If your website landing pages prompt more yawns then likes, it’s time to discover conversion-centered design (CCD).
Writing for Hubspot, author Oli Gardner defines CCD as a discipline targeted at designing experiences that achieve a single business goal. There is one undeniable reason for this technique: convince site visitors to do what you want, such as buy a product, sign up for a demonstration or donate to your cause.
CCD is one part art, one part science. “It seeks to guide the visitor toward completing that one specific action, using persuasive design and psychological triggers as devices to increase conversions,” Gardner explained.
So how do you persuade a visitor to complete your conversion goal? Gardner identified seven principles in his book, “Conversion-Centered Design: Essential Elements of High Converting Landing Pages,” you can follow to create landing pages that convert.
Encapsulation
With this design technique, you “hijack your visitors’ eyes and create a tunnel vision effect,” he said. It’s a way of visually representing your call to action to help site visitors focus on it.
Contrast and Color
Another design tip, Gardner recommends using evocative color and dramatic contrast to make your call to action standout on the landing page. “If you have a lot of black/grey text on a white background, then a black or white CTA won’t provide the desired contrast, and you’d be better off with a colorful element,” he advised. To learn more about color theory, read our primer, “Color on The Web: Its Many Shades of Meaning.”
Directional Cues
Just like a road sign directs drivers, directional cues guide landing page visitors toward a destination. This design technique reveals the purpose of the landing page to visitors. Try using images of arrows, pathways or roads to escort visitors toward your call to action.
Blank Space
Less is more with landing page design. In fact, the absence of design can be the most powerful technique. “The purpose is to use simple spatial positioning to allow your call to action to stand out from its surroundings and give your eye only one thing to focus on,” he wrote.
Urgency and Scarcity
Our brains are hard-wired to respond to the psychological motivators of scarcity and urgency. You can employ this principal by promoting a time-sensitive call to action (“Offer ends at midnight!”) or a limited supply (“Only five tickets remaining!”).
Try Before You Buy
If you’ve ever sampled a grape while shopping at the grocery store before buying the whole bunch, you understand the concept of “try before you buy.” You can replicate this principle on landing pages by allowing visitors to read a chapter of your book before buying it, for example, or offering free product samples.
Social Proof
You’re probably familiar with the psychological principal of social proof, too. Things considered popular or in-demand carry higher value. “By showing the number of social shares, webinar registrants or ebook downloads to date, you might leverage a few extra seconds of attention to impress your message upon a visitor,” Gardner explained.
