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Landing Pages

by RandallCraig on September 28, 2012

Filed in: Blog, Blogging, Book, Make It Happen Tipsheet, Social Media

Tagged as: , ,

$37 Billion:  This is the amount that Google earned in 2011, 97% from advertising. Google’s keyword-savvy Pay-per-click selling machine allows any organization (or person) to specify keywords, construct an ad, and specify how much they would pay for a click.  Google then puts the ad on a web page that contains the keywords. When a user clicks, the advertiser pays, and Google benefits.

And so does the advertiser.  The user has made a commitment by clicking, and hopefully they will transact after they land on the target page.  Unfortunately, the conversion to a sale does not happen as often as it should, because many advertisers are completely unaware of a simple concept: the landing page.

A landing page is really just the other half of an advertisement.  The ad sets up the requirement and helps people with a particular problem self-identify and click through. The landing page provides the solution, and a next step.  It converts browsers into buyers.  Here are key attributes of it:

  • It is paired with a very specific advertisement.
  • The page should go through multiple rounds of A/B testing.  (Two identical ads point to two different versions of the landing page; the one that converts fewer buyers should discontinued, the other should be revised for a new test, etc.)
  • Very little navigation to the main site; the goal is for them to read/consider/act – not to meander off.
  • Simplified messaging, all designed to expose the problem and share the solution.
  • Simplified design and graphics: because there is far less content (and links) than a traditional web page, the eye will naturally focus on the remaining important information.
  • Multiple calls to action (eg Subscribe, Purchase, etc)
  • Multiple content delivery modes – but identical message: Video, Descriptive Text, Testimonials, “Trial” subscriptions, etc.  Different people respond to different stimulus
  • Consistent design beyond the landing page.  Since the site is designed to convert, a vastly different look-and-feel beyond the landing page (eg the next page in a sequence) can cause user uncertainty, and possibly abandonment.

This week’s action plan:  The concept of a landing page can be generalized: there is a metaphorical landing page after everything that we write.  What did you want people to do after they finished reading?  This week, think through the next step in any of the projects that you are working on, and start crafting the landing page.  (Hint: the landing page is merely a bridge to another decision.  Once you’ve mapped out your decisions, it is vastly easier.)

Follow-my-own-advice bonus:  The next step beyond this post is one that I wrote on attraction and conversion.  And after that, please call me.

Note: The Make It Happen Tipsheet is also available by email. Go to www.RandallCraig.com to register.

Randall Craig

@RandallCraig (follow me)
www.RandallCraig.com
www.ptadvisors.com
www.ProfessionallySpeakingTV.com

Reading beyond the lines, part two

by RandallCraig on September 20, 2011

Filed in: Blog, Book, Learning, Make It Happen Tipsheet, Management

Tagged as: ,

Have you ever thought about how to become more creative?  One way is to expose yourself to ideas just beyond “the usual”: ideas that challenge you to think differently, or expose you to experiences that are well beyond your immediate knowledge.  With so much available on the web, it is easy to forget that books were first designed for this purpose.  Here are ten books that are worth a look:

Who Moved my Cheese? (Dr. Spencer Johnson):  All about change management; A fable where four characters take a different approach to change.  It’s a great way to recognize unhelpful behaviors from your colleagues… and yourself.  A quick read.

Designing Web Usability (Jakob Nielsen):  This was probably the very first book on web usability.  While I’m not in total agreement with all his points, I agree completely with the concept of purpose-built, user-focused design.  Most of the fundamentals in this book are timeless.

The Tipping Point (Malcom Gladwell):  The theory of critical mass, and why it happens.  You can’t go wrong reading anything from him.

The Wealthy Barber (David Chilton): This was one of the first “fable” books.  It’s all about lessons in financial planning taught through a story of conversations with the local barber, who shares matter-of-fact common sense.   There is an up-to-date, 30-years-later book  (“The Wealthy Barber Returns”) also now available.

The Goal (Eliyahu Goldrat): Continuous improvement told in a story format, as he repairs both a factory… and his personal life.  This book gives you a behind-the-scenes look into manufacturing operations  – something most people don’t ever experience first hand.

The Code Book (Simon Singh): A talented science writer, Singh talks about codes and ciphers throughout the ages and the sophistication of societies uses of these codes.  Starting back in Roman times, he brings us through WWII, to the present, and beyond.  Fascinating.

The Five Dysfunctions of a Team (Patrick Lencioni): Business fable where a high school principal is asked to ‘fix’ a Silicon Valley team – the reader goes along for the ride.  The book is quite entertaining, until you realize the dysfunctional characters are just describing  your own behaviors.

Marketing Services: Competing Through Quality (Leonard Berry & A. Parasuraman): These academics are the “creators” of so much in the area of measuring service quality: the “gap framework”, the five determinants of service quality, and more.  This book is a must-read for anyone involved in the service world.  Hint:  Responsiveness and Reliability are key.  And great service quality is when there is no gap between expected and actual service delivery.

Online PR and Social Media series and Social Media for Business: 101 Ways to Grow Your Business Without Wasting Your Time: Of course, I couldn’t NOT put my own books in the list.  Instead of a thick reference manual covering everything, these books focus on models that you can use to implement social media strategies, reduce risk, monitor/measure ROI, etc.

This week’s action plan:  With more – and different – input, you will get more – and more creative – output. This week, choose one of these books, read it, then pass it on to a friend or colleague who you think might also appreciate it.  Not only will you both be stretched, but you’ll have one more thing in common.   (Want a few more choices?  Here’s my earlier post of ten other mind-stretching books.)

Note: The Make It Happen Tipsheet is also available by email. Go to www.RandallCraig.com to register.

Randall Craig
www.RandallCraig.com
www.ptadvisors.com

SMS: Social Media System

by RandallCraig January 19, 2010

Have you committed to writing a blog, only to find that you don’t quite write as often (or as well) as you’d like to? Or have you decided to use Twitter, only to find that you never really have much to say – let alone time to say it? If so, then you’re not alone. [...]

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Online PR and Social Media for Experts, Authors, Consultants, and Speakers

by RandallCraig January 7, 2009

After a grueling amount of research, writing, and editing, Online PR and Social Media for Experts, Authors, Consultants, and Speakers is now available. Check it out at www.OnlinePRSocialMedia.com. The book itself is 130 pages, and while it is aimed at “experts”, it is completely appropriate for those with expertise working within an organization, whether they [...]

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Indie Book Award Winner

by RandallCraig July 1, 2008

Some great news: The Indie Book Awards has named Personal Balance Sheet by Randall Craig a Gold Medal Winner in the Career category. It was also named one of the top Business books of the year. The Next Generation Indie Book Awards is one of the most prestigious American book awards. All books are judged [...]

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Reading beyond the lines

by RandallCraig October 18, 2007

A typical way to develop perspective is to consider issues from different vantage points. A less common – but perhaps more valuable – way to develop perspective is to expose yourself to different ideas. One way to do this is to read books that are at the fringes of your “typical” interest area – and [...]

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Freakonomics

by RandallCraig May 30, 2007

I just finished reading another fascinating book: Freakonomics by Steven Levtitt and Stephen Dubner. This pair of authors (one an economics professor while the other an accomplished journalist) have probably done more to explain economics than any of the two-dozen-odd economics textbooks that I have in my library. Levitt’s area of interest is exploring difficult [...]

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Knowledge to Action

by RandallCraig March 27, 2007

When was the last time you read a good book? Or rather, when was the last time you read a good book that was good for you? No, not a trash novel, or even one that is mildly entertaining. What is a good book? It is one that moves you one step closer to your [...]

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Linked

by RandallCraig November 26, 2006

I’m just about half way through a fascinating book, called “Linked“, by Albert-Laszlo Barabasi. In it, he explores how networks grow: whether they be social networks, biological networks, the internet, or web sites. One of his most fascinating points is that the study of an individual node – whether it be a cancer cell, an [...]

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