All posts tagged landing page
Google Now Weighing Landing Pages More Heavily In AdWords
After a test trial that started in August in Brazil, Latin America, Spain, and Portugal, Google has decided to roll out a new algorithm that weighs landing page quality more heavily when calculating an AdWords quality score. As a result, ads that Google determines have a higher-quality landing page associated with them will rank higher for lower cost per click bids.
The impact of this on PPC campaigns is noteable, as businesses need to take landing page quality into consideration much more so than they previously did. Landing page quality was considered by Google in the past, but more as a factor to reject ads or give them a lower quality score. An ad that directed users to a misleading or low quality landing page could be rejected or lowered in quality score, but a good, relevant landing page wouldn’t raise the quality score. With the new algorithm, Google is attempting to ensure that ads within their network link their keywords closely to the content found on the landing pages. Google plans to enforce this by crawling every landing page associated with an ad and using its algorithm to determine a positive quality score.
Google’s new algorithm also means that a business that invests more time in creating a quality landing page pertinent to the ad campaign will be able to reach a larger audience for a lower cost, something any business can appreciate. Google decided to implement this new algorithm as a response to ads they were seeing in their network that were of the same quality as top ranking ads, but had much higher quality landing pages. These ads were being “lost in the shuffle” as ads with lower quality landing pages and often not ranking as high as they should.
Google sees this as the next step in ensuring that advertisers are adhering to best practices when it comes to creating ads and to reward those that have been following best practices already. The changes are expected to begin rolling out in the next few weeks with Google warning that variations in ad position and quality score are likely, but that variations should return to normal within a few weeks.
To ensure that you are following Google’s guidelines for landing page best practices, make sure to read their AdWords support pages and follow their blog for updates.
Is Above the Scroll Still Relevant?
Until fairly recently, conventional web design often favored keeping homepage content ?above the fold?, applying the old newspaper term which referred to placing top headlines and advertising above the physical crease on the folded paper. During the early to mid-90?s, websites oftentimes did not feature scrolling; however, by the latter part of the decade, as people had grown accustomed to scrolling, most websites began to expand vertically.
A common trope of the Web 2.0 revolution was a rejection of this pattern. Of course, that?s not to say that scrolling was abolished wholesale, but rather that vertical scroll bars began to shorten and rapid advances in web design made hipper, more concise pages more desirable and attractive. Depending on the type of site (commercial, news, blog, social media, video), this still largely holds true today. Homepages need to grab the eye while holding the attention, and the endless scroll bar is a quick way to lose that attention. This holds especially true of landing pages, which need to make a quick, effective impression that translates to conversions.
While some claim that the scroll wheel killed the ?above the scroll? gospel, this is a bit too simplistic. Sure, it makes scrolling much easier, but it doesn?t necessarily hold a viewers attention or make the site any more pleasing to the eye. Recent data supports this argument. Veteran usability consultant and researcher, Jacob Nielsen?s eye-tracking study from last year shows a dramatic drop in viewing time for ?below the fold? content. According to the study, viewing time is 80.3% to 19.7% for content above and below the scroll, respectively. Eye-catching numbers, pun-intended.
What are the implications of this old/new data? Accordingly to Nielsen:
“the material that’s the most important for the users’ goals or your business goals should be above the fold. Users do look below the fold, but not nearly as much as they look above the fold. People will look very far down a page if (a) the layout encourages scanning, and (b) the initially viewable information makes them believe that it will be worth their time to scroll. Finally, while placing the most important stuff on top, don’t forget to put a nice morsel at the very bottom.”
In other words, don’t be a slave to the “above the scroll” design mythos, but respect it nonetheless. The explosion of social media and smartphones in recent years has added a new dimension to this debate, since people have grown accustomed again to scrolling in these specific instances. However, for desktop and laptop browsing on most websites, good design above the scroll on truncated pages means better visitor response.
Practicing the Art of Landing Pages
I practice yoga on a regular basis and feel as though I should be practicing everyday because so much good comes out of each practice. I feel the same way about landing pages. If everyone selling a product or service used landing pages, then just think of the positive outcomes.
Like yoga, practicing the art of landing pages is not easy. For one, people scan web pages like they would a book or magazine from left to right, then diagonally across and down the page and then finally back up to the top. That leaves precious seconds to grab the visitor’s attention, communicate the purpose and encourage them to act on your call to action. Sounds difficult but it’s not impossible.
The second is putting the landing page together. Remember your first day of yoga? Remember the 50th? It doesn’t get easier. Designing a landing page is no different and a refresher course is always helpful. Below are some of the best practices I apply to every landing page.
Headline
This should be clear and direct and an attention grabber. You want to make sure the headline is situated across the top of the page and that it tells visitors what they want to know. It should also contain a keyword to improve your PPC quality score and/or organic efforts.
Copy
Ideally, the copy on a landing page should be promotion based with one appealing message, but at the same time consistent with the brand message. Not an easy task. It should also be uncluttered with plenty of whitespace. Use bullet points to explain the benefits and include sub-heads to break up the text. Finally, write in plain English and refrain from using jargon.
Design
This is the trickiest of all the landing page elements as most people want to over emphasize design. Remember, a visitor is going to stay on a page for no more than five seconds, so keep the design simple by avoiding overbearing colors (i.e. white font on black background) and sticking with easy to read fonts. Don’t be afraid to use images but use them in a way that balances out the copy, helps tell the story, sells the product and portrays the biggest benefit.
Call to action
I recommend placing the call to action at the top AND bottom of the page so that it is always visible (assuming not everything on the page is above the fold like it should be). Try to keep the call to action “soft”. For example, use “Try it now” versus something stronger like “Buy Now”. Remember, a visitor may not be ready to commit to your product or service yet but are still interested. I also found that buttons tend to be better than text as they stand out more.
Conversions
The purpose of a landing page is to get the visitor to understand the product/service quickly and then have them act on it. The “acting” part can be accomplished by including the following:
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- phone number (preferably a 1-800 number)
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- form submission (limit the required fields)
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- value proposition (white paper, coupon, contest entry)
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- video (this is your best selling tool, it’s interactive & will keep the visitor on the page longer)
Of course, all of the above is trackable. You can help the conversion effort by including a trust/security icon and a testimonial or two to provide credibility and give confidence to the visitor.
Yoga is as much about learning as it is anything else. Landing pages, again, are no different. Test variations with a different message, image, layout and/or color to find the right combination that gives you the highest conversion rate. With some success you will find that you’ll be practicing more.
