Mobile landing page optimization is more important than ever for local businesses. With Google’s mobile-first index rolling out far and wide, contributor Lee Dobson shares his top tips for mobile optimization, and tells us what to prioritize to make sure landing pages match the needs of consumers on-the-move.
You can put all your efforts into securing great ads and working tirelessly on SEO to drive viewers to your site, but if you don’t get the landing page right, you’re risking throwing away conversions.
In this article, we’ll explain some of the best tactics local businesses can use to create a landing page that converts beautifully. Have a read through these pointers to ensure mobile optimization is always a key consideration for landing pages.
Optimize your page for mobile
Your entire website should be mobile-friendly, and your landing pages especially so. This is particularly true if you’re finding mobile traffic dropping off landing pages. Here are some tips on optimizing your site for a mobile audience, as well as a timely reminder that Google’s mobile-first index is now in force.
No matter what business you’re in, if you’re looking to attract a local audience, you need to do it with a mobile screen in mind. Which takes us nicely to our next must-have:
Mobile optimization for rapid load speeds
Everyone hates waiting. To have your landing page work well on mobile and give potential customers a great first impression, you need it to load quickly. Research shows that the higher the page load time, the less likely a page is to convert.
Concentrating on SERP traffic? Load speed is vital as Google will punish sites that are too slow on mobile devices with lower mobile rankings. Google treats loading speed as a key ranking factor and will actively promote pages that load quickly via the AMP initiative.
And users are just as picky! You’ve no doubt clicked on a link and smashed ‘back’ when the page takes more than a few seconds to load. The bounce rate of your landing pages will skyrocket if they are slow to load. Sharp load speeds can be achieved with some technical improvements. Here are a few tips to get you started on the road to fast mobile load speeds.
This scary bit of insight shows how a rising page load time correlates with a plummeting conversion rate.
Take a look at Wildair’s homepage, for example. It might seem a bit simple, but it loads in a lightning 959 milliseconds for New York locals. [Tip: You can check your page load speed using dotcomtools or Google’s mobile speed test!]
Trim everything on your landing page down as much as you can and see how fast you can get yours to pop up, but make sure the same content is available to desktop and mobile visitors, so as not to fall foul of the mobile-first index. Slow pages will throw local customers away while rapid pages will pull them in!
Your phone number is always essential
Google research shows that 88% of consumers use search engines on their smartphones to find goods or services that they can locate nearby, with 50% visiting a local store within just one day of their initial search. Mobile search is one of the biggest drivers of calls to businesses. Many customers are looking to buy right away, and providing a number to call allows consumers to immediately take the next step in their journey.
You definitely want to think about placing a click-to-call option if you get most of your traffic from search ads on mobile. The popularity of this function is on the rise, with 70% of ad viewers tending to prefer a ‘click-to-call’ option over plain text digits. Businesses can also now add a “call now” button to Google Posts.
Whether you’re selling tulips or emergency lock repairs, your contact number should always be clearly visible on your landing page. And the more likely it is that your customers will be calling in an emergency, the higher up on the page and the more visible the contact number should be.
It may seem obvious, but inaccurate contact details online are frustrating and confusing to consumers. Recent BrightLocal research found that in the last 12 months, 36% of consumers had called a wrong number of a business because of incorrect online information.
Use relevant headlines and concise copy
Since so many of your customers will be finding you on a small screen, it’s very important that the copy you use is concise enough to deliver your message clearly, and small enough for you to compile sentences that will fit comfortably on a smartphone. Guide your content approach by determining the 3-5 most important reasons a customer should call or visit you right now.
As with all other pages, pay close attention to the words used in the page’s first and second headlines (H1 and H2). Don’t try and stuff your landing page with unnaturally large amounts of keywords, as Google will make you pay for it harshly.
If you’re not using it already, have a look on AdWords Keyword Planner to identify the keywords you should include in your copy. You can then have a go at using Google Webmaster Tools and Google Analytics to measure the performance of your page.
In most cases, the keywords you find will fit right in line with your key selling points. Restaurants, for example, will certainly want to include their cuisine and exact location in a landing page, which is likely to match the exact search terms used by locals looking for them.
Lots of people read a little more than 300 words per minute, so it’s a good idea to aim for a little less than that to ensure your visitors are encouraged to decide and take action within this timeframe. Google has recommendations for text size and location, which serve as a handy guide.
The vast majority of a customer’s attention will be on the first screen of content, so this is where you want your strongest selling points (as well as your contact details).
Remember that if you’re using PPC, SEO or email, the message on your landing page needs to be consistent with the campaigns that draw your visitors. If most are coming to you through search, you’ll need to make sure your headlines and copy incorporate the language customers would actually use when looking for your offering.
Have a call to action that’s designed for mobile searchers
Your entire landing page should act as a signpost that directs visitors to a single action. When you’re trying to speak to a local audience with your call-to-action (CTA), the language you use should direct them to get in touch. They’re already looking for your goods or service, so your CTA needs to be the final push towards a purchase.
Research shows us that there is a strong correlation between the complexity of an offering and the ideal position of the CTA. The more complex your product or service, the more you will need to educate a user before pushing them to take action. Selling something everyone understand and uses often? Most visitors will already have a clear idea of what you offer and will be looking for contact details, so place your CTA high up on the page.
Providing something far more sporadic like garage door repair? Place your CTA further down and prioritize informing viewers of your key selling points before placing a clear contact nudge. Remember that CTAs look best in the form of buttons. Nobody likes having to hunt around a body of text for the right link to establish contact. Your CTA should be big, bold, and easy to find.
I hope you’ve found this quick list of vital mobile optimization tips helpful! Landing pages can make all the difference between slow or stellar sales, so they’re well worth every ounce of effort you throw at them. Follow the pointers above to ensure your first online impressions are sharp, focused, and get your local audience to take action!
