click-through landing pages act as a kind of intermediary, leading the user to another page where they need to complete an action such as buying something, starting a trial period, or signing up for an event. 

This type of landing page should have a sharp headline, a short, persuasive text, and a clear CTA button. 

What are the advantages of landing pages?

Landing pages are extremely effective tools in marketing campaigns. Let’s take a closer look at the benefits of creating landing pages. 

Targeted communication of key messages

The targeted focus of a landing page makes it perfect for getting across important messages. Picture it as the perfect opportunity to give your product a starring role.  

On the landing page, the spotlight shines directly on your product and the benefits, which you convey clearly and concisely. This increases your chances of achieving conversions. 

The same applies to leads. If you try to collect leads on a page where the user also has a wide range of other options, there is a greater risk that they will overlook your lead form. 

Easy tracking of marketing campaigns

On a landing page, you can easily track and analyse the effectiveness of your marketing campaign. Because the page only focuses on a single goal, measuring traffic, conversions, and bounce rate becomes significantly more manageable.  

This means you can quickly get an overview of what works and what you may need to adjust to achieve more conversions. 

Opportunity to test different strategies

You can also use your landing pages as test laboratories. They are perfect for A/B tests. Although you can also try different strategies and use A/B tests on the rest of your website, landing pages are particularly well-suited for this purpose.  

Here, you can test designs, try different CTA buttons, and experiment with headlines and images without affecting the rest of your website. This can provide you with valuable insights that you can later use when optimising your entire online shop or website.  

What can landing pages be used for?

Landing pages can be used for a wide range of marketing activities. Here are a handful of the most popular uses: 

• Product launches: Showcase your new or upcoming products or services and take pre-orders.
  
• Events: Let visitors sign up for your event, lecture, or webinar.
  
• App download: Create a landing page with a link to a page where visitors can download your app.

• Content marketing: Let users fill out a lead form to access your e-book, white paper, PDF guide, slides, or other digital material.

• Email marketing: Invite your potential customers to sign up for your newsletter.

• Special offers: Highlight special or time-limited offers and discounts.

What are landing pages not suitable for?

The purpose of landing pages is to get visitors to do one specific thing. Therefore, they are less suitable for conveying extensive information about your business or your entire range of products and services.  

Detailed information and a broader range of navigation options should instead be placed on your homepage or other parts of your website. 

Important elements on a good landing page

Because a landing page should be tailored to get the user to perform a single action, the design should be as clear and simple as possible. For example, you shouldn’t have a navigation menu on your landing page, as you risk distracting your visitors by giving them more choices.  

Here are the most important elements you should include on your landing page: 

Captivating headlines

Your headline should grab your visitors’ attention and get across the main benefits of your product or offer. The headline on your page should be concise, inviting, and make visitors want to stay on the landing page to learn more. 

Hero image

Landing pages typically use a so-called hero image. It is a large, eye-catching image placed at the top of the landing page to give the page a visually appealing look and simultaneously convey something about your product or offer. If possible, you can also place a video at the top of the landing page. 

CTAs

Writing clear and persuasive CTAs (calls to action) is essential when creating your landing page. You should place your CTA button at the top of the page and a few other places further down the page, so your visitors always know where to click to get your fantastic product or sign up for your exciting event. 

Social proof

Social proof can help make your landing page more convincing. It’s not always necessary, and in some cases, it won’t be possible to include, such as if the product or service you’re marketing is brand new. But if you can show social proof, such as testimonials from customers who have enjoyed your previous webinars or just had good experiences with your brand, you should take the chance to do so. This way, you can increase the chances that your visitors will want to try what you have to offer. 

Compelling SEO text

The text on your landing page should clearly and concisely convey the main benefits of your offer. Here, you should also make sure to write SEO texts that increase the chances of your landing page attracting organic traffic.   

Go ahead and use storytelling and effective copywriting formulas but keep your texts short and sharp. Large amounts of text can distract your visitors or make them want to scroll away without clicking on your important CTA button. 

Contact forms

If you are creating a landing page to collect leads, your landing page must have a contact form where visitors can enter personal information. If you have a WordPress site, you can create a lead form using a plugin such as the one from HubSpot. 

If you started your website with one.com, you could collect leads using a contact form. Here’s how to add a contact form in the one.com Website Builder. 

Keep your contact form simple and only ask for the most necessary information such as name, email, and phone number. 

If you need more tips, we recommend our video with 4 secrets to creating a great landing page:

Landing page use cases: 3 examples

Now that we’ve covered the benefits of landing pages and looked at the most important elements of a landing page, it’s high time to introduce some concrete examples.  

Below, we have compiled three examples of how different companies can use landing pages to achieve conversions and generate leads. 

Landing page for a B2B company offering HR software

Purpose: To generate leads by offering a free demo of the software. 

This landing page’s primary target audience is HR managers and business owners. The landing page’s headline could be Streamline Your HR Tasks with SoftwareName. 

The page includes a brief overview of the software’s benefits such as simplified payroll, improved personnel management, etc. 

Because the company’s goal is to collect leads, the landing page has a contact form with a clear CTA, such as Order a Free Demo. 

Game producer launching a new video game 

Purpose: To promote the new game and take pre-orders. 

This landing page is designed to create excitement about the game’s launch. It includes a catchy headline such as Experience the Most Magical Adventure of the Year in GameName, stunning screenshots from the game, and possibly a trailer. 

The text on the CTA button is Pre-Order Now and Get 15% Off. 

The landing page also shows positive testimonials from beta testers and a countdown to the game’s release date. 

Restaurant event 

Purpose: To get guests to book a table for the restaurant’s wine tasting event. 

The landing page’s headline is “You Are Invited to Our Exclusive Wine Tasting”. The hero image shows four filled wine glasses lined up on a table. A sommelier is pouring white wine into the middle glass. 

Below the headline and image, visitors can read important details about the event, such as the date, time, menu, and the name of the sommelier hosting the wine tasting. 

On the CTA button, the restaurant has written Book a Table for the Wine Tasting. 

Landing pages unlock new conversion opportunities

A landing page is one of the most targeted marketing tools available. Here you can place your product, event, or offer directly in the spotlight. If you create a great landing page, it will act as one of those attractive shop windows you just have to stop and admire. For you and your business, landing pages are fantastic opportunities to achieve more conversions and leads, and thus the path to a successful online business.