Security Startup Challenge

Luxembourg, July 7-11

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 Landing Pages
Create a landing page that your users or
customers will understand and love

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Landing Pages
Website can be your most important sales tool. And you can start Data from Cisco:
it with just a landing page. Show landing page to your users or - 50 milliseconds for a new visitor to
form an opinion about the website
customers to explain your product idea and get their feedback. - 2.6 seconds to decide if a site is
Understand the state of mind of your target audience. You work good or bad
- 10 seconds to decide whether to
with the way your users or customers think, so consider what do stay or leave.
they do, what they think about. After that, come up with the list - if they stay 30 seconds, they will
of ideas to motivate your audience to take action on the website. most likely continue to click.
It can be better speed, reliability, privacy, ease of use, etc. Users visit a website for a specific
reason
As you address your audience – hook them with a catchy phrase. - 61% leave if they find the site too
This should be clear enough that they get it within 5 sec. This in complicated
turn will prompt them to read the page for 30 sec and after that - 75% of visitors use search to find
what they are looking for Andreas
you have 2 min of their time to get them to do something. RAMOS

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Landing Pages
We’ll explain the rules to you to create a catchy phrase We will explain to you how to improve the
and motivation texts for your landing page. You’ll landing page as you keep collecting feedback
learn the framework which will help you make them from your target audience.
useful, specific and appealing to your target audience. Then you can start testing it online, do
The different ideas you’ll apply to motivate your advertising campaigns, collect user sign-ups,
audience will be designed in different colors, subject get sales and leads to flow up with.
lines, calls to actions, images (hero shots). For consumers, it is enough to have email and
You never know which page is better before you test name of your user or customer; for businesses,
it. So start with a single landing page. Once you’ve you need to know more - at least their
company name and phone number to contact
done one page, you’ll be able to create several landing them.
pages to test which one works the best.
In order to organize these data, you need to
When you have finished your landing page, show it to decide if your leads are low or high level in the
your users or customers to explain your product idea company; and whether they are in the business
and get their feedback. There is often a large gap or the technical sector of the company. After
between what you thought your users were going to that, you might have to take it to the next level
see on the landing page and what they really saw. and call them up for follow up to find out if
they are really interested in trying out your
Ask them: What do you see? What would you do this product or working with you.
page? What do you think should be done differently?
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Landing Page Action Plan

We’ll now explain each step in detail to you...

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Identify the state of mind
Online you look at the way your users have in mind as a group. You work with What are your
your target audience, i.e. a bunch of individual users whom you don’t know. users looking
Therefore, understand what they do and what they have in mind when they for?
come to your landing page: What do they
- What are they looking for? have in mind
- What are they thinking about? when they
- What are they doing? Are they searching for something in Google? Or just come to your
hanging out on FB or Pinterest? Or reading a technical article in a blog? website?
You can pinpoint what they are doing by looking at the online channels where
your users or customers will see the link to your website and click on it:
- it can be an ad on Google
- or post on Facebook,
- you can place a link in a technical article.

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Identify the state of mind
How do you find these potential users? There are tools like
Google Adwords traffic estimator and Google keyword planner
to help you find out who is googling keywords about your
product. You can also use search on Facebook or Linkedin to
find groups and pages related to your topic. You can create a list
of bloggers who write about similar products.
Put yourself in the shoes of your potential users or customers.
So as a user, what websites do you visit? What do you look at
on Facebook, LinkedIn or Twitter? What do you google? What
blogs do you read?
The key is that you are not working with a defined individual,
but you are looking at the way s/he is thinking and what s/he is
doing online at the moment. Work at getting a good impression
of what attracts your user, what s/he likes and wants to do.

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Come up with motivators
As long as you understand what your users
have in mind, you can come up with a list of
ideas to motivate them to take action on
your website: buy your product, leave an
email for a follow-up, sign-up for your
product, service or newsletter.
If you are selling computers, for example,
your users can be motivated to take action
by giving them better speed, reliability,
better price, convenience and/or exclusivity.
Sometimes these actions come from a user
impulse, so appeal to your user’s emotions
and desires, not only his/her logic.

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Create a catchy phrase
A catchy phrase is a one-liner that is clear and But, ultimately, everything you
interesting enough that your users understand it show your users online consists
within 5 seconds. If you had just ten words to explain of one-liners you will have
why people should buy from your company instead of adapted to what your audience
from another, what would you tell them?
is thinking or looking for.
A clear and interesting one-liner will prompt your user
to stay on the page for another 30 seconds and after To keep testing the message
that you have 2 minutes to get him/her to do with your target audience, you
something. will need to keep making more
Keep them hooked, continue using this one- one-liners to be used on your
liner throughout the whole process to keep the banners, landing pages, online
narrative. For example, your user clicks on your ad in ads, headlines in your blog posts
Google, then comes to your landing page, leaves you and emails and other places
an email and gets a follow-up email - repeat this one- online.
liner continuously at each step of your user’s session.

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Example:

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4U framework for catchy phrase
To create a catchy phrase, there is the 4U framework to help you make the one-liner
useful, specific and appealing to your target audience - see the 4U framework on right.
Now use your list of motivators to create your catchy phrase, your one-liners.
The 4U framework will help you narrow down longer sentences to that one specific catchy
phrase that will work everywhere: users will click on your ad on Google, buy your product,
leave an email for a follow-up, sign-up for your product, service or newsletter.

4U Framework = Usefulness, Ultra-Specificity, Urgency, Uniqueness

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4U framework: Usefulness
What is the value of your product or service to your potential users. How much do they really
want what you are offering?
What is the value they are getting in exchange for taking action? If they leave you an email, or click
on your ad on Google - explain what you offer them, what they will get in exchange.
For example, you want your users to give you their email, therefore you give them a white paper
in exchange. For every action you want a visitor to take, your visitors have to see that what they
will get as a result of doing something, it’s worth more than what they have to do to get it.
Often, startups will make the mistake of just putting up buttons like “Sign up now”, “Start now”
and so on; these don’t work since they are about nothing, they promise nothing, they are just
demanding without promising a result.
So instead write something like: “Get this report and learn about recent market trends”, “Try it for
free for 29 days”, etc

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4U framework: Ultra-specificity
As your show the benefit to your users, make your A sample one-liner in a Google Ad:
message very specific, for example, by adding Business Software Suite
numbers. #1 OnDemand. 6459+ World Clients
Award Winning Solution. Free Trial
How believable are your claims? Give testimonials and [Link]
well-known customer names [give the full names, not Ultra-Specificity:
just initials], show how many users and customers you 1. The series of tests reveals that the phrase "Business
have. Let someone do your “bragging” for you. Software" is more specific than "Business Solution”

Your users need to know exactly what they are 2. "#1 OnDemand" makes the exclusive claim that this
business software is the most used platform in the
getting. Add details and numbers to explain the value. world
Only tell the (verifiable) truth. 3. "6459+ world clients" supports this claim of
Substitute general descriptions with specific facts exclusivity in regards to the number of users.
(qualitative vs quantitative). 4. There is a quantifiable reason to click inside the ad
text. The use of quantitative language makes the
claims more credible.

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4U framework: Ultra-specificity
Don’t put question marks in headlines, Example of what doesn't work:
your users are looking for answers.
Quest Data Services
Your users have questions - give them Customized data center for
answers. medium to large business
[Link]
But this example does:
Next-Gen Data Center
100% uptime, SAS 70 Audited
Greenfield Data Center. Tour Online
[Link]

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4U framework: Ultra-specificity

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4U framework: Urgency & Uniqueness
Urgency: Looking at the example on the next page, you Apply the 4U rule to your ad messages,
show the users they can make $4,500 following this landing pages, email subject lines and other
investment tip. Then you tell the users why they have to marketing materials; however you don’t
always need all 4 elements, 2 or 3 points of
click to get the “benefit” which will go away if they wait. the 4U are often enough.
This benefit could be an exclusive or a limited-time offer.
But, you do need to explain the Usefulness
Uniqueness: You need to tell your users why your offer is every time and always give some Ultra-
unique. Is your offer (or a better one) available Specific details.
elsewhere - because your ideal customer will think: Why Startups we worked with and who applied
should I buy from you rather than from your competitor? this 4U rule, easily doubled the number of
users taking action on their landing pages.
Your customers need to see that if they don’t take action
with you, they can’t find a better deal anywhere else.

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4U framework: Catchy Phrase
Examples of brainstorming a catchy phrase ending with the one-liner that works. Here
is a possible progression:
Motivator: The hottest investment tip in town
Usefulness: Make thousands by following one investment tip
Ultra-specificity: Make an extra $4,500 by following one investment tip
Urgency: Wake up tomorrow with an extra $4,500 by following one investment tip
Uniqueness: Buy this little-known stock and wake up tomorrow with an extra $4,500

Use the last one-liner, because it has all four components of 4U in it.

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Pick a template
What landing pages inspire you the most? Choose the best and use them as
templates for your landing page.
Make sure nothing distracts your user from doing something on your landing page.
For example, don’t put up a graphic that will distract your users from taking action.
Use everyday language on your landing page to make it easy to read, don’t use big
words or jargon.
Your subject line should be written in sentence form, you are not lecturing but
having a conversation with your users.
As in PPT presentations - one idea per slide - on your landing page just have one
value proposition. The more choices you offer, the lower your conversion rate will be.

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Pick a template: Template 1
Here is a simple landing page template that you can start with:
1. Create a subject line / header for your landing page. You should have several one-liners by now, so
choose one that fits and limit it to 40 to 50 letters.
2. After creating a subject line, put together the motivation text to help users take action. It a short
paragraph which consists of three sentences:
- In the first sentence, repeat your subject line with additional numbers and details.
- In the second sentence, reinforce the value and explain why your users need to take action.
- In the third sentence, tell users where they need to go and what they need to do.
Right below this motivation text, place a visible button with call to action. In this call to action, you need
to repeat your main idea of the third sentence.
Repeat your message with a picture - hero shot - and add it to your landing page.

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Pick a template: Template 2
Here is an example of another landing page template:
1. Subject line / header - 45 letters, up to 3 lines
2. Problem - 40 letters, up to 3 lines
3. Solution - 50 letters, up to 3 lines
4. Call to action - 35 letters
5. Visible button
Ensure your users you are not going to sell their email
or any other information. Give them your contact
information and enough company details to establish
trust.

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Test your landing page
Decide to whom you will show your landing page: Get insights:
- does it make sense to show it at meetups? We tested a website that
- to people you meet at the conferences and networking events? wanted to promote
- at a coffee shop? horoscopes. As a logo,
they made a beautiful
- to your friends and co-workers? rendition of a black cat
You shouldn’t try to explain your landing page - you want to see how and as a results women
visiting the page wanted
people react without you guiding them. Therefore, when you show your to know where they
landing page and ask three questions (the sequence is important!): could buy a cat instead
of asking about their
1. What do you see on this page? horoscopes.
2. What will you do on this page?
3. What is wrong on this landing page or what doesn’t make sense?

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Test your LP: 3 questions
1. What do you see? 2. What will you do? 3. What is wrong on this landing
page or what doesn’t make sense?
Then: listen. Let Sometimes people will not be
people tell you what able to find a call to action, or If you listened well, your customers
they see on your do something you want them will give you the best ideas for your
landing page, you will to do? Why? Even if they headlines, motivation texts and
often be astonished at understand and see the page calls to action (CTAs).
what they come up correctly, irrelevant graphic The best landing pages use
with. elements on your page could customer language, and explain
distract your users from why what you offer is important
taking action. from the customer’s perspective.

So let your users or customers help you write your headlines and make your landing page.

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Test your LP: “go outside the building”
Print your page to paper test it. If you want to test your landing page online, and you can publish your
page within 2 days - make sure that you install software from Google
Ask the three questions and collect or Clicktale, or any other software, that helps you with mouse
comments on your landing page from at movement recordings.
least 10 or 15 user or customers. It should
not take you more than 1 or 2 days. Watch at least 15 recordings of your users to understand how they
see your landing page and what they do with it.
Mark the places on the page, words and
graphic elements that users don’t By actually seeing how your customers are using your landing page,
understand. If your users suggest an you will be able to analyze and improve it.
alternative headline or call to action - write
it down, you can use it later.
Collect the feedback and see if there is According to Clicktale:“Mouse movement recordings allow you to
something on the page that most of your optimize your landing page by watching visitors’ mouse movements
users did not understand. step by step. This is one of the best tools for understanding user
iPad works too :) experience—almost like looking your visitors over the shoulder.”

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Module 1: Summary
1. Landing Pages Intro & Action Plan
2. Identify the state of mind
3. Come up with motivators
4. 4U Framework: Create a Catchy Phrase
5. Pick a template
6. Test your LP

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Resources
AIDA: Attention, Interest, Desire, Action Converting PPC Traffic
[Link] [Link]
AIDA is an acronym used in marketing and advertising that describes ppc-traffic-how-one-search-campaign-produced-a-302-
a common list of events that may occur when a consumer engages increase-in-profit-meclabs
with an advertisement. Using a system like this gives one a general How one search campaign produced a 302% increase in
understanding of how to target a market effectively. Moving from profit, MECLABS
step to step, one loses some percent of prospects.
Other links:
4U: Usefulness, Ultra-Specificity, Urgency, Uniqueness
[Link] Online marketing advice:
great-headlines-copy/, [Link] [Link] [Link]
method-to-double-your-ad-response/
Tips on landing page optimization:
Michael Masterson developed 4U. It can help you to quickly come up [Link]
with the most powerful one-liner to engage your customers and optimization-killer-tips-for-nailing-conversion-rates/
increase sales of your products and services

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