7 Essential Elements of Great Landing Page Design

Are you looking for a great way to generate buzz prior to launch? How about to market an already launched app?Either way, you'll want a dedicated page to show the world what your app can do: Your landing page.Your landing page will be where you send your traffic, and will often form a user's first impression of your app -- getting it right is important.But what does "getting it right" mean? What defines a successful landing page over a not-so-successful one?We've narrowed it down to seven elements; follow these rules and you'll build yourself a great landing page from which you can showcase your app.

1. Prominent Name and Logo

First and foremost, your landing page should be building public awareness for your app. Prominently featuring your name and logo is a must.There is no point convincing someone of your app's awesomeness only for them not to have a clue what you're called or how to find you. This is especially true if you haven't launched yet; if your name isn't instantly recognisable, people will skip over you, even if they loved your idea.Make sure your landing page features your name and logo clearly, and definitely above the fold.You'll see this on the majority of landing pages but, if you want an example, take a look at the Statnut landing page.

2. Short, Unambiguous Headline

Internet users have notoriously short attention spans. You need to grab a visitor's attention in the quickest time possible, or they will just click away.This is the job of your headline: To tell people what your app does in just a few words.The key to a good landing page headline is clarity.You might think your pun is clever, but ultimately you're asking people to think; thinking takes time and effort, and this is something many people won't give you -- not straight away at least!Keep your headline bold and your message simple, as seen in the Trello landing page. Trello is a project management tool, and the headline Organize Everything, Together tells you everything you need to know in just three words.Is your headline this clear?

3. Clear Call to Action

All landing pages need a call to action; there's no point getting a visitor excited about your app, then not taking advantage of the fact.Your call to action should be clear, persuasive and make it as easy as possible for your audience to take your desired action.If your app is already live, that means downloading your app.If your app hasn't launched, that means signing up to your mailing list for future updates.Plus, we could all use some extra exposure, so why not throw in a few social media sharing buttons, too?A good example is POP. The two big buttons make it simple for visitors to download the app on their desired platform, plus there's the social media share buttons below the icon.

For a yet-to-launch landing page, Magikstra gets the CTAs spot on; a concise field for email updates, and social media share buttons that are easy to spot.

Notice how in both examples the social media buttons are positioned less prominently than the email signup or the download buttons?You need to keep your CTAs from conflicting or they'll be less effective; if a download/subscription is worth more to you than a social share, make that the priority.And a final point on CTAs: Make sure you have at least one above the fold -- you don't want to lose users who can't figure out what they should do next.

4. Keep It Concise

Your headline gives readers the jist of what your app does; once you've grabbed their attention, it's time to reel them in.The best advice is to keep things concise above the fold: Too much text is intimidating.The deeper in a visitor gets, the more detailed the information is -- use this as a rule of thumb.It's still worth keeping your descriptions short -- bullet points work great -- but if a user isn't instantly convinced, it is time to start selling the individual features and benefits of your app.Keep in mind your target demographic when judging what level of detail to provide; a finance app aimed at professionals will require a more thorough explanation of its features than a children's game where you shoot pissed off birds at pigs.The Stripe landing page is a great example of this in action: A one sentence explanation of what the app is for above the fold. Further down, beyond the call to action, you'll see three icons, each honing in on a specific feature or benefit. Below each of these are links, which further explain the app's capabilities by whisking you away to dedicated pages -- deeper in, more detailed information.

5. Integrate Video

In my opinion, a landing page without a video is missing a trick; many visitors won't be prepared to read through even the most concise information but they will sit and watch a video.Take advantage of this or you limit your app's reach.Your video doesn't have to be sophisticated; just a short introduction to what your app does, its features, and its benefits to users.If you can make it entertaining, all the better for you -- videos are quick to watch, easy to consume and infinitely more sharable, giving your app extra exposure.To see what a well-integrated video looks like, check out the Groopic landing page. The video is a textbook example of what you want your video to look like, too.

Even though the benefits of using video are enormous, some people still decide against it; use a screenshot of your app at the very least.

6. Incorporate Strong Branding

If you want people to remember you come launch date, you'd better make sure you're landing page is memorable.Unless you're Facebook, you'll struggle to get away with just a plain blue background. It's too boring -- instantly forgettable.Of course, an awesome idea for your app will play a big part in how memorable you are, but strong branding reinforces who you are and what you do.The key to branding is consistency: colours, fonts, design elements. Throw in a striking photo, and you can create something very distinct. Very you.A drawing app might make use of lots of sketches and bright colours, but this wouldn't fit the brand image of a finance app -- they'd be looking for bold colours and fonts that scream professionalism and authority.If you have a colour that you want to associate with your app -- much like Twitter and Facebook -- make sure this colour is dominant on your landing page. A good example of this is the Sound Asleep app, which makes use of the bold pink colour.

Another great example is the Bikn landing page.The bright colours are eye-catching and feel playful -- appealing to children (more likely to lose things) -- but everything is so co-ordinated that it still feels professional -- essential for a security gadget.

7. Lots of White Space

With six points to follow already, you might be wondering how you can cram so much into one landing page!But cramming isn't what you should be going for.A simple design with lots of white space will always work best as a landing page -- if you have too much going on your page will look cluttered, and each individual element will be less effective.A good example of this is the Weathertron landing page. It makes use of everything we've covered so far, yet still feels clean. It has several distinct sections, and this allows Weathertron to space things out, rather than making it too "noisy" by throwing everything above the fold.

Wrapping Up

If you want an effective landing page, the more of these rules you follow, the better you'll do.What are your experiences with landing pages? Are there any elements we're missing? Let us know in the comments section!Want to find a great theme to build your app landing page? Check out our guide to the best WordPress themes for the job here.