Best Lead Generation Landing Pages: Examples with Critiques and Optimization Checklist

What is a lead generation landing page?

A lead generation landing page is a page with one goal: to capture someone’s email address. This is usually done by giving away something for free (a cheat sheet, an ebook, admission to a webinar, etc.) that can only be accessed by submitting contact information.

Once you have someone’s email address you can build a relationship with them, educate them on your products and services, and eventually convert them into a paying customer.

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What is the average lead generation landing page conversion rate?

The conversion rate you achieve will depend on the strength of your offer, your audience targeting, and how well you optimize your page. With that said, the average conversion rate for lead generation landing pages is 18%. Interestingly, recent landing page statistics state that shorter landing pages with clear CTAs outperform longer ones by 13.5%. However, as you’ll see from the examples below, if you pair the right offer with a quality landing page you can achieve conversion rates of 70% or more.

What types of lead generation landing pages convert best?

There are many types of lead generation landing pages to choose from, including ebooks, giveaways, or a free quote. You should choose an offer that aligns with and audience. That being said, some offers convert better than others.

Here are the top ten types of lead generation landing page with their average conversion rate:

Free guide lead generation landing page example

Elite Blog Academy knows its audience is looking for ways to monetize their blogs. So, they offer a guide that provides bloggers with seven strategies to increase their sales page conversions. There’s plenty to love about this page, and it’s no surprise that the page converts at such a high rate.

Here is one of our as an example.

Landing page strengths

1. The countdown timer creates urgency

It’s not enough to convince visitors to submit their emails—you need to convince them to submit them now.

Why? Because if they don’t take action right away they’ll likely get distracted or forget about your offer, and then you might lose them forever. This is why creating a sense of urgency is so important, and nothing does that better than a countdown timer.

In this case, Elite Blog Academy places a timer right in the hero section of its lead generation landing page. Seeing that ticking clock lets users know that this offer won’t last long, which encourages them to submit their info right away before it’s too late.

2. The positive testimonial builds social proof

It doesn’t matter how credible you are or how many facts you provide. People know you’re trying to sell them something, so there will always be a part of them that will be a little wary of you.

But if you can offer positive reviews from your customers, that changes everything. When people see that their peers back up your claims they’re much more likely to take you up on your offer. In fact, according to a recent study, 93% of consumers say online reviews impact their buying decisions.

Elite Blog Academy features an excellent testimonial right underneath the hero section. The customer even states how much their conversion rate improved after using the guide, which provides further proof that the tips really do work.

3. The “About” section introduces you to your teacher

Let’s make this clear: your lead generation landing page should primarily talk about your lead magnet and how you’re going to solve your audience’s problems.

However, it’s okay to talk about yourself a little bit. People want to know who they’re doing business with. By telling them who you are and including a picture of yourself you immediately build trust and let visitors know you’re a human being and not some faceless entity.

Ruth also does a good job of relating to her audience. She starts by talking about how she suffered from the same problems her audience does. This makes her more relatable and her solution more credible.

Areas for optimization

The inclusion of an “About” section is great, but this page might benefit from reducing the text in that section a little bit. A large block of text like this can seem intimidating to readers, so they might be tempted to skip over it. Cutting this down to one paragraph would make it much more reader-friendly.

Workbook lead generation landing page example

This lead generation landing page is proof that even the simplest pages can be very effective. It’s clear that FasTrack IELTS has done a good job of targeting the right audience and offering a lead magnet their users want. But there are a few other aspects that help this page achieve its high conversion rates.

Landing page strengths

1. It’s short and to the point

When it comes to lead generation, you don’t need a page that’s overly long. If your offer is free and pretty straightforward you don’t have to say a lot to get someone to take action. In this case, shorter is usually better.

FasTrack says all they need to say about their offer and then makes it easy to sign up for the download.

2. The headline perfectly summarizes the offer

It’s tempting to use your headline to be witty and creative—but this can often backfire. If there’s any confusion around what you’re offering visitors might just leave.

For this reason, it’s best to keep your headline direct. Tell people what they’re getting and why they should want it.

The headline on this page follows this rule to a tee, so much so that no more copy is needed to convey the message.

3. Strong call to action

Your call to action should either tell visitors what you want them to do or describe what they’ll get by taking action. It needs to be direct and use active language.

“Send Me The Synonyms” does all this, making it the perfect CTA for this page.

Areas for optimization

While this landing page’s simple approach seems to be working, a little more copy explaining the offer might help. A product preview or a professionally designed cover could also help people visualize what they’re going to receive, which would likely boost conversions.

Free workshop lead generation landing page example

You don’t need to be a business coach, freelance writer, or marketing consultant to start an online business. You can turn virtually any skill or hobby into a full-time income. Carmen Morin proves this with her online piano academy. And based on her stellar conversion rate, there’s plenty of demand for her services.

Landing page strengths

1. Multiple CTA buttons

You don’t know when a visitor is going to decide to take you up on your offer. It could be after they see your hero section, it could be halfway down the page, or it could be at the very end.

That’s why you should include multiple CTA buttons throughout your page. Otherwise, users have to scroll up and down to find them, and you might lose a few leads in the process.

Carmen includes CTA buttons after almost every section, meaning people never have to look far when they’re ready to take the next step.

2. She includes social proof

We already talked about testimonials, but another way to include social proof is to display your credentials and accomplishments.

In Carmen’s case, she showcases publications she’s been featured in and awards she’s won. Like a positive review, this helps back up her claims and builds her credibility as a reputable teacher.

3. She talks about the common problems her audience is struggling with

A big part of generating leads is understanding the issues your audience has and what they need help with. Not only does this allow you to create better products, but it also helps you promote your offers.

When you can state the exact problems people are struggling with in your copy, your readers start to nod along with what you’re saying. It tells them that your offer is designed for them.

Carmin achieves this by asking visitors if they’ve experienced any of the following issues. If they can relate to even one of the problems she mentions there’s a good chance they’ll take her up on her offer.

Areas for optimization

While the headline “Accelerate Your Momentum” talks about a benefit of the workshop, it’s a little vague. Something a little more specific, like “Become the Piano Player You’ve Always Wanted to Be” might perform better. That way, there’s no confusion around who this page is for and how it benefits them.

Free planner lead generation landing page example

Here’s another example of a short, simple, and very effective lead generation landing page. Laurie is a social media expert, and her social planner is the perfect lead magnet for her audience. But there are a couple other things she does to make this a successful page.

Landing page strengths

1. She’s created a cover for her digital product

Depending on your digital product it might be hard to include a photo of it. This is why many entrepreneurs create a cover for their digital products. Doing this adds value to your product and helps users visualize what they’re getting.

Laurie’s placed the cover for her social media planner right at the forefront of her page so visitors see straight away that they’re receiving something of value.

2. She lists the benefits of her offer

A big mistake a lot of marketers make is talking about features instead of benefits. Features describe what people are getting, but benefits tell them why they should want it. Benefits are a powerful selling tool, so always make sure to include them in your copy.

With this page, Laurie does a good job of listing out the features of her lead magnet and then following that up with the benefits. That way, visitors get the “what” and the “why”.

Areas for optimization

Short landing pages like this often work well for free offers, as visitors need less convincing to take action. That being said, it might be worth experimenting with adding some testimonials or an “About” section for Laurie to help her establish her authority.

Newsletter lead generation landing page example

You don’t always have to build a product to create a lead magnet. An email newsletter filled with valuable news, tips, and advice can be a great way to entice potential leads to give you their email addresses.

Landing page strengths

1. First-person language is used in the CTA

As we discussed previously, you need to be direct and descriptive with your CTAs, and it’s best to use active language like “start” or “send.” But there’s one other thing you can do to increase your clicks.

Studies show that using first-person language in your CTA improves conversion rates by 90%.

Blogging Wizard seems to have gotten the memo, as they use this strategy in all their CTAs.

2. The “What’s Included” section shows the value of the offer

While a lead generation landing page generally isn’t asking for any money, you still need to sell people on your offer. Users aren’t going to invite you into their inbox for no reason, so you need to show them just how much value you’re providing them.

A “what’s included” section, similar to the one used on this page, is an excellent way to do that. The more valuable items you can include in this list the more willing people will be to hand over their email addresses.

Areas for optimization

This landing page features some strong copy, but the images leave a little to be desired. The current hero image is a rather small and the subject is looking away from the camera. A larger image of the subject looking directly at the reader with a big smile might seem like a minor tweak, but these sorts of adjustments can have a large impact on conversion rates.

Cheat sheet lead generation landing page example

Cheat sheets are a popular choice for lead magnets because they provide quick solutions to common problems. This page from Swim University uses a hot tub cheat sheet to answer some of the most common questions hot tub owners have.

Landing page strengths

1. It includes a product preview

We talked previously about how creating a cover for your digital product is one way to help visitors visualize it. Another solution is to simply include a preview of the product itself. This works well for items like cheat sheets.

As you can see from the example above, Swim University gives users a great look at some of the information they’ll get if they download the sheet. Clearly, people like what they’re seeing, because 71% of them go on the grab it.

2. It only asks for an email address

It might be tempting to gather as much information from your leads as possible—but that would be a mistake. The more steps you require people to take the fewer will actually follow through.

Basically, you need to make it as easy as possible.

Swim University takes this advice to heart, as the page only asks for an email address. You can often get away with asking for people’s names as well, but that’s as much information as you should try to get from them. Otherwise, the sign-up process becomes too long.

3. It has great branding

Don’t overlook branding on your landing page. An attractive page with a professional logo and cohesive color pallet immediately makes you look professional, which creates trust with your audience.

Being consistent with your brand across all platforms is also important. If your landing page has the same branding as the ad that sends visitors to the page it lets them know they’re in the right place and makes for an all-around better experience.

Looking at this page, you can see the logo perfectly matches the background and CTA button colors. If the creator of this page took the time to pay attention to these small details it tells visitors they probably also took the time to ensure the cheat sheet is as good as it can be.

Areas for optimization

The current headline tells people the action they should take, but it doesn’t include any benefits. In this sense, it reads more like a call to action rather than a headline. Something like “Simplify Your Hot Tub Maintenance” might perform a little better.

Toolkit lead generation landing page example

If you’ve ever done any copywriting you know how important a good headline is. So, it’s no surprise that Copy Posse’s best-performing page offers a headline writing toolkit. Here are a couple more reasons why this lead generation landing page is absolutely killing it.

Landing page strengths

1. It has an excellent headline

If you’re promoting the “Ultimate Headline Writing Toolkit” your landing page better have a stellar headline. Luckily, Copy Posse nails it with this headline.

Visitors are told right away what the primary benefit of this offer is. They’re also told achieving that benefit is quick and easy.

What more do they have to say? It’s quite likely most users are already sold after reading that one line.

2. Bright CTA button

It makes sense that if you want someone to click a button on your page you need it to stand out. The visitor’s eye should be drawn to it right away, which is why using a bright or contrasting color for your CTA button is important.

Keep in mind that the color you choose should still work with your overall color pallet. Your CTA button shouldn’t look out of place, but it also needs to be a different color than the rest of your page so it doesn’t blend in.

The yellow button on this page is one of the first elements you notice, but it also works well with the blue background.

3. It establishes the creator’s authority

Before people hand over their email addresses, they want to make sure you can deliver on your promises. Do you actually know what you’re talking about, or are you just a fake guru who’s regurgitating what other people are saying?

If anyone has doubts about the legitimacy of the Copy Posse, they’re quickly put to rest with this write-up on founder Alex Cattoni. Besides seeing that she’s been featured in Ad World multiple times, Alex’s long list of accolades are included here so users know she’s the real deal.

Areas for optimization

The bright colors in the hero section do a great job of catching people’s attention, but some sort of image here would make it even stronger. This could either be an image of the toolkit that’s being offered or an image of Alex, the creator of this product. Imagery is equally as important as copy, so this page might be missing out by having a text-only hero section.

Playbook lead generation landing page example

We’ve saved our highest converting landing page for last. Gemma Bonham-Carter’s Live Launch Playbook gives entrepreneurs all the tools they need to launch their products successfully.

Landing page strengths

1. She’s sharing a tool she uses herself

You can build tools specifically for your audience—but often the products that are most successful are the ones you use yourself.

If you’ve achieved a goal that your audience is trying to achieve they want to know how you did it. So, if you can share the tools you used to reach that accomplishment they’re going to be really popular.

In this case, Gemma’s offering the same system she uses to run her own five and six-figure product launches. This immediately validates the offer since it’s been proven to work in the past.

2. She lists the regular price

Everyone’s always looking for a deal. That’s why if you’re offering something for free that you regularly charge money for, make sure to let people know. This will heighten the value and should earn you a few extra conversions.

With this page, Gemma lets visitors know right away that she regularly charges $97 for this playbook. Not only are people more likely to sign up because it’s a great deal, but it also adds a bit of urgency because they don’t know when she’s going to start charging for this again.

3. She uses a pop-up lead gen form

When collecting people’s information, you have two options: you can embed a form right on the page or have a pop-up form that appears when people click your CTA button.

It might seem like embedding the form directly on the page is the better option, since it involves fewer clicks, but that’s not necessarily the case. You see, once people click your CTA button to bring up your form they feel committed and compelled to follow through with submitting their email.

Gemma uses this type of form on her page, and with a 94% conversion rate, it seems to be working fairly well for her.

Areas for optimization

This is another page that might want to try a different headline. In this case, the headline is simply the name of the product. The thing is, visitors don’t know what the product is or why they should want it, so that headline really isn’t catching their attention. Something like “Make More Money From Your Next Product Launch” does a much better job of telling people why they should be interested.

Steps to create an optimized lead generation landing page

Creating a high-converting lead generation landing page is easier than you think. Follow these steps to quickly launch your page and start collecting leads.

Create a lead magnet your audience will love

You can have a perfectly optimized landing page, but if your lead magnet isn’t something your audience actually wants you’re not going to generate conversions.

Start by listening to your audience. What questions are they asking? What problems do they have? Identify an issue that you can quickly and easily solve for them and turn that into a lead magnet.

Looking for ideas for your next lead magnet? Check out our 12 Ways to Create a High-Value Lead Magnet.

Choose the right landing page template

Gone are the days when you had to design your landing page from scratch. Landing page builders like Leadpages offer professionally designed templates that are already optimized for conversions.

Once you find a template that works for your offer, all you have to do is edit the text, insert your images, tweak the colors to suit your brand, and you’re good to go.

Check out our landing page template gallery to see the wide range of options available to you.

Use benefit-rich copy to promote your offer

Once you have your template picked out it’s time to write your landing page copy. Whatever your product, service, or offer is, make sure to focus on the benefits.

Don’t fall into the trap of simply telling visitors what it does. Instead, explain how it will improve their life and why they should want it.

Try to include a benefit in all your headers and if there’s room, list out the top three to five benefits of your offer.

Include images that highlight the benefits

Don’t just tell visitors what the benefits are—show them. Remember, imagery plays just as big a role in getting the conversion as copy does, so make sure to choose the right photos.

First, you want your images to catch people’s attention. Action shots and smiling faces both work well for this. Next, use photos that show the benefits of your product or service. This could be picture of someone enjoying your product, or the results people can expect from using your service.

Customize your look to fit your brand

While Leadpages right out of the box, they’re also fully customizable so you can make them your own.

If people land on your page and it looks completely different from where they came from (most likely your website or an ad), they might think they’re in the wrong place and leave. So, at the very least you’ll want to add your own branding and colors. That way, when visitors arrive they’ll have a consistent experience.

Drive the right traffic to the page

Once your landing page is ready and you have the perfect lead magnet you need to send the right traffic to it. Not everyone is going to be interested in your offer, so you have to target people who have the best chance of converting.

Start by identifying your ideal customer. Are they male or female? Young or old? What are their interests? Is location a factor?

After you’ve nailed down your audience, create ad campaigns that target these specific demographics.

Want to build better landing pages?

Download our Lead Generation Landing Page Optimization Checklist to learn what you need to include to maximize your conversion rate.

Build your lead generation landing page today

Need a lead generation landing page for your online business? Leadpages simplifies the web design process with over 200 landing page templates and a no-code Drag & Drop Builder. Simply choose your template, add your content, and publish your page in a day or less.

Try Leadpages free for 14 days and start generating leads today.

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