6 Landing Page Mistakes to Avoid [and How To Fix Them]

Landing pages are where many website visitors get their first impression of your business. For others, it’s the vital step in the sales funnel that converts leads. How you build the landing page could mean all the difference for driving revenue and growth.

If your landing page is not converting, you could be guilty of these six common landing page mistakes. Keep reading to learn more about landing page optimization or contact us directly to chat about your website!

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1. Not optimizing for mobile

We’re past the debut of the smartphone, and any business neglecting the mobile user experience is committing a costly SEO mistake.

Consider the following stats from Q1 of 2021:

• Almost 55% of global web traffic came via mobile devices.
• 52% of website visitors say they’re less likely to engage with a company if they have a bad mobile experience.
• About half of consumers feel that a lack of mobile optimization indicates that a company doesn’t care about its business.

Streamline your landing pages for mobile users with responsive designs. Don’t include page pop-ups that could be hard to navigate on a smaller screen. All copy should be in short paragraphs that won’t create a wall of text — leaning into the page’s white space can help.

2. Avoiding multiple personalized landing pages

Your website visitors aren’t identical — some know your brand, while others have found your site for the first time. Some perform hours of research or experience disappointing service from your competitors, while others are just looking for a quick and easy shopping experience.

If your visitors aren’t the same, why should your landing page treat them like they are?

Companies can see a 55% increase in leads when increasing their number of landing pages from 10 to 15. You might find a sweet spot closer to 10 or 20 landing pages, depending on your marketing campaigns.

Customize landing pages with a specific call to action (CTA) and message to match different buyer personas, conversion tactics, lead goals, or users’ browsing history and demographics.

Bonus Read: What is an SEO Landing Page?

3. Neglecting website speed

Glitchy websites are frustrating for the user, and functional issues could be the iceberg that sinks your landing page before it even sets sail. However, websites with a stellar experience could get you up to 400% higher conversion rates.

Load times are critical for your visitor retention. More than half of visitors leave a page entirely if it takes longer than three seconds to load.

Test your site regularly and switch to a better hosting provider if necessary. Minimize unnecessary factors that could slow your landing pages down, like large files or images, excessive page redirections, and multiple animated or active elements.

You can also follow this guide to improve page speed and check out our SERP Racer tool to compare your website speed with competitors.

4. Missing images and videos

Your landing pages should strike a balance between using images, graphics, and visuals without overloading the page. Research shows users appreciate photos and images even more than color and videos.

Make yours count with these best practices:

• Avoid generic pictures that have nothing to do with your article.
• Stick to custom visuals if you want to see 35% higher conversion rates.
• Don’t use visuals or images that could date themselves quickly — like trending memes or references to current events — without a plan to change them frequently.
• Eliminate any distracting visuals like flashing GIFs or scrolling banners.
• Optimize every image to fit your landing page to avoid blurry, pixelated, or too-small pictures.

5. Incorporating ineffective CTAs

The CTA makes the landing page a pivotal part of growing leads and conversions. Your CTA tells users what you want them to do and points them to the next step.

Here is an example page from ADT, where you can see effective CTAs front and center.

Be careful not to commit any of these CTA errors:

• Having too many CTAs: It’s great that you have so much to offer, but too many CTAs leave visitors overwhelmed and unsure what next step is right for them. Limit each landing page to one or two CTAs.
• Having no CTAs: Users can’t take the next step if they don’t know what it is. Make your CTA actionable and clear.
• Using a generic CTA: “Contact us” and “request a quote” are useful in specific contexts. More creative and motivating CTAs, like “subscribe to our newsletter” or “view this service page” can also draw users in.
• Burying the CTA: Your CTA should be a focal point and have good design principles, like a legible font and visual contrast.
• Not matching the CTA to the user: Personalized CTAs are over 200% better at conversions. Landing pages should cater to specific users, and so should the CTAs.
• Not making the CTA actionable: Make the CTA easy to act on by attaching it to a clickable button or form.
• Failing to deliver on the CTA’s promise: This mistake is critical regarding your landing page CTA — don’t promise a lead something you can’t deliver.

6. Forgetting about headlines and copy

Landing page headlines are crucial — they’re the first part users see, and they could cause them to stick around.

When creating a landing page, you want to present the most vital information upfront, so visitors know what to expect and why they should act on the CTA. However, showing too much information can clutter the page, adding unnecessary obstacles between the visitor and that next step.

Keep all copy concise, specific, and relevant. Make sure every sentence supports the page’s overall goal. Use copy formatting tricks, like bulleted and numbered lists, visual hierarchies, and multiple font sizes, to increase readability.

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As a full-service digital marketing agency, WebFX will help with every part of your marketing strategy — including fully customized and mobile responsive landing page services to boost sales and conversions.

We’ll even set you up with a custom conversion strategy and design per page, with a dedicated account manager to answer all your questions and help you get the most from your lead forms and user data.

Check out our landing page services to start optimizing your site today!