If there is one area of your website that you can’t neglect, it’s your core landing pages. Whether you use your landing pages to attract organic search traffic, to convert visitors from PPC ad campaigns, or to link to your social media campaigns, it’s crucial that these landing pages are optimized for conversions.
Marketers are getting smarter and paying more attention to creating effective landing pages for each main area of their website. Here are some of the landing page trends that we look forward to seeing in 2019-2021.
Simplicity
Interactive Agency
We are exposed to more information than at any other point in history. This has led to a decrease in attention span and an intolerance for trying to decode a hard-to-understand website. That’s why we’re seeing landing page optimization with simplicity in mind.
Effective landing pages are those that are easy to process. Simple landing pages offer uncluttered designs that incorporate plenty of white space. The call to action at the top of the page and the website text make it clear what the business is about and what the visitor should do next. All extraneous information that won’t help the site visitor make a decision is removed.
In the above example from Dollar Shave Club, their landing page features a simple three-step process along with two buttons to get started. It doesn’t get much simpler than that.
Interactivity
Game Ads
An interactive landing page is one that guides the user through some type of experience where they’re an active participant with your site. It goes beyond simply clicking on links and reading text. In this example, we created an interactive landing page for Lacoste that guided visitors through a gift shopping experience by answering a few key questions about the person they were shopping for.
One of the biggest benefits of creating interactive landing pages is that users tend to stay on these pages longer. That means more exposure and awareness for your brand. Dwell time is also a key component of landing page optimization for search engines. If a user stays on your site for several minutes after visiting from Google’s search results, your rankings will likely increase and you’ll get even more visitors to your site.
Explainer Videos
Banner ad
An explainer video can help simplify a company’s product line, message, or services and make it easier for the site visitor to process. They’re especially useful for SAAS applications that benefit from showing users a demo or a real-life use case, like in DocuSign’s video featured on their homepage.
That’s why 97% of business owners say that explainer videos help users understand what they offer. And 83% of businesses who have integrated an explainer video on their homepage say its effective.
Not only do explainer videos help clarify a brand’s offerings, but it can also lead to an increase in the time a visitor spends on your site, like adding interactivity. An increase in the use of explainer videos is another major landing page trend we’ll see in 2019-2021.
Illustrations
High Quality Banners
Many businesses are moving away from traditional stock photos and choosing custom illustrations for their landing page optimization in 2019-2021. Investing in custom illustrations and graphics demonstrates the individuality of your brand and sets it apart from competitors who use well worn, ingenuous stock photos.
In the example above, this screenshot from Lyft showcases a custom illustration for a background on their driver’s landing page, which adds character and visual interest.
Page Speed
Consumers simply don’t have time to wait for your website to load. Site visitors expect to get access to your website at lightning speed. Did you know that over half of mobile site visitors will leave a page that takes longer than three seconds to load? Even a delay of one second can lead to a 7% reduction in conversions.
Increasing the speed of each page on your website is one of the most important landing page optimization trends for the upcoming year. In fact, page speed can be considered as important as both design and content when it comes to creating effective landing pages.
In 2019-2021, expect to see landing page trends that are focused on what the user wants. The most effective landing pages offer speed, visual interest, and simplicity.
