'Net Features : landing page design

Passing Go with Optimized Landing Pages for Gamers

Administrator — Fri, 17 May 2013 18:30:00 GMT

:: Maximilian Beer, Senior Online Marketing Manager at TrafficCaptain ::

Spurred by the increasing popularity of online games, the computer and video games market has in recent years seen rapid growth and today constitutes an important element in performance marketing. All major performance networks have added online games to their portfolios.

More and more gamers are drawn to online games, using their browsers as a quick and convenient way to play against hundreds of thousands of real adversaries without having to install anything. Apart from online games, there is a plethora of forums, blogs and communities where gamers can communicate and connect in various ways. This traffic is monetized by advertising and affiliate networks targeting specific groups of users. Around the world, the profitable online games market is highly contested. Observing cost-per-click (CPC) development over a five-year period shows that advertisers today have to pay prices that are several times higher than they were in 2008.

The great number of new start-ups in the games sector increases competition even further. As players have become more discriminating, sophisticated graphics and an interactive gaming experience are absolutely essential. If a game is not on the cutting edge in these areas, the initial media hype is inevitably followed by declining conversion rates (users on site in relation to registrations effected) and at the same time, the acquisition costs for new users rise.

The increase in development and advertising expenses makes an optimized landing page an integral component of the marketing strategy: Because the landing page is the point of first contact a new player has with the game, every click that does not result in conversion makes an offer less attractive in the competitive global environment and thus costs companies real money.

Therefore, the most important factors for a successful gaming landing page are presented here:

1. A landing page should always have a clear message and target orientation

The objective is to prompt the user to sign up for the game. This should be the central and immediately recognizable message. Anything that distracts from it should be avoided and relegated to the background. Typical examples are forum registration links, or generally, links leading away from the page.

2. Request only the most relevant information

Unless absolutely necessary, detailed queries regarding interests, age, password and repeated entry thereof (this can be requested at the user’s first game log-in) or the like should be avoided. Unnecessary inquiries increase the risk of the registration being aborted, and at the same time, the validity of additional answer boxes can be called into question given that many users will enter fictitious responses simply to speed up the process.

3. Design for Efficiency

An uncluttered, straightforward design is often the most efficient: Users are not distracted, but led to registration swiftly and effectively. Background graphics are perfectly fine, yet should not contain complex animations which would divert the user’s attention away from the actual registration process.

Examples of well-designed landing pages:

Bumrise.com

Starforcedelta.com

Golden Age

4. Key messages & prompts

Clear, understandable messages asking the player to take action. In our case, the objective generally is registration or purchase of a game. “Sign up for free now” or “Free registration” are examples of a clear statement inviting the user to become active. Overly lengthy explanations, introductions or product descriptions lower the conversion rate measurably. The average user looks at a page for two to five seconds before deciding to subscribe to the service or not.

5. Improve existing landing pages

A landing page is never perfect and should be constantly optimized. This calls for bold new ideas and a conscious strategy to address different target audiences. This route has the advantage of increasing the chances of providing an offer that caters to the individual player’s taste.

6. Think about user flow

The objective of an easy, valid registration often stands in stark contrast to low conversion rates. Single sign-on services such as those offered by Google or Facebook may present a way out of this dilemma. These do not require a full new user registration on a landing page but instead link the user’s existing Google or Facebook account with the game. The advantages are: swift and simple registration and high-quality user e-mail addresses.

7. Consider rebates and special items

Already a standard element of e-commerce, promotion campaigns in online games still hold much untapped potential. The clear advantages here are higher conversion rates and the incentive for users to spend money on the game. Special offers which give the player exclusive benefits are an effective tool. An example is the Games.de campaign which served to attract new players to Starforce Delta (https://www.starforcedelta.com/), granting them in-game currency (Crystals) worth 15 EUR simply for signing up.

8. Test & analyze

Landing page tests should be conducted continuously and are never final. Mathematical models such as significance testing should be used to obtain reliable data. As a general rule it should be noted that a minimum number of 500 conversions is required to begin drawing any meaningful conclusions. Professional tools, e.g. Google’s Webmaster Tools (including HeatMap), can be helpful in taking the right decisions.

Ensuring further growth for online games will increasingly require game publishers to position themselves optimally against the rising tide of competitors. It is the author’s firm view that concepts from the more traditional fields of online marketing will find their way into the marketing strategies for online games.

The overwhelming success enjoyed by online games has caused many companies to overlook the need for landing page testing. This entails more than just changing themes and background designs. Rather, reorganizing input fields and password lengths, and integrating new registration options such as Google/Facebook single sign-on, should be considered in order to raise the conversion rate and ultimately, further increase the efficiency of marketing campaigns. The coming years will show which business models are most likely to succeed and which companies are able to achieve the transition from game developer to global marketing firm.

About TrafficCaptain GmbH

TrafficCaptain GmbH was established as a ‘Games Performance Network’ by iVentureCapital. iVentureCapital contributes its unmatched expertise in generating qualified traffic for online and mobile content to this online advertising network. TrafficCaptain offers performance-based campaigns for mobile, social, MMO, strategy and online games optimized for high eCPMs. TrafficCaptain campaigns are international, with a focus on Europe (Germany, France, Spain, Poland, etc.) and North America (USA and Canada). In addition, TrafficCaptain provides consulting services for media planning and the implementation of Google AdWords campaigns. TrafficCaptain’s Genre-Oriented AdManager targets specific user groups in different countries and automatically optimizes campaigns to achieve high conversion rates and maximum payout for publishers. Advertisers and publishers will find detailed information about TrafficCaptain on www.trafficcaptain.com.

Top PPC Landing Pages by Industry

Michael Garrity — Tue, 15 May 2012 20:00:00 GMT

When you’re paying good money for clicks from a search engine to drive traffic to your site, it only makes sense that you would want the landing page that users arrive at to be engaging and informative, right?

What seems obvious to some of us may go unnoticed by others. The importance of first impressions on converting visitors has been talked about at length, but it’s one of those old adages that is seriously important. That is, if you want your PPC campaign to be worth anything.

That’s why WM has studied a variety of broad industries (food, travel, apparel, entertainment and services) to look at common best practices that various websites employ to engage and, hopefully, convert visitors.

We used a unique query for each category and selected what we thought was the best PPC landing page that our search returned. While there was a lot of localization and personalization that affected the results and PPC ads that we saw, we're confident that all of these landing pages present great design examples in their particular industry.

The results are below:

“Order Chinese Food” (Food)
The website for Hong Kong Express offers an eye-catching design that immediately signals to visitors to “Order Online,” clearly highlighting just how and where to do that. The landing page also lays out other crucial information, such as restaurant hours, phone number and address.

“Bed and Breakfast Wisconsin” (Travel)
This landing page entices visitors with stunning images. However, it doesn't sacrifice information for aesthetics, as specific paths are available for users without being overwhelming. The page also features clear contact information and a call-to-action for users looking to book their stays right now

“Orange Shoes” (Apparel)
If you’re as big fan of tacky footwear as I am, this landing page for Zappos is for you. While relevant product matches clearly take up the center of the page, Zappos also offers visitors the option to narrow down their searches through a variety of categories and specifications to help find the perfect pair of shoes. It also features navigation options at the top of the page that lets users alter the way in which results are organized.

“Buy Theater Tickets” (Entertainment)
Anyone who wants to see a good show should look no further than Broadway.com, which displays some of New York City’s hottest performances in the middle of the page, with clear call-to-action buttons encouraging them to buy tickets. Additionally, visitors are able to toggle between different types of shows or search to find the one most interesting to them.

“Mechanic Chicago” (Services)
This sleek landing page is one of the best, with engaging visuals, a clear call-to-action button that stands out from the rest of the page and important information laid out in unobtrusive but easy-to-find locations.

Trends in Landing Page Design for Search Marketers

Pete Prestipino — Tue, 25 Jan 2011 21:00:00 GMT

Landing pages are critical to the success of search marketing and advertising campaigns. To ensure that the destination where consumers end up post-click presents the best opportunity for conversion, let's review three current landing page design trends.

When you want to analyze what works best in landing page design, start with the most competitive terms. The keyword in focus for this review (and, of course, the landing pages that result) was "Tax Preparation" - the logic for that choice was the expected upcoming search volume for that keyword (see chart below).

Six landing pages were reviewed for the similarities/differences that the design concepts had in common. The sites used for this review (listed below) are in no particular order and were pulled from Google and Bing results.

There are three key trends that revealed themselves by comparing the landing pages - the presence of cost information, the presence of varying levels of trust signals and the presence of supporting navigation.

You might end up applying some of the techniques you see below on your own site, but before settling on one remember that testing is the only sure-fire way to ensure that the right elements are available to convert your specific audience of consumers into buyers.

Google Trends Graph for "Tax Preparation" Keyword over the past year:

Editors Note: While we did encounter a few affiliate marketing landing pages in the paid returns (we're looking at you, H&R Block affiliates), the guidance in this article relates primarily to those businesses ultimately responsible for the quality of a landing page design.

Trend One: Prominence of Cost-Related Information
While many might try to dissuade decision makers from including cost-related details (pricing, setup costs, registration fees, etc.), there have been studies showing that displaying this information is an effective strategy. Should the industry in which you are promoting products and services be price-sensitive, where consumers frequently look for bargains (more common for lower-priced products/services - e.g. useful in the tax preparation example but not so much for those selling grand pianos), the presence of cost-related information is common. Of our sample group, only one of the six (H&R Block) did not use the actual word "free" or refer to the cost in some manner within their primary headline. To determine if displaying cost-related information is a feasible strategy, as well as the prominence of that information, you must consider engaging in A/B or multivariate testing.

Trend Two: Presence of Level 1, 2 and 3 Trust Signals
When it comes to something as important as the sensitivity of personal and financial information, you can be sure that consumers are seeking out indicators of trust. How that trust is currently being conveyed, at least based on the sites we reviewed, is quite interesting today. While the inclusion of icons from more prominent services like Verisign or Truste (level 1 trust signals) are common among larger enterprises, there is an opportunity for both extending the number and type of trust signals. For example, three of the six landing pages reviewed had social icons (level two) on their landing pages, as social graph depth and activity are now a good indicator of how much an enterprise is trusted by its community. Level three trust signals including displaying guarantees and providing proof statements (for example, "over one million served") or even more visible customer support elements are common among the landing page designs we encountered.

Trend Three: Presence of Supporting Navigation
While not unique to this finance/banking niche, another important trend is a shift from the minimalist approach of quickly funneling the user towards a particular path. We noted back in the summer of 2009 that providing users with a limited number of possible paths was a common trend among those sites in the ringtone niche that we reviewed. While in a very different industry, the "tax preparation" category is equally competitive, providing a good point of comparison. Should you be faced with a decision to produce a stripped down minimalist landing page or one which provides many different paths towards the information users need, know that the presence of supporting navigation on landing pages is common.

Trend Summation
In the end, the key takeaway might just be that there is a small shift occurring in landing page design. Previously, it was common to opt for a more abbreviated, "less is more" approach. Now, it seems that landing page designers and search marketers are moving back towards providing a more complete, traditional experience.

What trends in landing page design have you seen recently? Share with other WM readers by commenting below.

The landing pages reviewed for this article are below and include TurboTax, H&R Block, Past Year Tax, Tax Act, Liberty Tax and Tax Brain.

Five PPC Landing Page Design Trends

Pete Prestipino — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 20:58:00 GMT

If you are paying for clicks, you must ensure that the landing page where consumers end up post-click can convert. Impressions count more than ever when it comes to PPC landing page design so let's review what sites are doing right (and wrong) and perhaps even find some inspiration for our own PPC campaigns and the landing page designs they feature.

When you want to analyze what works best in PPC landing page design, you want to start with the most competitive terms. We took a look at ten landing page designs (only nine are featured as one was was ultimately just a parked page) to determine similarities and differences that the design concepts have. You might end up applying some of the techniques on your own site, but before settling on one, remember that testing is the only sure fire way to ensure that the right elements are available to convert your specific audience of consumers into buyers.

The keyword in focus (and of course the landing pages that result) are under the keyword "ringtone". Clearly our choice of keyword will influence the type of landing page designs that resulted. Expect the sites that bid on those terms to focus on acquiring a younger, more socially-connected, technology savvy audience.

There are a few core trends which revealed themselves by comparing multiple PPC landing pages. The sites listed below are in the order in which they were found on the results pages. Once we can determine what's going on with landing page design, we're able to make informed decisions and perhaps even understand how to influence the quality score of those individual listings.

Trend One: Limited Paths For Users
Common among the first five listings are the limited paths users can take when arriving on the landing page. Ovi Store by Nokia (which occupied the first position during our review) had just three options: register, login, and a call for developers. FreeRingToneLocker, CellWare and ThumbPlay took a similar "less is more" approach (see trend four for additional information).

Trend Two: Prominent Images
The next trend is the prominent use of large images. In fact, on the landing pages of the first two listings this was the core design element. CellWare (within the third position) took the use of a prominent visual a step further by including a video of a young attractive woman presenting information on the offer.

Trend Three: Strong Call To Action
Several of the top five listings (Ovi Store excluded) had a clear value proposition presented that was coupled with a compelling call to action. For example, ThumbPlay's "Join Today, Get Ringtones" is a straightforward statement, leaving no doubt in the mind of the user what they need to do to get what they came for. Tonefor.Me is using dynamic keyword insertion on their landing pages coupled with a static call to action.

Trend Four and Five: Data Collection, Content Teasing or Registration
We've decided to combine trends four and give into one, but it's the most important of the group. The sites we reviewed leverage three very different conversion tactics. While some required registration to proceed, others either focused on a basic data collection (name and email) or what I refer to as content teasing.

What I find fascinating about conducting a review of this nature is the insights that a basic study such as this might reveal about quality score. What other design trends do you see on these sites and how do you think this influences quality score? Comment below now and share your thoughts with Website Magazine readers and editors.