2006 Resolution: Test Long Copy to Increase Landing Page Conversion Rate

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2006 Resolution: Test Long Copy to Increase Landing Page Conversion Rate

Posted in Landing Page Optimization	January 17, 2006

Permalink: http://daily.mequoda.com/i//landing_page_optimization/Increase_Landing_Page_Conversion_Rate_84-1.html

After years of using light copy landing pages to sell subscriptions, one health newsletter publisher increases his landing page conversion rate by 31 percent with a long copy sales letter landing page.

Executive Summary

A well-done long copy landing page will beat short copy four out of five times.
When you increase landing page conversion rates, the increase in response rate may also allow you to expand your new subscriber acquisition programs.
Great sales letter landing page copy also makes great sales letter email copy.

I love getting emails like this:

Dear Don:

Just wanted to let you know that the landing page you and your team created for me increased our landing page conversion rate by 31 percent for our PPC (pay-per-click) program. As you know, I was not convinced that your approach would work with our newsletter, but decided to test it after reading review after review in your Creating Landing Pages That Sell about the power of long copy.

I thought you'd also like to know that we've leveraged the increase in landing page conversion rates to more than double the number of PPC orders we generated last month. The higher conversion rate allows us to bid to a higher position and to expand the number of keywords that we can buy.

Thanks again,

John Jakes
Editor & Publisher
Health Secrets of the Rich & Famous

If you've still got a short copy landing page for your newsletter, book or magazine, maybe 2006 is the time to test a long copy sales letter to increase your landing page conversion rates.

Download our 8 Master Landing Page Templates special report for free and learn the concepts, tips, tricks and techniques that will increase your landing page conversion rates by 30 to 50 percent. Download the report for free!

Bonus: A long copy sales letter landing page can easily be adapted to create an outbound email that can be mailed to your house file, email newsletter subscribers and email partner lists to generate more revenue on the same creative.

Editor's Note
Over the next 12 weeks we'll be adding a chapter a week to the Creating Landing Pages That Sell Best Practices Section to expand on the 12 Mequoda Landing Page Scorecard Guidelines we introduced last summer. A note of thanks to Mequoda Editor-At-Large Peter A. Schaible, my writing partner on these 12 chapters, and to Peter, Bob Bly, John Clausen and Peter J. Fogel who have contributed 25 in-depth Mequoda Landing Page Reviews over the past six months to make the book a reality.

Mequoda Library Members Only: For in-depth reporting on Landing Pages visit the Creating Landing Pages That Sell Table of Contents page at the Mequoda Library, or check out these related reports:

Mequoda Sales Letter Landing Page Scorecard, by Don Nicholas with John Clausen, Peter A. Schaible and Robert W. Bly
PrayerPower.com Landing Page Review , by Robert W. Bly
America's Test Kitchen Landing Page Review, by Robert W. Bly
Baby-Model.com Landing Page Review , by Peter A. Schaible
BottomLineSecrets.com's The Complete Encyclopedia of Natural Healing Landing Page Review, by Peter J. Fogel

Note: The details of the case have been modified to protect the identity of the publisher and program. If you've got a case study you'd like to share, send me an email. Your privacy is my top concern. - Don Nicholas

COMMENTS

Hi Don,

Good article. I agree with the long copy approach, so long as the copy stays on point. The more you tell, the more you sell!

Or has one of my early mentors likes to say, "It can never be too long, it can only be too boring!"

-- Peter

Comment by: Peter S | January 18, 2006

The debate about longer copy versus shorter copy has been going on longer than the debate about whether the post office should use the thin or fat Elvis on their stamp.

As a high response copywriter I've found that long copy will bring you a stronger ROI for the most part, than shorter copy. The higher the ticketed item -- the more longer copy you'll have to use to make your suspect, into a prospect, and then into a customer.

If you're selling a $500 real estate course... I GUARANTEE you, you will NOT sell that item in a 2 page letter. (or short sales letter on a landing page) I don't care how well you think you know your customer.

Even if you have a strong subscriber base with your ezine -- you'll still have to convince your subscriber/customer to buy a $37 item (unless you overwhelm them with LOTS of FREEBIES) with long copy. Yes, use the 2 step method and use a short e-mail tease to get them to the BIG KAHUNA long copy though!

PROVE IT TO ME... NOW!

People are skeptical today. They want proof they're bombarded with offers all day... WHY should they give you their money!?

Comment continued...

Comment by: Peter F | January 19, 2006

Can you effectively use short copy? YES, in lead generation. That's to get your prospect to raise their hand and tell you that they're interested in learning more about your widget!

Will the prospect read long copy? YES! If you keep them interested in what you're selling and that's not telling them so much about your features--- but the benefits of your product (or service) How it can solve THEIR problem! No one cares about a hammer... they care about the hole it will put in their wall!

Long copy with puffery is a waste of real estate on the page... only when you get to the "third degree" of copy as I call it... get to that level of really understanding what keeps your prospect up at night ... when you've overcome every-imaginable-obstacle they have and showed them 100% how their life will improved, should you end your copy. Not a word or line more.

The only way to see how your long copy is pulling is to TEST (only one variable at a time. i.e. offer, headline, freemiums etc.)

Remember: Long copy should not read like long copy... it should capture the hearts and minds of your prop sects so it take them on a journey up to the call of action where CHA-CHING... they open up their wallets and give you their moolah!

And if you've read this far in this posting... then the defense rests! Long copy works just fine, thank you. Peter Fogel www.peterfogel.com

Comment by: Peter F | January 19, 2006

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