Learning that some things in life are a myth (sorry tooth fairy) do no harm to us as adults. However, when it comes to marketing, there can be some seriously damaging myths out there.
If you don't want your landing pages to be full of potentially harmful myths, then be sure to follow the guidance in this post. We'll explain what you should be looking out for and how you can fix some of the mistakes you might have.
Myth 1: You don't need many landing pages
Many people are under the impression that you don't need to have many landing pages. If you think that all you need is a "contact us" and if applicable a "demo" page, then I'm afraid you're in for an awakening. The fewer landing pages you have, the more likely it is that you're missing out on web traffic, leads and potential customers.
Every landing page you create is an opportunity for you to be there in the search results or having your link shared on social media. This can lead to having better search engine rankings and improved social media presence can lead to more traffic coming your way, and in turn, more conversions.
Don't forget, not all of your landing pages are going to appear on search engines, some of them are only going to be there for converting your leads. While they might not be visible to many people, they can help you track how many leads have clicked on a particular offer, or how many have downloaded your resources.
Myth 2: The shorter your form, the better
This might not be true in all instances, there is no "best" length for a form to be, it all depends on what you're trying to achieve with it.
You might find that if you're trying to get a multitude of new leads then a short form is better. However, if you're trying to get better qualified leads, then you'll probably find it's better to have a longer form. One form isn't better than the other, they just have different goals in place and need to be in line with them.
You'll probably find that your final form isn't too long, or too short, it's just right for your needs. You may need to go through some tweaking and refinement before your form is finished, but remember, it's about what you're trying to do, not the length.
Myth 3: I've found an awesome landing page template, if I copy it, my conversion rates will go up
Examples and templates are a great place to start if you're stuck for ideas of what your design should look like. But remember, just because you have your content in the best design around, you may not get the conversions you're looking for. A landing page has many different elements to it that all interact with one another to make them great. You need to make sure your content is interacting with the design of the page and the audience viewing it.
Ultimately the landing page will only succeed if the content matches the customer.
Myth 4: All conversion elements need to be above the fold
A lot of people believe that all important content needs to be at the top of the page along with any calls to action. The myth is that people won't scroll to find what they need or to look for forms to fill out at the bottom of the page.
However, this just isn't always true. If someone wants to convert, they will, regardless of where the form is on the page. One way to try and have more conversions is to have compelling copy, no matter what the length of it is. So forget about trying to have all of your compelling copy above the fold, just make sure it's somewhere on the page.
Myth 5: Trust seals show I'm trustworthy and people will convert because of this
When you're giving out your card information, or other sensitive information online, it can be good to see a trust seal in place. It's a little reminder that your sensitive information is safe.
But what if you're on a page that doesn't require you to enter any information. Or what if the information isn't sensitive? This trust seal then becomes an omen that information might be being collected without your knowing or consent. This can seriously harm the trust that someone has in your site. Even though you were only trying to show them they can trust you.
Myth 6: All form buttons must be red to drive conversions
This might be true in a few cases, but definitely not all cases, every page is different and every visitor is different. This means that even though you might have green buttons, or buttons that align with your colour scheme, you don't have to make sure they're all red.
This same myth goes for any colour test, there is no one "right" colour that'll make people convert. You need to test out your colours to see what will work best for you.
Myth 7: Landing page copy should be short and sweet
This was touched on in our myth about keeping things above the fold. However, enough people believe in this myth for it to have its own section.
When you're writing your copy it needs to be long enough to cover what it is you're talking about without you starting to ramble about it. Remember, you're trying to get your readers to convert, so your content needs to be long enough and compelling enough to get your audience to your end goal.
It could be that you just need to explain what your product is and the main features of it. Or you could need to explain about a location and why people should choose to go on holiday there, as well as why your hotel is the best in the area. As you can see, these two different scenarios require a different amount of copy to be written, it doesn't need to be long, or short, it just needs to be there.
Myth 8: You only need to watch your conversions
Landing pages are one of the steps in your marketing funnel. It's not just that you're trying to get visitors to fill out a form, you're hoping that eventually you can get them to convert into a customer.
So, when trying to make the most of your landing pages, you don't just need to know how many people filled out your form, you also need to know how many of them then went on to become customers, or how many didn't.
You might find that even if a certain landing page has a low conversion rate, it actually manages to bring in more customers than your other pages. This could be something that needs to be fixed, or replicated elsewhere.
Myth 9: You should have as many things as possible on your landing page so someone will convert on something
You shouldn't view your landing page as a last-ditch effort to get people to convert for you. It should be seen as one part of the process of getting someone's information and then converting them into a customer.
If you give to many options on a page, you'll probably find that your visitors get distracted and your conversion rates start to drop. It may be best for you to remove anything that's not directly related to the main content of the page.
Myth 10: Once they're in place, leave them alone
There's no sense to making a landing page and then just leaving it to run. You need to know if it's working as it should. But you also need to know if it needs to be improved. This can be done through a series of A/B testing.
If you find that version B is bringing in more conversions than version A, then you probably need to change it over.
This should be done every so often, so that your landing pages are the best version that they can be.
