My Landing Page Audit Framework

As part of my goal to provide holistic paid media growth services to clients, I also design and develop landing pages for paid media campaigns.

I’ve been excited about a few recent landing page tests where two different clients have been able to take conversion rate from around 2.5% to above 5.5%, so I wanted to share the framework I use to audit and build landing pages.

Naturally, this framework isn’t 100% comprehensive as I’ll also lean on customer and competitor research as well, but I’ve found it to be a helpful starting place. I evaluate landing pages against each of the below categories/sections.

Header/Hero Section

This is a brand’s first introduction to a prospect. I’ve found that incorporating straightforward language in this section is important.

When a prospect ends up on a landing page and reads the header section, chances are they might not know a ton about that brand yet. A headline that puts more energy into creating a pun in an effort to avoid something bland can sometimes create confusion.

As far as headlines go, I usually lean toward clarity over being creative. I also apply this thinking to the CTA. Including only one clear CTA can make the decision making process more simple for page visitors.

Lastly, adding a visual representation of the offer can help to paint a better picture in the prospect’s mind. This isn’t always easy for certain software or service products, but when possible, this can improve a visitor’s comprehension of what is being sold.

Offer

The offer section of a landing page is where a brand gets to highlight the nitty gritty details around the product/service being promoted.

This is where I like to acknowledge a prospect’s pain points, and outline how the offer can help the prospect overcome those pain points. When outlining the content for the offer section, I like to lean on the messaging matrix I develop for my clients to connect pain points to features and benefits.

Outside of the header section, this is where I allocate the bulk of content and real estate for a landing page. It’s where a brand can share additional nuances and information that aren’t as easily communicated with an ad.

Process

After outlining what a brand’s offer is, and why it’s right for a prospect, I also like to highlight how someone can actually take advantage of the offer.

This might feel like it should be self explanatory, but I’ve found that isn’t always the case. Simply outlining a few linear steps that buyers need to take to get what they want can go a long way.

Additionally, if this product or service offers some sort of customer support, I like to highlight that in this section. I do a lot of research on brand reviews, and a common category of negative feedback is often around poor customer service. Calling out what a brand does here can help to alleviate some of those potential concerns.

Objection Handling

Prospects will always have concerns around any purchase (even if it’s an investment of time for a free offer), so getting ahead of their objections can help to nudge future customers forward.

This is where I like to highlight guarantees (if possible), explain how the offer is set up to reduce risk for customers, and highlight inferior alternatives. It’ll never be possible to address every objection, but this helps me to get started. Looking through negative reviews of a brand is a great place to find potential objections as well.

I’ve seen many objection handling sections formatted as an accordion FAQ, which can be an effective way to concisely call out objections and their corresponding solutions.

Social Proof

No surprises here, landing pages present another great opportunity to share more social proof. A few specific call outs for landing pages:

• Highlighting reviews and testimonials from unbiased third party sources can build authenticity. For example, a screenshot of a comment on Reddit will convey more trust than a cherry picked testimonial displayed in a text box.

• Following from the previous section, sharing reviews that address potential objections is a great way to have existing customers alleviate the concerns of future customers.

Buyers are looking to their network and peers more than ever, so including social proof is almost a requirement for any brand at this point.

About Us

While an about us section isn’t always necessary, it can help to generate an emotional connection between a brand and page visitor. Sharing a company’s origin story and values can help to better align that company and its future customers.

Wrapping Up

When designing and building landing pages for clients, I always use the above framework to get started. It’s helped me improve conversion rates for multiple clients to above 5.5% by improving the experience of users coming to the site from paid media.

As I called out in the beginning, this framework isn’t the only resource I use to build landing pages, but my hope is that it can help you improve your own landing page audit process moving forward!

Have questions, considerations, or critiques? I’d love to hear them! If you’re reading this via email, just hit respond. Otherwise, you can find me on LinkedIn.