The Art of The Landing Page

There has been a lot written about and programs sold to teach you how to write the Long Landing Page.

If you haven’t seen one, take a look at the example here for a book on helping to cure psoriasis. As in the tabloids and other consumer magazines, a compelling headline is going to do 90% of the heavy lifting when it comes to grabbing the consumers attention. Words like ‘Revealed’ or ‘Discover the secret’ or any headline that motivates you to keep reading for crucial information you can’t get anywhere else.

So you keep reading.

If the copywriter has done their job well, you get bullet lists of teasers, showing you all the inside information that you’ll receive upon purchasing the ebook or report, or teleconference. Now this is great… especially if they end up fulfilling the promise. And that’s the secret in and of itself. Just like a lawyer should never ask a question they don’t know the answer to, never put teasers in copy that are never fulfilled. You’ll see your return rates go through the roof. And like direct marketing pariah’s like Kevin Trudeau (Natural Cures THEY Don’t Want You To Know About) books that never give you any information are scams.

But don’t automatically put all Long Landing Pages into that category.

It’s human nature to want the ‘inside info’. And we want to reach and make a connection with someone who understands us and our problems before we put our money on the line, even with the promise of a 30 Day Money Back Guarantee. So make sure you empathize, understand and give some real, legitimate help in your landing page with the real promise delivered in your final product. And, it should go without saying, honor your guarantees. Because you’ll quickly end up on your home states Attorney General’s watch list or others like InformercialWatch.org.

Now, can you use the Long Landing Page for other purposes as well?

Absolutely. For instance, use it to sell your concept and then surprise them with not a sales pitch, but a FREE report on the subject they are researching. Now, the report has even more value, but again, it all leads to the final resolution, the sales transaction. But by extending trust on your end that by giving valuable information at no charge, you will give the consumer the trust in your business to go ahead and complete the purchase, and trusting in you to provide them with value.

September 11th Perspectives

When I think of what happened 5 years ago, I realize how what we experience is filtered by the media we are exposed to. I remember dropping my son off to school (2nd grade) and flipping on ‘IMUS in the Morning”. What I heard had me confused – I thought someone had dropped a suitcase nuke in NYC.

It was almost that bad.

Upon getting to work, we stayed glued to the set all day and work was not even a passing thought for the next few days. Our nation seems to come together through the window of the media and I wonder now how we would experience it with the way blogging and the net have integrated themselves into our daily media blitz. How many email blog posts would there have been from people trapped inside one of the twin towers? How many cell phone videos quickly uploaded to YouTube with loved ones saying there last goodbyes, or even worse, showing the grisly truth of the terrorist attacks?

Unfortunately, it’s only going to take the next big terrorist event somewhere to find out.

Peace and positive energy to those directly and indirectly affected by the mindless acts of violence by others.

30 Day Risk-Free Trial!

Does that get you interested? To a lot of people, when they see the word ‘free’ in an ad, all rational thinking stops. I often have to use the phrase ‘risk-free trial’ in direct response print ads, or the phones just don’t ring as much. Free is such a powerful word in marketing, you have to use it carefully or be prepared to deal with the results. In my case, the phone agents do an admirable job (most of the time) diffusing the ‘I thought it was free’ argument and explaining that it refers to trying the product for 30 days and getting a full refund if not satisfied for any reason – hence ‘risk-free’.

But that doesn’t always make it through the Twinkie induced haze some customers are in when they call.

“This is a scam, I’m going to call the Better Business Bureau!” is one oft shouted phrase, so often, I’m surprised the BBB doesn’t have it on their voice mail system. “If you need an explanation of the term ‘risk-free trial’, please press 9.

That oughta do it.