So how long should your landing page be?

To a great extent it should be determined by your readers’ anxiety level.

In a recent test, research firm Marketing Experiments tested a short landing page versus a long one, asking for the readers’ email in order to get a free assessment to find out what type of communicaters they are.

Turns out the shorter landing page by about 7%.

Then an even shorter landing page was tested – barely any copy – just an image and a  button.

That performed best. By far.

So a really short landing page is best, right?

No. Or at least, not necessarily.

Marketing Experiments compared it to another test, for an investment newsletter, which costs $90. Here, longer copy won the day.

So what made the difference?

Anxiety.

If the perceived risk is low (free signup) then anxiety is low, and a shorter landing page works better. If the perceived risk is higher (cost, commitment), then anxiety is higher.

More copy (as long as it’s good) is needed to give the buyer reasons to buy. There’s also more room for testimonials and other “credibility indicators” to reduce the buyer’s anxiety.

The length of your landing page makes a big difference.
But you have to know when to go long and went to go short.

Source: Marketing Experiments
 

One of Martin Conroy’s direct mail packages was in continuous use for 28 years, from 1975-2003. Most direct mail letters are lucky to last for 6 months. Here’s how the letter started:

“On a beautiful late spring afternoon, twenty-five years ago, two young men graduated from the same college. They were very much alike, these two young men. Both had been better than average sudents, both were personable and both – as young college graduates are – were filled with ambitious dreams for the future.”

Then you come to a sentence that makes you realize something else was in store.

“Recently, these men returned to their college for their 25th reunion.”

The letter, for the Wall Street Journal, then went on to describe that though they both came from  similar backgrounds, one went a lot further.  Of course, this was the person who had access to better information (e.g. someone who reads the Wall Street Journal).

Obviously this struck a chord since it succeeded in getting a stream of subscribers for 28 years.

The key to its success is that it is a story. A well-crafted story that pulls you along and leads you to the inescapable conclusion that the Wall Street Journal is key to success.

The moral of a story: Stories sell.

Martin+Conroy