A landing page is where a visitor arrives at your site after clicking a link in an email or on another website. It is usually focused on getting the visitor to take one action, in most cases to submit their name and email details. Because of this focus there should not be any navigational menu or links to other pages. Essentially a visitor should have two options when they arrive at a landing page: fill in their details or leave.

The message on the page should be specifically for the visitor. The more appropriate the message the better your conversion rate will be. This means you should have a profile of your potential visitors. For example, what are they most interested in and are they likely to take immediate action to overcome a challenge? Where they are coming from gives a clue as to what is likely to be in your visitor’s mind at the time of arrival.

Here are 5 questions likely to occur to a visitor when they have arrived at your landing page. If you can provide answers that they will like the better the landing page’s conversion rate will be.

1. Where am I?

It should take just 3 seconds or less for the visitor to understand where they have arrived. They may have just clicked a banner ad or a link in an email. Ideally you should make it obvious that the page is related to the link. You could use a headline that matches the words in a text link they just used. If they just clicked on a banner ad use the same image on the page that was used in the ad.

You could use a logo or picture of yourself to quickly tell them who they are dealing with. Position it in the usual place, top left of the page. Make things easy and familiar for them. Don’t use any fancy fonts or unusual layouts. Don’t make them have to work hard to understand what’s going on.

The page should also quickly and clearly explain who you are, what the product is, and what it can do for them. If you have a USP that you can express in a short sentence put that in too.

2. What can I do here?

Make it clear what the visitor can do on the landing page. Remember they should usually have only one option, unless they decide to leave. Spell out that one option in clear and specific terms.

3. What am I being offered?

Ideally this should be explained above the fold. If it will take too much text consider using a graphic. After all a picture can be worth a thousand words. If you think your visitor will be unable to work out the offer in a matter of seconds consider simplifying the offer.

4. Why should I take the action I am being asked to take?

You have to persuade your visitor to take action. Mention the main benefits of your offer. If they will be able to achieve something quickly with your offer mention that too.

5. What is taking the action going to cost me?

Your visitor is likely to be aware that everything has a cost. They are expecting to be asked to pay something, whether it’s a financial cost, having to hand over their contact details, or to invest some time going through your content. Be honest about whatever the cost is.

If there is a financial cost to obtaining your offer be upfront about it. Prospects tend to be put off by the ‘hide and seek’ approach, where they have to scan the page a few times before they finally find the price hidden away in a paragraph.

Don’t pretend you’re not asking them for their contact details. They need to fill in a form in exchange for the benefits of your offer. You can spell this out or quickly suggest it with a submit button that says ‘Give me Access’ or something similar.

A landing page works best when it is targeted to a type of visitor and persuades those visitors to take a specific action. Address these five questions effectively and the better your landing page conversion rate will be.