Last week I offered free conversion rate optimization advice on a popular forum (known as Hacker News). Within a single day I got 50+ requests for help. It was definitely an enriching experience analyzing and dissecting all those websites and landing pages. As I was replying and providing my feedback to those 50+ sites, I started sensing a few common issues that affected conversion rates of all those pages. Without naming any specific URL or site, in this post I will detail where those sites lacked and what you can learn from my analysis to fix your homepage or landing page.
According to my analysis, one of these four issues (if not all) were the most common causes of poor conversion rates. As you go through the list of issues below, try to relate them to your landing page (or homepage). Here are the four most common issues that affect conversion rate and sales:
Let’s analyze the issues one by one.
Example of a homepage with too much text
I won’t be surprised about lack of sales and conversions if your page announces “Welcome to..” followed by a bunch of three paragraphs describing what the site is about. Nobody on the web has patience to read paragraphs after paragraphs about you are offering.
On the web, people scan for elements that catch their eye. And you get only first few seconds to answer two most important questions: a) what you are offering; b) why they may need it.
Example of a balanced webpage (text + images)
So, what you need is a proper balance between graphics and text. Some examples of how you can improve your landing page (by replacing some text):
Hiring a professional web designer will certainly help if you lack design skills. On a similar note, “visually appealing” pages are always seen as more credible than “crudely designed” pages. So, an investment in a good design will go a long way helping your sales and conversions.
Example of confusing headline: “Changing how the world works”
As I hinted in the section above, visitors on your page are impatient. Within first 5 seconds, they want to know what your service does or you have lost a chance with him/her. As someone wise said: “Browser back button is your biggest enemy” (if you find the source of this quotation, please leave a comment). Never think that a visitor is going to spend minutes reading through all text on your page and then make his best guess of what you are offering. Instead, you should make the job easy for him. Have a big, bold descriptive headline as the first thing he should see.
Example of good headline: “Hire Online Workers to get the Job Done”
A descriptive headline also serves another important job: it *sticks* in the visitor’s brain as long as he stays on your website. Contrast this to the scenario where there is no helpful headline which a visitor can fall back on if your page gets too confusing (usually happens because we want to write about EVERY feature our site offers). Moreover, your visitor is usually distracted. Imagine a “busy-beaver” visitor chatting with friends on IM, doing a status update on Facebook/Twitter and on a call with his boss, all at once. Now imagine he stumbles on your website. Do you expect him to really understand what your site does without having a descriptive headline?
My advice is to avoid following kinds of headlines:
In a nutshell, headlines should be short, concise and descriptive.
Paradox of choice on a landing page. Out of three call-to-action buttons. which option to choose?
Call-to-action is a button or link that asks visitor to take a specific action. It may be a link to your signup form, plans and pricing page or the feature tour page. There are two specific issues related to call-to-action: a) either some sites don’t have any call to action button or b) some sites have too many call-to-action buttons. Once the visitor arrives on your page, thinks that you are credible (from your design), reads the descriptive headline and is finally convinced to spend some time on your site, what’s the next page you want him to see? That decision should not be left on visitor because only you know (and not him) which is the most relevant page that the visitor should be viewing next.
Example of single, prominent call-to-action: “Download Wordpress”
If you don’t have a single call-to-action or have far too many call-to-action, visitor is likely to get confused what to next (since all links from your landing page/homepage seem to be of equal importance). Even if you have two prominent buttons (e.g. one of Learn More and other for the signup), try reducing it to one button. There is even a book titled: “Don’t make me think!” and that’s precisely the point I’m trying to make here. Don’t force your visitor to make a choice. By placing relevant call-to-action buttons on different pages of your site, you should gently guide him to the final goal (be it a signup, purchase, download, etc.)
Example of no social proof. Why should I bother about Twhirl?
So you make bold claims on your site. Of course, you think you are the “Best Twitter client ever”. But, unfortunately, making claims is easy. Any site can claim to be the “best” or “revolutionary” because those words are abstract. You may think your product is the best but if you are the only one in this world with that viewpoint, you are not going to convince anyone to try it out.
Humans crave for social proof. They want to know whole else is using this thing and how beneficial was it for them. Even if you design the most beautiful landing page but fail to include any social proof, your sales and conversions are going to suffer. Social proof can be shown in terms of testimonials, company logos, customer photos or case studies.
Example of social proof: we know Facebook, LA Times, etc. use Hootsuite. So it must be good, no?
It is understandable that if your site is just getting started, it may be hard to get any social proof because you may not have any customers. In that case, you need to have a convincing return-on-investment proof on your site. I’m not just talking about justifying investment of money but you also need to convince a visitor to invest time trying out your service or product. People crave for statistics and validation. So, you can perhaps do a small study or research on Internet to come up with metric of some kind highlighting usefulness of your service. (Example if you have a new social media monitoring service: 95% of business are talked about on the Internet, use MyShinyNewTool to talk to those invisible customers).
Another key point with regards to social proof is human emotions. People respond to concrete representations (say a customer video testimonial) in a much engaging way as compared to an abstract fact (say, 50+ companies from Life Sciences and Biotechnology industry use our software). This is not to say that facts in your social proof don’t work. They do. But you can always augment them with stories of individual customers and what your service did to them. (Case studies are a great way about doing that).
To re-iterate, if you want to increase sales and conversions on your landing page or homepage, you need to concentrate on fixing following issues:
We also have a FREE automated diagnostic tool, called Landing Page Analyzer, which will point these (and many more) deficiencies on your page. Click here to start analyzing your landing pages.
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[...] Interesting. Source [...]
Pingback by What makes a landing page effective? | Smash Company — November 2, 2010 @ 8:13 pm
Excellent article and great examples.
Comment by Tom Fanelli — November 2, 2010 @ 9:08 pm
excellent examples!
Comment by Slav — November 2, 2010 @ 9:20 pm
Thanks for the post. This is great advice and inspiration to go make my landing page better.
Comment by David Smit — November 2, 2010 @ 9:22 pm
Awesome points! (now I’m off to re-check my landing pages with your advice…) ;-D
Comment by Richard — November 2, 2010 @ 10:45 pm
I just tested the landing page analyzer on a new site that was recently soft launched. Not only is it a nice automated tool that takes the user through a useful checklist, but it helped me realize that my call to action badly needed beefing up. This tool is not going to put pro’s out of work, but it is a well thought out tool that is definitley worth using. Thank you for creating this ap.
Comment by Randy Pickard — November 3, 2010 @ 1:01 am
@Randy: I am glad you like the tool! Yep, tools will not replace pros anytime soon but they definitely help one in going towards the right direction.
Comment by Paras Chopra — November 3, 2010 @ 1:06 am
Great post, need to keep up with your advice. On the way right now to check why we’re not working more with VisualWeb…
Regards from switzerland
david @ KBSD Geneva
Comment by KBSD Geneva — November 3, 2010 @ 2:29 am
Great article. Just about to do landing pages and it will help me in going towards the right path.
Thank you. Hana Guenzl
Comment by Hana Guenzl — November 3, 2010 @ 5:01 am
Great post. Though I’m a Japanese webmaster, all you are pointing out here are very useful to my Japanese sites, too.
Would you allow me to introduce this article to my readers on my blog? I’ll promise mention you and give you a link from my post.
Comment by Kenichi Suzuki — November 3, 2010 @ 6:08 am
Great writeup. Is your offer still good?
Comment by Kevin — November 3, 2010 @ 7:31 am
[...] Landing Page Optimization tips: analysis of 50+ sites to find out what increases sales and conversio… – Too-much text, Headline, call-to-action, social proof are the issues tackled here [...]
Pingback by Link dump for November 2nd | The Queue Blog — November 3, 2010 @ 9:32 am
Thanks Paras for your tips. It has really been helpful for our small business in Kerala offering honeymoon packages
Comment by Kerala Honeymoon Packages — November 3, 2010 @ 10:27 am
@Kevin: Yes, just shoot me a mail at paras at wingify
Comment by Paras Chopra — November 3, 2010 @ 10:54 am
[...] Landing Page Optimization tips: analysis of 50+ sites to find out what increases sales and conversio… (tags: landing optimization conversion) [...]
Pingback by links for 2010-11-03 « Gatunogatuno’s Weblog — November 3, 2010 @ 2:34 pm
[...] pages have so much information on them that people do not have time or energy to read. The point of having so much information from a marketer’s point of view is that the text will answer any questions the reader has in [...]
Pingback by One Landing Page Mistake That Makes You Lose Clients | Freelance Weekly — November 3, 2010 @ 8:09 pm
Great list. Thanks for showing both good & bad examples, also in the same space, to get your point across.
Comment by Casey — November 3, 2010 @ 10:33 pm
Wow, that was a really good look though a lot of landing pages. A very good read. Thanks a lot of it.
Comment by Jordan Wiedbusch — November 5, 2010 @ 11:34 pm
[...] Landing Page Optimization Tips – Visual Website Optimizer [...]
Pingback by Weekend Startup and Entrepreneurial Updates — November 6, 2010 @ 2:36 am
Thanks for the tips, our problem is our product and limited market for both our location and endusers. We dont have a headline however we are trying an animated video that shows the difference between our product and our compeditors. Please take a look when you have a moment. Thanks
Comment by Leon — November 6, 2010 @ 6:30 pm
Very well explained, the use of images as sample, in fact, actual sites really made your post excellent. A good read not only for newbies.
Comment by Trinity — November 6, 2010 @ 6:58 pm
I WAS bored and the first thing i read after installing the boredmbuttom was this article.
I know i could go work on my co. but i need i’m unmotivated a.t.m. Plus its Sat nite.
Great article esp. the LP analyzer! will be making those improvements shortly!
Comment by Nick — November 7, 2010 @ 10:22 am
[...] Landing page optimization tips – four common issues with 50+ sites that decrease sales and conversions. [...]
Pingback by cornerstone-works.com | — November 7, 2010 @ 11:09 am
I tried the graphics idea on my site and hoping it is helping!
Comment by Tobin Crenshaw — November 8, 2010 @ 8:03 pm
“World’s easiest A/B testing tool”
I understand using A/B is more impressive, academic lingo for multivariant testing. . .
BUT, eventhough I have a few extra letters after my name myself, this is not an academically inclined industry and it seems to me “World’s easiest Split Testing Tool” is more descriptive and clear for more of your demographic.
Comment by Rob — November 9, 2010 @ 6:33 am
Thank you for posting such an informative article!
I know I always appreciate it when experts take the time to go through their process in such an easy, simple way.
So thanks again!
Comment by Mira — November 11, 2010 @ 2:46 am
I’ve already changed the h1 and h2 titles on my home page, I also tried the Landing Page Analyzer which was ineteresting. I have 4 call to actions so it looks like I need to drop 3 of them!
Great post and I’m looking forward to the next one.
Cheers
Wozza
Comment by Wozza - Rabbitdigital — November 12, 2010 @ 4:57 pm
[...] In this post I will detail conversion rate optimization tips for publishers and media sites. For general best practices for all websites you may want to check my post on conversion rate optimization tips for landing pages. [...]
Pingback by 7 Conversion Rate Optimization Tips for Publishers | Adam Sherk — November 16, 2010 @ 10:47 pm
[...] Read the full article on Visual Website Optimizer [...]
Pingback by Landing Page Optimization Tips: Find Out What Increases Sales And Conversions | whatanicepost — December 13, 2010 @ 1:55 am
Aren’t there cases where this advice would limit the effectiveness of your site? For instance, if you already have some credibility just by the fact that you have a site on the subject. If your page is to simplistic,can’t you lose credibilty by seeming like you have no real depth?
Comment by David O'Leary — December 13, 2010 @ 9:32 am
[...] Landing Page Optimization tips: analysis of 50+ sites to find out what increases sales and conversio…Badass lesson: After analyzing over 50 sites, it seems people are still using too much text, non descriptive headlines (much too common), no CTA or too many, lack of social proof. These are basic elements that are still being neglected. Badass points removed for anyone who fails these concepts. [...]
Pingback by 52 Ways to be a Conversion Badass (2010 Style) | Unbounce — December 22, 2010 @ 8:21 pm
Great tips! One thing though…I’ve read elsewhere that the more expensive the product you’re selling, the more text/copy/scrolling people will tolerate.. I agree with the previous commenter that there will likely be scenarios where things are “dumbed down” too much for the sake of design over substance.
Comment by NK Smith — December 23, 2010 @ 12:10 pm
Great article!
Although I have some doubts about the point concerning changing text for images/charts. If you have an e-commerce site, which already has product images, adding more images will make it much slower to load, won’t it?
Comment by Carlos — December 27, 2010 @ 10:41 pm
Nice article. Really interesting point – “Another key point with regards to social proof is human emotions. People respond to concrete representations (say a customer video testimonial) in a much engaging way as compared to an abstract fact (say, 50+ companies from Life Sciences and Biotechnology industry use our software).”
Comment by Jake Coventry — January 20, 2011 @ 8:22 pm
[...] is well done: Four common issues with landing pages, showing problematic designs followed by improved designs. I wish there was a site that just did [...]
Pingback by A good article on common landing page design and user experience pitfalls that also contains many successful landing page examples « OxfordTechnologyVentures — February 1, 2011 @ 4:18 am
Great points! I’ve written about this very subject just last week. Design, layout, copy – everything needs to work together to move the visitor on the path to your call to action.
1. Focus on one objective for each page. Don’t offer multiple choices and throw in optional extras. Don’t talk about other products or services – you can use a different landing page and ad source for those. Define your objective and drive everything on the page to it.
2. Web is a visual medium where the overall look, feel, and formatting matter strongly. Good design helps support the content, leading the visitor’s eye through your message and directing them towards the goal.
3. Eliminate elements that may distract the visitor away from the goal. Whether it’s graphic elements or content that does not aid the visitor in their decision making process, get rid of it. This includes navigation bars, visual clutter, and links to other sections. You want the reader focused solely on your offer without being tempted to wander around the site.
4. Open the page with a strong, benefit-rich headline that speaks directly to the reader’s self-interest. Remember, split-testing different headlines is relatively painless, and can bring you much higher conversions compared with multiple other tweaks.
5. Write in the second person – You and Your. Your visitor only cares about how taking that step will benefit him or her. Make the copy personable but most importantly, make it about them!
6. If you go long and have visitors scroll downward, make sure to repeat essential calls to action so no matter where your visitor is it will be clearly visible.
There are more points that I could make but those are the basics, aside from what you’re already mentioning in the article.
Comment by Joanna Ciolek — February 10, 2011 @ 9:40 am
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Pingback by Оптимизация главной страницы « Записки антисеошника — February 10, 2011 @ 2:16 pm
@Joanna: excellent additions to the article! Agree with all the points. Thanks for your inputs.
Comment by Paras Chopra — February 10, 2011 @ 4:21 pm
[...] Landing Page Optimization tips: analysis of 50+ sites to find out what increases sales and conversio…Badass lesson: After analyzing over 50 sites, it seems people are still using too much text, non descriptive headlines (much too common), no CTA or too many, lack of social proof. These are basic elements that are still being neglected. Badass points removed for anyone who fails these concepts. [...]
Pingback by 52 Ways to be a Conversion Badass | DesignFools — February 10, 2011 @ 7:53 pm
[...] at the top of post, previously I had analyzed 50+ landing pages and came up with some practical landing page optimization tips. So, you may want to check out that [...]
Pingback by Landing Page « Retail Mktg — February 16, 2011 @ 5:04 pm
Thank you so much for such a vice post. its very informative and useful for me. Thanks for sharing
Comment by Holiday Packages to Kerala — February 19, 2011 @ 2:03 pm
This is very good point! Will try on our site for the new layout.
Comment by X Wu — March 2, 2011 @ 1:33 pm
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Pingback by Landing Page Optimization tips: analysis of 50+ sites to find out what increases sales and conversions « Studio Web Design — March 8, 2011 @ 1:25 am
I liked this post and I totally agree with most of the items, my question is: what data do you have to claim that “these are the 4 most common issues that affect conversion rate and sales”?
Comment by Daniele Beccari — March 23, 2011 @ 10:10 pm
No hard data available, this is based on my experience of observing hundreds and thousands of split tests.
Comment by Paras Chopra — March 24, 2011 @ 7:24 am
[...] relate to A/B testing case studies and conversion rate optimization how-tos. All time hits include: landing page optimization tips, impact of SEO on A/B testing, top 10 eCommerce sites (by conversion rate), [...]
Pingback by Top 10 A/B Testing and Conversion Rate Optimization resources — May 13, 2011 @ 8:07 pm
[...] Previously on this blog, I had analyzed 50+ landing pages and came up with some practical landing page optimization tips. After reading the interview, you may want to check out the post [...]
Pingback by Landing Page Best Practices: the definitive guide (with infographics) — May 13, 2011 @ 8:09 pm
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Pingback by Re-establishing the lines of communication» Blog Archive Landing Page - Best Practice, Tips and Review for perfect conversion — June 8, 2011 @ 6:32 pm
[...] Muy intereseante – leer más [...]
Pingback by Landing Page Optimization tips: analysis of 50+ sites to find out what increases sales and conversions – webworx4u.com — June 11, 2011 @ 4:37 am
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[...] Thanks to my A/B testing startup (Visual Website Optimizer), I have had the luck of helping thousands of our users implement A/B tests on their landing pages. Hence I have come to realize that there are few key elements which set apart highly converting landing pages from rest of the bunch. (I have also blogged about these landing page optimization tips.) [...]
Pingback by How to Write a Killer AdWords Ad by Treating It a Mini Landing Page | Search Engine Journal — June 14, 2011 @ 6:26 pm
You’ve done an excellent job sharing these critical tips to have an effective landing page. I also agree that a well-designed squeeze page wins the game. It’s a good way to capture the attention of your prospects. In my experience, it’s also effective to have a video landing page, instead of an all text landing page.
Comment by Squeeze Page Generator — June 18, 2011 @ 1:21 pm
[...] Use a clear, bold, plain language title that frames the page. See point #2 in the Visual Website Optimizers article on landing page optimisation. [...]
Pingback by Putting ‘the fold’ in perspective « Adam Lempriere — June 21, 2011 @ 11:42 am
Love this article, simple and easy to follow. My blogging friends should read this to understand that blogs too need a call to action.
Comment by Charleen Larson — July 29, 2011 @ 3:48 am
I’m an artist, not a business person (I know, I know, I still need to take care of business…) and enjoy reading “Good Experience.”
This article is interesting in relation to artists’ blogs/websites, which are notoriously opaque.
(I had to google “ROI”, since I couldn’t figure out what it meant from reading the article.)
Comment by Elizabeth — September 22, 2011 @ 8:18 am
It’s interesting how you show the balance between social validation (people who endorse your product) and the content that appears on the landing page.
Obviously great content and a strong call to action are the foundation. Interesting how social validation is evolving to be another major consideration as people decide if you content is credible.
Buddy Scalera
htt://www.wordspicturesweb.com
Comment by Buddy Scalera — October 8, 2011 @ 9:02 pm
Great post. Will be sharing these VisualWeb basics !!
Regards from Geneva
Comment by Seniors Genève — October 20, 2011 @ 12:09 am
Some great tips, it’s the simple ones you always forget about!
Comment by trCreative — November 2, 2011 @ 2:37 pm
I didn’t realize the social proof component was so important – whenever I read cheesy customer testimonials it actually makes me devalue the site. I guess the trick is how to integrate it so it comes across as legitimate, rather than schmarmy.
Comment by Jodi — November 11, 2011 @ 5:14 am
Good post and right to the point. I don’t know if this is really the best place to ask but do you folks have any thoughts on where to get some professional writers? Thank you
Comment by Allie Blau — December 29, 2011 @ 4:42 am
[...] I detail about these 4 basic elements in my blog post. [...]
Pingback by Interview with Paras Chopra, Founder of Visual Website Optimizer — January 24, 2012 @ 2:31 pm
[...] Unbounce, por exemplo, disponibilizou um guia com 101 dicas de como otimizar Landing Pages. Já o Visual Website Optimizer publicou um artigo em que, depois de analisar 50 sites, lista os quatro erros mais comuns que [...]
Pingback by O desafio das Landing Pages no Brasil | O futuro da mídia online — February 16, 2012 @ 7:31 pm