How to create a landing page

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In the last post, we covered building your first productized service.

Today, we’re creating your product’s landing page, AKA the place on the internet that your prospective customers will discover, review, and purchase your product.

Unlike a website that acts as a catch-all for your services, company background, contact info, and blog, a landing page has one job: convert leads.

In today’s post, I’ve researched and curated everything you’ll need to create a successful landing page for your product.

We’ll break down the following:

• 5 foundational landing page elements

• Communicating benefits (instead of features)

• Tools to create your landing page

• Best practices to follow

• Tips for outsourcing (if you choose to)

And if you just joined Profit Ladder or someone forwarded this to you, this post is part of the following 4-part series called, Your First Product:

• Part 1: How to prep for your first productized service

• Part 2: How to build your first productized service

• Part 3: How to create a landing page (today’s post)

• Part 4: How to launch your first productized service

🚀 Ready to create your landing page? Let’s do it.

Before we jump in, do me a favor?

You know that voice rattling around your head telling you, “You can’t build a landing page… you’re not a designer or marketer!”

Go ahead and leave the imposter syndrome at the door. You can totally do this. Take it from someone who’s entirely self-taught.

And by the end of this post, you’ll see you’re more than qualified to create an effective landing page.

Landing pages 101

Let's break down the 5 key elements of your successful landing page.

1. Captivating headline: Your headline is the first thing visitors see — your elevator pitch. It needs to immediately convey what your productized service is about, in as clear a way as possible. Keep it concise and compelling, highlighting the primary benefit your product offers — the dream outcome.

Take for example Unbounce, a platform for building landing pages. It just so happens they have a kick-ass landing page. (Well, shit… they better!)

Take notice of their use of digits: “#1” and “15,000”

Our brains love numbers because they’re shortcuts to reading. By including numerals, you make it easy for your visitor to scan and translate the suggested value.

2. Engaging visuals: A picture is worth a thousand words, right? Use high-quality images, videos, or graphics that showcase your product in action.

More than understand, visuals help visitors experience your product's value. The right visual will suggest how they’ll feel by using your product. That’s a power move in convincing them to take the next step.

I love how meditation app, Calm, uses beautiful imagery of a peaceful mountain and lake scene. I haven’t read a single word of copy and I already feel more relaxed!

I also really like how Podia uses that lovely, upward curving line every business owner dreams of. They combine it with 4 simple stages — Start, Build, Grow, Scale — to suggest that Podia will help you earn and grow your online business.

There are a couple options to find or create your images:

• Pexels and Pixabay offer a wide selection of images taken by pros

• Dreamstudio uses AI to generate custom images, though I’ll warn you, it takes a bit of practice

3. Compelling copy: Your copy should elaborate on the promise made in your headline. Use persuasive language to explain how your product can solve a specific problem or fulfill a need. If there’s one thing your prospective customers know about, it’s their thorny problems.

Highlight the benefits and features that set your productized service apart.

Airbnb absolutely nailed it by showing you the money (more numbers) that you can earn by listing your property with them.

But they didn’t stop there. Check out the visual they used 👆🏼

It’s a map of my location that shows other properties for sale around me. This even sparks a little FOMO that nearby property owners are already earning through Airbnb. A crafty tactic that also delivers something else: social proof.

4. Social proof: People tend to trust what others say about your product more than what you say about it.

Include testimonials, case studies, or reviews from satisfied customers to build trust and credibility.

For example, with over 17k raving fans of his LinkedIn OS product, Justin Welsh is a master of putting social proof front-and-center.

To make it easy for your customers to leave testimonials, here are a couple services that capture testimonials you can embed on your landing page:

• VideoAsk

• Testimonial.to

Influencer testimonials?

Paying influential people (celebrities, athletes, and domain-specific thought leaders) to endorse your product is like an affluent cousin of customer testimonials.

It has its perks. But I recommend not pulling this lever until you (1) have product-market fit, and (2) have legit customer testimonials. Your customers will be just fine with verified testimonials from people just like them.

Whatever you do, do NOT pay testimonial actors to record fake testimonials. It’s slimy and gross and will come back to bite you in the ass.

5. Clear call-to-action (CTA): Your CTA is a crucial element. It tells visitors what to do next — whether it's signing up for a free trial, making a purchase, or downloading a resource.

A strong CTA stands out visually and uses persuasive language.

Consider using action-oriented phrases that suggest urgency, like: "Get Started for Free" or "Try It Today".

For my Problem Framing Toolkit, I combined action and commitment with the CTA, “I want this!” It’s bold and binary. Visitors will decide right then and there if they’re ready to move forward. Just be careful with the exclamation marks.

For products where I’m trying to convey simplicity of access and use, I avoid phrases like “Learn More,” “Explore,” or “Discover.” They suggest an additional commitment of time. And for leads who are leaning in, they’ll feel like you put a moat between them and your product.

That wraps up the 5 foundational elements of your landing page. Let’s move next into what and how you communicate your product’s capabilities.