Landing Page Academy » Chapter 2: Building a Landing Page » Lesson 1/7
Hi there! Welcome to the first lesson in Chapter Two of the Landing Page Academy. Let’s say we’ve finished the theory part, and in this very module, we’ll be learning how to actually create a landing page.
While you technically can build a landing page without a builder per se (for example with an old school coding using Notepad), it’s not very effective, and while it may seem cheaper, it usually isn’t, if you consider the amount of work and time put into it. And, of course, you’ll need to know how to code. But even with a decent knowledge about programming, building landing pages from scratch can get complicated and turn out to be nothing but a waste of time and resources (also human).
So instead of spitting into the wind, you should just look for a perfect landing page builder out there.
Be aware that it should be your choice – I won’t be suggesting any particular software, but instead, I’ll be pointing towards the things you should look for in a perfect landing page builder for your needs. So let’s get started!
It’s probably the most generic advice I’ll give you in this course, but if there’s even a tiny chance you would find a landing page builder without this absolutely essential feature, I will sleep better at night knowing that I put an emphasis on this matter.
Drag & drop allows you to create pretty much anything you can imagine by simply choosing an element from the list and placing it in the selected spot (then editing it, if necessary). It is the very tool that makes building landing pages so easy even for those who never programmed nor designed anything before.
But rest assured – there are tons of landing page builders equipped with drag & drop interface.
Even with the most intuitive drag & drop editor, creating a landing page may get harder than you think without a proper template. If you’re up to building a lot of landing pages, you’ll probably need lots of templates serving various purposes. So before choosing your builder, take a closer look at their templates gallery (if available) and see which templates could potentially be helpful for your goals.
Also, if you can’t have access to template catalogue without signing up, don’t hesitate to do so – there’s usually a free trial that lets you test the chosen tool for a few days before subscribing.
A piece of advice: if you plan to test a few landing page builders simultaneously, be sure to write down the expiry date of your free trial, so you can delete an account or remove your credit card details from it before they charge you.
Actually, there’s no way to say that the template will be perfect and will definitely bring high conversion rates for your cause. That’s mostly up to you and how you’ll edit it and what content you’ll fill it with. Without it, even the most beautiful template will remain empty.
Let’s make it brief for now: the potentially perfect template has to be easy to use, well-designed (in other words, each element has its clear function), editable and mobile-optimized. These are the four indicators of a great starting point template.
Chances are you won’t be using your new landing page builder as a sole tool for your marketing efforts. On the contrary, to meet all your goals, you’ll probably need a bunch of apps: the one for e-mail marketing, some lead nurturing system and so on. It’s the integrations that make your landing pages actually work for you. You may generate hundreds of great leads, but without proper nurturing and customer service after acquiring them, you won’t get anywhere near your goal.
Trying to predict all the tools you’ll need in the beginning of your marketing journey might be hard, so focus on finding a builder that stands out with the number of available integrations. Also, check if there’s an option to create a custom integration – it broadens the possibilities endlessly.
This advice will be helpful for anyone but one-man armies. If you’re working (or plan to work) on your landing pages with a team (someone’s making visuals, someone else is writing copy, and so on), you’ll need multi-user access to your account. Look for an option like this in your landing page builder and make sure that working on landing pages together will be easy as pie.
In terms of designing landing pages, you will need widgets: basic ones, like images, videos, fonts, and a bit fancier ones, such as countdown timers, highly-editable forms, or custom JS scripts. Take some time while testing in order to determine which widgets will be helpful for you in the future. Maybe you don’t need fifty of them, but a solid five will suffice?
Not every landing page builder is a pop-up builder as well. You can sometimes find pop-ups as a built-in feature, but in most cases, it will cost you extra. Pop-ups are… not very likable by visitors because they tend to appear randomly (according to users), but studies have shown that they do increase conversions!
So whether you need them or not – it’s up to you. But having them at least as an option is great, for you can use pop-ups to bring your visitors some great discounts or valuable information from time to time, if you’re not going to use them on a regular basis.
I won’t be talking about how crucial it is to have landing pages mobile-optimized, since it’s common knowledge. Instead, keep in mind that in some builders, there’s an option to create a mobile version of your landing page, and in others such a version will be created automatically. That’s a huge difference especially if you create many mobile-focused landing pages.
Also, check if there are mobile versions of templates available in a builder you’re thinking of using.
You won’t create a perfect landing page in your first attempt. Actually, there is no such thing as a perfect landing page. It all depends on your product, offer, copy, design and season. Sometimes things you can’t possibly predict affect your landing page’s effectiveness.
That is why you usually need to optimize landing pages after they go live. Look for optimization features, such as A/B testing, heat maps, dynamic content or built-in analytics.
Let us know what you think about Landing Page Academy, and we’ll send you a handy Landing Page Checklist in return. The checklist will help you make sure your landing page is ready to rock!
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Just so we’re clear – you probably don’t need all these listed elements. At least not now and not simultaneously. It’s up to you whether you’d like to start with something basic and see what happens, or select a full-package builder with everything but free tacos in it.
1. Find a builder that breaks the offer down into a few plans, so you can start simple and upgrade if necessary.
2. Avoid choosing really basic solution, which doesn’t have the upper-end package available.
3. Going with cheap software means you might need to switch to another one later.
4. Migrating might not be the best idea, especially if you plan to create numerous landing pages.
Now go out there and find yourself a reliable landing page solution for all your present and (possibly) future needs. In the meantime, learn more about target audience of your landing pages.
