What’s the difference between a landing page and home page?
Well, nothing really… a page on your website is a page on your website and what makes a page effect (i.e. makes you money) is going to be nearly the same on every single page.
But that’s the boring answer. And you aren’t here for boring. You googled this because you are interested in learning exactly what the difference is and how you can best implement either, or both!
So let’s dive deep into what is different between a landing page and your home page.
Let’s actually start with your home page…
Your home page. A first-look into your company.
When someone lands on your home page, they should instantly know three things about you - what do you sell, how will it make their life better, how do they buy it. A home page will be the overarching concept of your website. It’ll tell people if you are a clothing store, a janitorial store, a sports store, etc.
When someone visits your home page they should immediately know what your company does.
Interacting with your home page
Function: If you only sell one thing (e.g. a service) your home page will function as a sales page for that one thing. If you sell multiple things (e.g. physical products) your home page will act as a hub to direct people to products that interest them most.
Content: Your home page will generally include a menu bar, navigation links, and often a featured area showcasing key content, products, or services.
Audience focus: Your home page, while specific to your audience (e.g. athletes) won’t drill down to selling to a hyper specific audience (e.g. snowboarders). Unless of course, all you sell is snowboard equipment. to a broad audience, offering a snapshot of the entire website's offerings.
Your home page content
Clear articulation of what you do: Your home page will focus entirely on the big problem you solve and how you make your customer’s life better.
Branding: It’s of course important for people to know who’s website they are on, so you’ll include your logo, visuals that represent your company, and tagline when appropriate.
The visitors to your home page
Various Pathways: A home page visitor can come from anywhere at any time. Social media, reference from a friend, a link in an email. This is why we want the home page to be broadly focused on an audience, yet incredibly clear about what you provide.
Strategic call-to-action
Direct and actionable: The Call to action on your home page needs to always direct people to the best way to do business with you. It might be “schedule a call” or it might be “shop now.” But it should rarely, if ever, be passive, like “learn more” or “about us.” Your home page still needs to make you money!
Ongoing Updates
Dynamic and fluid: The home page of your website may shift as your company shifts. Maybe it’s updated seasonally, maybe you are niching down to a more specific audience. Whatever it may be, make sure your home page always speaks directly to the audience you are trying to reach.
Your landing page. One purpose, one focus.
The entire intent of a landing page is for someone to take action on one specific thing. It might be purchasing a book, or signing up for a webinar, or receiving a free download. The primary measurement of effectiveness of any landing page is the conversion rate of the primary call to action.
One clear purpose
Convert, convert, convert: I’ve already said it, but the primary goal of a landing page is conversion. Other examples are signing up for a newsletter or simply filling out a form. Whatever the thing is, the landing page must convert.
(Sometimes) Aligned with Campaigns: Landing pages are often the primary place a potential customer lands (yup) when they visit your website from an ad, or any other marketing campaign materials. This ensures that when someone sees a message that piques their interest, their focus stays on that item when they visit your website.
Minimal Distractions
Cut down on extra elements: Unlike a home page, a landing page minimizes distractions. Any links, menus, products or services that don’t point people toward converting are removed. Once again, focus on the conversion goal.
Intentional Content
Message Consistency: The content on a landing page is written entirely to match the messaging of the specific campaign that brought the visitor there. Or simply match the problems your customer is dealing with and the specific solution you provide to solve that problem.
Limited Scope: Am I beating a dead horse? Yes, because it’s important. Everything, and I mean everything, on your landing page needs to point to the product, service, or offer you are trying to get the visitors to take action on. Conversion is everything.
Specific Call-to-Actions
Action-Oriented: Calls-to-action on a landing page are always specific and always drive the intended conversion, such as "Sign Up Now" or "Get Your Free Trial."
Data Collection
Lead Generation: Landing pages often include forms or ways to collect visitor information? Why? So you can send them to future landing pages so you can provide more value to them! This gives you the opportunity to nurture the relationship in hopes one day they’ll do business with you.
Home Page vs. Landing Page
Intent and Focus:
Home Page: The home page is designed to provide a top-level view of your company, and so people know the problems you solve and how their life is better when they do business with you.
Landing Page: The landing page is focused on a singular objective, aiming to convert visitors who generally arrive through a specific marketing campaign.
Audience Engagement:
Home Page: Speaks to a wide audience about the big problems you solve.
Landing Page: Speaks to a small audience about the specific problem a specific offer solves.
Navigation Elements:
Home Page: May includes a variety of navigation elements, such as menus, links, and possibly a featured area.
Landing Page: Minimizes distractions and unnecessary navigation, often focusing on a single conversion goal.
Call-to-Actions:
Home Page: A direct call to action letting people know how to do business with you.
Landing Page: A direct call to action aligned with the conversion objective.
Design and Layout:
Home Page: Has a more comprehensive design, to be able to handle more content and navigation options.
Landing Page: Tends to have a simple design guiding the visitor toward the conversion point.
Dynamic vs. Static:
Home Page: Can be dynamic, allowing for ongoing updates and changes.
Landing Page: Often remains static during the duration of a specific campaign, maintaining consistency for visitors arriving through that campaign.
How your landing page and home page work together
Even though they each serve a different purpose, your landing page and home page can still very much work together to provide visitors with an excellent experience on your website. You can do this with some basic user interaction principles.
Consistent branding:
Whether a person is on your landing page or your home page, they should always know it’s yours. Keep visuals, colors, and the general “feel” of your pages the same.
Smooth navigation:
While you want to be sure visitors to your landing page convert, you also want it to be clear how they interact with different parts of your website. Allow them to easily jump to your home page, then back to the landing page if needed.
Clear messaging:
Even though the messages may be different for the audiences, you want to make sure you are always talking about the bigger story your customer is going through, and how you can be a part of that story.
Conversion Tracking:
This one is obviously for you… You want to be sure you know where people drop off from your website. Seeing where people convert and where they bounce will enable you to make your website much more effective.
Responsive Design:
I’m currently seeing well over 50% of traffic to every site I build from mobile devices. We live in a mobile world, so make sure your site is ready for whatever screen size someone visits from.
Testing and Iteration:
A/B testing can shed light on what best resonates with your visitors. Don’t be afraid to tweak things, just make sure you have the tools in place to measure their effectiveness.
Your website as a whole
So there you have it, the differences between a landing page and a home page. While your home page can be a landing page, you’ll also want to make sure you have additional landing pages on your website to direct visitors to take action on specific offers.
What other questions do you have about landing pages or home pages?
