Converting Traffic: You Need a Landing Page

I worked with a client who used our company for social media marketing services only.  He recently asked me why our social media efforts were not getting him sales on his website.

We were tasked with just getting traffic to his site from social media.

I explained that while we do get traffic to his website, what happens after people arrive there depends on whether or not the website is configured to convert that traffic into leads or sales.  

To do that requires having a landing page designed to convert.

Converting Traffic to Leads and Sales

There are strategies to move traffic from social media channels.  But just delivering that traffic to any page on the site is not enough.  Consider traffic that lands on a home page.  It will most likely not convert to a lead or a sale because the intent of that page is to provide introductory information about the company, not to get people to buy. The average Home page doesn't have a "Buy Now" button in place, either.

To get traffic to convert, you need to build landing pages that are designed for that purpose.

Landing Pages

Landing Pages stand a bit apart from your website.  While they may have the same branding look, they are different in their intent.  The pages on a website are typically designed to share information. While a landing page does that, as well, it also does more. Landing pages are methodically planned out with the intention of converting the traffic that arrives into leads or sales.

A landing page clearly explains the benefits of a product or service and includes the “reasons to believe” why this solution is the best.  They also include easy-to-find buttons to guide visitors to the next steps in the buying process.

Typically these pages are not accessible to the public.  Someone must click a link from an email, social post or ad to arrive there.

When it comes to the types of conversion rates you might expect, it varies depending on the industry, the offer and the target audience.  A good rate is between 2% and 5% of the total traffic. Top performing landing pages can even achieve conversion rates of 10-15% or higher.

Putting It Together

Building a landing page is not a difficult thing to do.  Most web developers can help you with it and there are plenty of do-it-yourself tools available, as well. 

But be sure you are clear on the goal. You want a web page that explains why your product or service is the best and why the person visiting that page should buy from you.  State those things in easy-to-understand language. Once that page is in place, then you can expect to see web traffic convert into sales.