How to Create a Landing Page (6 Simple Steps)

Are you looking for an easy-to-understand yet comprehensive guide to creating a landing page? 

This guide is written for business owners and marketers who are just learning how powerful a landing page can be.

If you want to :

Woorise is the easiest way to create viral contests, giveaways & competitions, landing pages and engaging forms such us surveys and quizzes. Generate more sales, increase traffic, social engagement and followers. See examples

• Intuitively understand how landing page works
• See real world examples of high performing landing pages
• Learn best practices for designing one yourself
• Get to know the best tools to create a landing page

Then you’ll want to stick around. 

In this guide, we’ll get you up to speed on:

• What is a landing page, and how does it work?
• The difference between a landing page and a website
• What makes a great landing page
• How to plan your landing page design
• 6 simple steps to create a high-performing landing page
• 15 Landing Page Design Tips & Best Practices

Let’s dive right in!

What is a Landing Page, and How Does it Work?

A landing page is a specific webpage that visitors “land on” after clicking on a link. That link could be a social media post, an email link, an online advertisement, or even a Google search result.

Note the emphasis on specific webpage. Usually, a landing page is designed with a single focus or goal — to convert visitors into subscribers/customers, or simply prompting users to take action (e.g., Download free resources).

A landing page can be designed to:

• Generate leads for a business
• Turn email subscribers into customers
• Get users to download a free resource
• Share a viral marketing campaign
• And more

Why landing page is an indispensable part of marketing

The difference between a business with strategic landing pages and one without is how effective they are at converting website visitors into customers. Guess which one is better at it?

A high-converting landing page is like having a great salesperson. They:

• Generate higher ROI for your advertising campaigns
• Drive leads for your business
• Effectively sell your products 
• And build trust with your customers

Why waste money and effort promoting your business when you’re not effectively capturing those interests?

A real world high performing landing page:

This case study exemplifies how a great landing page brings in customers for TruckersReport, a lead generation business for trucking companies. 

Their landing page converts 12% of the visitors into subscribers. Not a whole lot, you might think, but TruckersReport gets over a million visitors per month. Even if the landing page gets only 10% of the traffic, you’re looking at a business that can generate over 12,000 leads per month.

Don’t underestimate what a well-designed landing page can do for your business.

The Difference Between a Landing Page and a Website

A landing page can be a part of a website.

A website might have a home page, an about page, and a contact page. It can also have a landing page specifically created for visitors who come from Google ads.

But can I use a landing page as a website?

Definitely, there are several website builders out there that allow you to create a one-page website. Thousands of people use the Woorise landing page builder every day for lead generation, referral campaigns, and more.

Do I need a website or just a landing page?

Obviously, it takes more time and effort to create an entire website than a single landing page. So the question is, when can you forego pages like About, Contact, Blog, etc? 

Here are a few instances where you just need a landing page:

• Run a lead generation campaign for ad campaigns.
• Collect email subscribers for your newsletter
• A new product launch (coming soon) landing page
• A portfolio page for your freelance business
• A simple eCommerce landing page with a few products to sell
• A restaurant landing page with a menu
• Run a giveaway contest
• Or any local business that needs an online presence

What Makes a Great Landing Page

A great offer 

Remember the landing page’s goal is to get people to subscribe, share, or buy from you? Well, there has to be a compelling reason for them to do so, and the way to do that is to make a great offer.

So what makes a great offer?

A great offer adds value to people’s lives, makes people curious, improves their overall wellbeing, and helps them become more knowledgeable. 

Here are some examples you can take inspiration from:

Newsletter: Below The Fold — Underrated stories from around the world

eCommerce: Awesome stickers at a great price

Good copywriting

Copywriting is the art of writing to sell. The better the copy on the landing page, the more it can convert prospects into customers. Readers often disengage and bounce off the landing page because it does a lousy job at selling.

Here’s a simple copywriting framework to incorporate into your landing page

1. Highlight the pain point —  If you understand your target audience, you should be able to articulate the problem that frustrates them the most. Do this, and the reader will pay attention to how you can solve their problem.
2. What’s your solution — Can your offer or solution alleviate the problem? The better you can convince it, the more likely they will listen to what you have to say.
3. Why should they choose you — Have you done this before? Who else has tried it? What are the results? Show proofs to convince the doubters.

Persuasive headline and subhead

Since the headline is the first impression you make on the reader, it goes without saying you should write it the best you can. It’s difficult to overstate the importance of writing good headlines. You’ll lose the majority of your readers if it fails to convince them to read on.

A good headline does at least one of the following:

• Explain the value proposition
• Show how the value proposition is delivered
• Address objections
• Provide a sense of urgency

Here’s how some of the best companies in the world write a winning headline:

Better, high-quality images

There’s no shortage of free, quality stock image sites. Unsplash, Pexels, and Pixabay are some popular ones, so there isn’t an excuse for not using good quality images.

That said, quality images aren’t just aesthetically pleasing photographs. Far from that, you should use the right image in the right context. For example:

• Use detailed product images to illustrate features and use cases.
• Show actual employees from your organization instead of fake team photos.
• Add interactive images or GIFs to show how something should work.
• Use photos, graphics, and illustrations that best represent the value proposition you’re offering.

Also read: 9 Best Websites to Get Free Images for Your Landing Page

Social proof

Social proofs (in the context of a landing page) are success stories from other people after they’ve used your product or service. 

The term social proof was popularized by Robert Cialdini in his book Influence, which says when people are trying to decide, and they are not sure which is the right choice, they will refer to other people’s actions.

So the more people endorse your product, the more social proof you will acquire, and more people will trust you as a result.

Social proofs come in many forms; they could be a written customer testimonial, user reviews, case study, or a celebrity endorsement.

Zendesk social proof — Customers from well-known brands 

Figma social proof — Customer review

Wix social proof —Celebrity endorsement

Call to action

Call to action is the part of the landing page that tells a reader to take action. 

For example:

• Subscribe to the newsletter
• Sign up to get exclusive tips
• Share to win
• Get started today
• Buy now

Here are 3 tips to better call to actions and how to make it more effective:

1. Place the call to action near the top of the page —If your headline and subhead are convincing, the readers should take action right there and then.
2. Emphasize the value — What value does the user get? Instead of a generic call to action like “Get Started”, write “Start Saving now” where the value of taking action is obvious.
3. Handle objection —  Address any resistance the reader might have for clicking the call to action button.

Instead of “Get Started”, write “Get started for just $1” If the price is a barrier to entry.

A/B test

If a landing page’s goal is to convert, how do we know it’s converting the best it can? 

Answer: Run A/B tests.

A/B testing is the process of modifying a landing page to figure out what changes yield the highest conversion. Changes such as:

• Changing up the value proposition in the headline.
• Add different kinds of social proofs (Video vs text)
• Rewrite the call to action copy
• Create a new section on the landing page

Any part of the landing page you think might add more value or convince the reader, modify and measure it and see if it helps to convert more customers.

Plan Before you Create your Landing Page

Oftentimes you’re not just building a landing page. Ask yourself if you need to:

• Collect emails
• Integrate with a payment system
• Send emails after people sign up
• Implement tracking on your landing page
• Automate your marketing workflow

Answering all these questions would help you decide which landing page builder to choose.

Choosing a landing page builder

If you’re looking for a landing page builder that checks all the boxes above, consider Woorise’s landing page builder — It’s free and easily customizable. Also, It integrates with several email marketing and payment platforms.

The analytics are built-in, or you can integrate with Google Analytics if you choose to. You can also export all your data at your convenience.

Create an outline for your landing page

When you outline and sketch out your landing page, you’re saving yourself precious time in the design process. It will also help make sure your ideas come across clearly and logically.

Simply ask yourself:

• Headline: What’s the key value proposition?
• Subheadline: How is the value proposition delivered?
• What is the offer?
• Which social proof is appropriate?
• What kind of image to use?
• Where is the call to action?

You can do this on a piece of paper. It doesn’t have to look perfect, as long as it covers the most important aspects of a landing page. Check out these landing page examples from big brands if you need some inspiration.

6 Simple Steps to Create a High-Performing Landing Page

Once you have the outline and sketches ready, let’s start creating the landing page. 

Note: In this guide, we’ll be using Woorise’s landing page builder. It’s free to get started, and while we may be biased, we honestly think it’s one of the easiest platforms to set up a landing page.

Step 1: Create a free account on Woorise

Woorise is a powerful tool for anyone to create high-quality landing pages without any technical skills. You can create unlimited landing pages for free and have complete control of the creative process.

Sign up for a free Woorise account to get started.

Step 2: Choose a template

Start designing your landing page from scratch, or if you’d rather save time, choose one of the templates available. Woorise has templates for all kinds of landing pages: 

• Lead generation
• Promotions & Giveaways
• Forms
• Surveys
• Quizzes
• Order & Checkout Forms
• And more

Click here to check out all templates available on Woorise.

Step 3: Design and customize your template

Woorise’s drag-and-drop interface makes it easy to customize virtually any part of the landing page. 

You can add new content such as paragraphs, lists, tables, buttons, forms, images, and more. You can also embed third-party widgets from Youtube, Twitter, or any other embeddable platforms.

If you need a custom design, you have the option to add HTML and CSS and live preview the changes on mobile, tablet, or desktop.

Step 4: Add your content

While adding new content, keep in mind these best practices for creating a more user friendly, and thus a better converting landing page:

Copy should be written for comprehension — A quick way to edit your writing, even if you’re not an editor, is to use a free writing tool like the Hemingway app, which suggests helpful edits for grammar mistakes and clarity.

Compress Images before uploading — This is self-explanatory because nothing frustrates a user more than having to wait for slow web pages, which is often a result of loading large images.

Mobile-friendly landing page — All Woorise landing pages are mobile responsive by default. However, it’s good to double check before you set it live, especially if you’re using other landing page builders.

Also read: 10 Simple Tips to Create Better Landing Pages (+ Examples).

Step 5: Extend your landing page

Woorise integrates with a lot of your favorite digital platforms. 

Whether you need to collect emails, accept payments, add Google Analytics, or automate marketing workflows, you can easily add these features to your landing page in a few clicks.

Click here to check out all integrations available for Woorise.

Step 6: Generate virality for your landing page

With Woorise’s viral share feature, you can reward users for referring their friends. It’s easy to set up, all URLs are tracked individually, and you can customize how each customer shares your landing page. 

Bonus: 15 Landing Page Design Tips & Best Practices

Landing pages are a crucial part of customer acquisition. Ad campaigns, social media, and sponsored content all help you reach new users, but landing pages turn them into customers. No digital marketing campaign is complete without them, but they can be difficult.

Users come across landing pages all the time, but only a few succeed in converting them. The internet is a crowded place, so you have to stand out amid a sea of competitors. As more companies become aware of the need for effective digital marketing, this becomes an increasingly challenging task.

Designing an effective landing page can be intimidating, but it’s not impossible. These 15 steps will help you create the ultimate page to generate leads and gain customers.

1. Catch Visitors’ Eyes With Images

Studies have shown that it takes just 50 milliseconds for users to form an opinion about a webpage’s visual appeal. That means you have a fraction of a second to captivate visitors on your landing page. The best way to do that is with images.

The human brain processes images 60,000 times faster than text, so pictures will catch the eye before a punchy headline. It’s not enough to post just any picture at the top of the page, though. It has to be the right picture. Your images should all be eye-catching but also relevant.

Place a large, high-quality picture at the top of the page that relates to the text. If your body copy is about home gardening, consider an image of someone planting something. Including smaller pictures and charts throughout the body will also help keep users engaged.

Look at this example from Edupath. Notice how the image takes up the vast majority of the screen and matches the page’s subject matter and color scheme.

2. Pay Attention to Color

Pictures aren’t the only way to appeal to visitors’ visual senses. The colors you use on a website can also have a considerable impact on user engagement. Like with images, these should be both aesthetically pleasing and make sense within the broader context of the page.

Your color scheme should reflect the atmosphere of your business and make users feel comfortable. Bright colors can grab users’ attention faster, but if they’re too bright, they can be hard on the eyes. Softer shades can be soothing and create an air of professionalism, but they don’t fit every business.

Using company colors is an excellent way to tie your page together. Remember not to interfere with readability. And black text on a white background is the standard, but it can be a bit boring. Colored backgrounds in soft, translucent shades can have a similar effect but look more original.

See how this example from Wise takes advantage of contrast. The white text contrasts against a dark blue background to enhance readability, but the blue isn’t too bright. The brightest colors on the page are the action buttons, drawing your attention there.

3. Break Up Large Blocks of Text

You also need to pay close attention to how you organize your body copy. When visitors look at your landing page, they’ll see your copy’s structure before seeing its content. If they see a large, endless block of text, they won’t likely read through it.

Internet users only read about 18% of what’s on a page, often scanning it instead of reading. Since longer paragraphs are harder to scan, visitors may skip over them entirely. Dividing your body copy into several smaller sections makes it easier to scan, keeping users on your page.

There are many ways to break up text. Including bullet points or numbered lists will help keep the body engaging, as will pictures in between sections.

IMPACT’s landing page here does an excellent job of breaking up text. The longest paragraph is only four sentences long, and most are just one or two sentences. Bolded text and a bulleted list help it further.

4. Write an Enticing, Relevant Headline

Your body copy isn’t the only text on your landing page that matters. Your headline is just as, if not more, important. Visitors will see this before the rest of your text, so it needs to convince them to read everything else.

The headline is your chance to tell users what they can expect from your copy. If it’s boring, too long, or irrelevant, it will turn users away. It should accurately reflect the rest of the text while enticing visitors to stay and learn more.

Aim to keep your headlines under six words long. They can be longer, but restricting them ensures they’re concise, cutting out unnecessary information. Action phrases like “how to” and numbers are excellent ways to pique interest.

Look at the headline and subheading from Industrial Strength Marketing here. The header is short, focuses on action, and raises questions. The subheading, which features a number, is a nice follow-up to further pull people in.

5. Use Keyword-Optimized Subheadings

Subheadings are a must for your body copy. Not only do they help break up blocks of text, but they serve as a guide for scanning. Users should be able to find what they’re looking for on your page quickly, and subheadings help them.

Remember that human users aren’t the only parties scanning your landing page. Search engines scan your page for readability too, so you should put keywords in your subheadings. You don’t need your target keywords in every subheading, but it should be in a few.

For example, this page uses the keyphrase “dry type transformers” in its subheadings. It’s in seven of the eight subheadings, but it doesn’t appear unnaturally, either. When it appears, it’s always relevant to the section itself and the article as a whole.

6. Keep the Body Copy Engaging

If your headline and subheadings are enticing enough, users will start reading your body copy. Getting actual readers is a victory, so you don’t want to spoil it. If your copy is too dull or difficult to understand, users will stop reading and leave.

Since your landing page is there to create leads and customers, think of a unique selling position. Determine what about your product or service consumers will want, and build your copy around this. If you have unique, desirable information to give, users will want to know it.

One helpful tip is to use a narrative structure for your copy. Set the scene, present a problem, and then show how you can solve that issue. To help people scan or stay interested, remember to use the inverted pyramid structure, putting the most important information at the top.

In this example from Blue Apron, there’s not much text, but what’s there works. It immediately sets the stage by asking a question, then outlines what it has to offer. The text is full of strong adjectives and action words, keeping readers engaged.

7. Include a Clear, Compelling Call to Action

Remember that the point of your landing page is to convert visitors into leads and customers. If you captivate users’ interest with your body text but don’t capitalize on it, the landing page has failed. You need a call to action to convert your users.

Your call to action should be a button or link for users to follow. This button should stand out from the rest of your page, so use bright, contrasting colors. Limit the text on it to one to three action words, like “download” or “try now.”

Avoid overly generic phrases like “click here,” as these don’t stand out or present a well-defined action. Users should know what they’re doing when they click there. Try using a word or phrase that fits naturally after the conclusion of your body copy to compel users.

This example from Muck Rack has two calls to action, but one is more interesting than the other. See how “Request Demo” stands out, thanks to its unique color. The text itself is also compelling and uncomplicated, and it describes an action.

8. Optimize Your Copy for Search

Emails, social media posts, and ads aren’t the only ways visitors will end up on your landing page. You can also draw in users from search engine results pages (SERPs). But only if you optimize for search. The average first result on a SERP has a 28.5% clickthrough rate, compared to just 15.7% on position two.

Since you’re almost twice as likely to get clicks if you’re first on the SERP, you need to optimize. Make sure you’re using high-volume, relevant keywords throughout your copy, but integrate them carefully. Search engines will rank you lower for using keywords too frequently, and unnatural placement will harm readability.

Generally speaking, if something is ideal for internet readers, it’ll perform well in SERPs. Making text scannable through subheadings and concise, broken-up text will appeal to Google’s algorithm, not just users.

See how this page from Velaro breaks up its text. Sections are short, the bullets make it easy to follow, and important information is in bold. The keyphrase “proactive chat” also appears throughout the copy, but not so much that it feels unnatural.

9. Make Sure Your Page Is Responsive

Visitors can’t see how attractive and engaging your landing page is if it doesn’t load. Since 47% of web users expect a page to load in two seconds or less, yours has to be fast. If it’s not, users may click away or get annoyed before reading your copy.

Large file sizes are often the culprit for slow load times. Bloated JavaScript scripts and too many HTTP requests will also slow your landing page. Thankfully, Google has a free tool you can use to measure and optimize your page’s speed.

Remember to optimize your page for mobile as well. Mobile users make up an increasingly significant portion of internet traffic, so you don’t want to give them a comparatively worse experience.

10. Keep Your Lead Form Visible

Like your call to action, your lead form should be immediately visible, so visitors don’t have to look for it. Unlike your call to action, though, this form should appear at the top of your page, not below the text. Even if visitors don’t immediately fill it out, they’ll know where to find it when they need it.

You may want to make your lead form remain at the top of the screen as users scroll down. This method can be an excellent way to keep it in users’ minds, but make sure it works smoothly. If it hinders the scrolling movement, it could turn visitors away.

The only thing you see when you first visit Lyft’s landing page is its lead form. It doesn’t scroll with you, but since it’s the first thing you see and takes up so much space, you know where to find it. The lead form is also a different color than the rest of the page, helping it stand out.

11. Don’t Ask for Too Much

With both your lead form and call to action, be careful not to ask for too much. Visitors may be willing to give away plenty of information, but asking for it upfront can seem suspicious or intimidating. Users are growing increasingly wary of sharing information, so only ask for what you need.

All you need for a lead is a name and an email address, and sometimes just the latter will do. Your call to action doesn’t always have to ask for personal information, and the action should be simple. Browsing your store, asking for a demo, or starting a free trial is enough.

While asking users to create an account seems like a lot, Codecademy does it without asking for much. All they request is an email address and a new password. Such a small amount of information won’t turn visitors away, but it’s enough for Codecademy to work with.

12. Thank Visitors

If your visitors fill out a lead form or follow your call to action, you should thank them. This step may seem insignificant, but it helps you come across as friendlier and more empathetic. In a crowded market, any step that humanizes your business is a worthwhile endeavor.

Remember that it costs five times as much to attract a new customer than to retain an old one. One of the best ways you can ensure your visitors come back is by making them feel welcome. Thanking them for their time and action helps with that.

You could thank visitors through a pop-up, but a dedicated thank you page is better. A new page gives you more space to communicate your thanks and enables you to suggest additional content.

This thank-you page from SimplyMeasured exemplifies the idea of “less is more.” It’s short, but thanks the user twice and provides some information they may find helpful.

13. Include Testimonials or an FAQ

Your visitors may remain unsure even after reading all of your body copy. Including customer testimonials or an FAQ section at the bottom of your page can help convince them. These are also helpful for users who are just scanning for relevant information.

Surveys show that 72% of online consumers trust a business more after reading positive reviews. A testimonial section highlights these positive experiences, instilling more faith in your brand. FAQ sections may not have the same converting power, but they help give visitors what they want.

Remember that internet users act quickly. They expect to find what they need without looking for long, and FAQs give them quick, straightforward answers to their questions.

Taster’s Club does an excellent job with their testimonials. Providing a picture along with the user quotes helps emphasize that these reviews are from real people. If you scroll down just a little, you’ll find critic reviews and an FAQ section, too.

14. Test Your Landing Page

After you’ve designed your landing page, make sure it works before publishing it. Even after you launch it, test it to ensure it’s fast and engaging. If you skip this step, you may never realize flaws that are turning users away from your page.

You can use automated tools and user tests to measure your page’s effectiveness. In fact, it’s better to use both instead of one or the other, as this gives you more comprehensive conclusions. Run these tests at launch and then periodically afterward to ensure continued success.

Look at these results from Conversion Lab. The desktop score for this page was quite high, but the mobile one needs improvement. If you don’t test both, you may not realize that some users aren’t having a pleasant experience on your page.

15. Turn to Third-Party Tools for Help

If you’re still unsure about how to implement these tips, you can turn to third-party landing page tools. There’s an abundance of landing page creation services available for you to use. No matter what your budget is, you should be able to find an option that works for you.

When looking at landing page creation tools, look for options with diverse testing features. Analytics and an abundance of templates are also helpful features to have.

As you can see here, Woorise offers several options that fit different websites’ needs. This is just one company, too. No matter what your goals are, you can find something that works.

Over to you

There you have it, hopefully you have everything you need to create a landing page and grow your business today. 

Your landing page is too crucial not to optimize. An effective landing page could bring substantial improvements to your customer conversion, but an unoptimized one will turn users away.

These steps will help you create the best landing page possible. If you apply all of these techniques with care, you can generate more leads and make more sales.

The key to a good landing page boils down to:

1. Create something of value for your audience
2. Craft a compelling story 
3. Use a professional landing page builder that best suits your needs
4. Follow best practices for designing a high converting landing page
5. Consistently improve your landing page with A/B testing

As long as you’re following these tips, you’ll be on your way to a high-converting landing page. If you need further resources, check out the Woorise blog for more tips on growth marketing for business.