Creating a website means learning a lot of new digital marketing and website development jargon. One term that seems to regularly cause my clients to get their knickers in a twist is ‘landing page.’ In this short article I’ll offer up a simple definition, go through the different types of landing pages and explain how you may use them in your business.

Whether it’s your copywriter, designer, developer, SEO strategist or head of digital marketing that says to you, “We should get a landing page for that,” by the time you’re done reading you’ll know what they’re talking about.

A simple definition of what a landing page is

A landing page is a website page. Specifically, it’s the website page a visitor ‘lands on’ first after clicking a link. They may have found the link on:

• a search engine (like Google or Yahoo!),
• social media,
• in an email,
• in an online ad.

From a copywriting point of view, having an awareness of how someone is landing on a specific page can influence messaging. This all ties in with ‘user journey’.

Different types of landing pages

The purpose of one landing page can be very different to another. Here are a few common ones that you might use in your business.

Sales landing pages

These sell a product or service and are often quite long. I think of them as the digital marketing version of a direct marketing letter because they often use many of the same techniques such as repetition, use of personal pronouns, the power of three and so on.  

Squeeze page

Really short pages with a single clear action you want the site visitor to take. Often these pages are used when you want someone to sign up or download something very specific. You may also hear it called a ‘lead capture page.’

Product pages

A dedicated page for every product an ecommerce business stocks and sells. Key information on these landing pages include product descriptions, price, any extra sizing or purchasing information. The main CTA is ‘Buy.’ For businesses who sell services rather than product, then you’d have individual landing pages for each service. Just like I have.

Informational landing pages

As the name suggests, these landing pages contain information about your business. These could be anything from your about page through to your returns policy. Unlike the other pages I’ve mentioned, the primary purpose of these pages isn’t to hard sell a customer or visitor but to be helpful to them. In turn, this should build trust.

Influencing copy and design

For a landing page to fulfil its purpose it needs to have the right copy and design that nudges the reader towards taking the action you want them to take. This is where a proper brief comes into play. The more a professional copywriter understands about what they’re writing about and who it’s for, then the stronger the landing page will be.

And that’s it. That’s all a landing page is: a website page with a clear purpose, that someone lands on by clicking a link. If you’re currently working on a website project and need a hand with your pages, give me a shout.

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