How To Design A Website Landing Page (The Right Way)
Landing pages are digital first impressions. They’re the make-or-break moment where visitors decide whether to stick around or bounce.
A well-designed landing page can turn casual browsers into loyal customers, while a poorly designed one sends them running straight to your competitors.
- Launching a product?
- Capturing leads?
- Promoting a service?
If yes, then you need to design a masterpiece of a landing page.
This guide will walk you through everything you need to know about designing a website landing page that converts.
What Is a Website Landing Page?
A website landing page is a standalone web page created for a single, focused purpose. Unlike your homepage (which offers multiple pathways), a landing page has one goal: to drive a specific action.
That action could be signing up for a newsletter, downloading a resource, purchasing a product, or booking a consultation.
Landing pages are often the destination for paid ads, email campaigns, or social media promotions. They’re designed to convert visitors by removing distractions and guiding them to a single clear call to action (CTA).
The Purpose of a Website Landing Page
Landing pages serve different purposes depending on your goals:
Lead Generation: Capture email addresses or contact details in exchange for something valuable (like an ebook or webinar).
Product Sales: Showcase a product or service and encourage immediate purchases.
Event Sign-Ups: Promote webinars, workshops, or events and drive registrations.
App Downloads: Convince visitors to download your mobile app.
No matter the purpose, the key is singular focus. Every element on the page should support one action.
How To Design a Website Landing Page
Ready to design a landing page that actually works? Follow these steps.
1. Start With a Clear Objective
Before touching any design tools, define your goal.
What do you want visitors to do?
Be specific.
“Get more leads” is vague. “Capture 100 email sign-ups for our new ebook” is actionable.
Your objective shapes every design decision, from the headline to the CTA button colour.
2. Craft a Compelling Headline
Your headline is the first thing visitors see, and it needs to grab attention instantly.
According to research from the Nielsen Norman Group, people spend about 57% of their viewing time above the fold, so your headline must communicate value immediately.
Keep it clear, concise, and benefit-driven. Instead of “Welcome to Our Product,” try “Double Your Sales in 30 Days.”
3. Prioritise Content Above the Fold
The “fold” is the portion of the page visible without scrolling.
Content above the fold is critical because it determines whether visitors stay or leave.
Place your most important content here:
- Headline and subheadline: Communicate your value proposition.
- Hero image or video: Use visuals that support your message.
- Primary CTA: Make it impossible to miss.
Research from Google shows that as page load time increases from 1 second to 3 seconds, the bounce rate increases by 32%.
Ensure your above-the-fold content loads quickly by optimising images and avoiding heavy scripts.
4. Use a Strong, Singular Call-to-Action
Your CTA is the heart of your website landing page design.
Make it stand out with contrasting colours, bold text, and action-oriented language. Instead of generic phrases like “Submit” or “Learn More,” use specific, compelling CTAs like “Get My Free Trial” or “Download Now.”
Only have one primary CTA. Multiple CTAs create confusion and reduce conversions.
If you need secondary actions (like “Watch a Demo”), make them visually less prominent.
5. Design for Mobile First
More than half of web traffic comes from mobile devices. If your landing page doesn’t work flawlessly on smartphones and tablets, you’re losing conversions before visitors even see your offer.
Start your website design process with mobile layouts in mind.
This means that you should ensure buttons are thumb-friendly, text is readable without zooming, and forms are simple to complete on small screens.
6. Keep Forms Short and Simple
If your landing page includes a form, keep it as short as possible.
Every additional field you ask users to complete reduces conversion rates. Ask only for information you absolutely need.
Use clear labels, provide helpful error messages, and consider autofill-friendly field names to speed up form completion.
7. Build Trust With Social Proof
People trust other people more than they trust your marketing copy.
Include testimonials, reviews, case studies, or logos of well-known clients to build credibility.
Place social proof near your CTA to reinforce confidence right before visitors take action.
8. Test, Measure, and Refine
Your first designed version won’t be perfect, and that’s okay.
Use A/B testing to experiment with different headlines, CTAs, images, and layouts. Track metrics like conversion rate, bounce rate, and time on page to understand what’s working.
Small tweaks can lead to significant improvements.
The Landing Page Design Tool We Use
When it comes to creating high-converting landing pages, having the right tools makes all the difference.
At Starbright, we use Figma for our website landing page design projects (and for good reason).
Why Figma?
Figma is a collaborative design platform that lets us create, prototype, and refine landing pages in real time. Unlike traditional design software, Figma is cloud-based, which means our team can work together, whether we’re in the same office or working remotely.
Here’s why Figma is our go-to tool for website design:
- Real-Time Collaboration: Multiple team members can work on the same file simultaneously. This speeds up the design process and ensures everyone stays aligned.
- Prototyping and Testing: Figma lets you create interactive prototypes so you can see exactly how your landing page will function before development begins.
- Responsive Design: Figma’s Auto Layout feature makes it easy to design landing pages that adapt beautifully across different screen sizes, a critical feature for mobile-first design.
- Design Systems and Reusability: We can build reusable components and design systems in Figma to ensure consistency across your landing page and the rest of your website.
- Feedback and Iteration: Clients and team members can leave comments directly on designs, enabling faster, more precise feedback.
Starbright | Professional Web Design Services
You know the theory. Now, let’s talk execution.
At Starbright, we’ve been designing high-performing websites for over 20 years. From custom web design to strategic redesigns, we create sites that don’t just look good. They convert.
Web design services we offer:
Custom Web Design: Bespoke, brand-first websites built from the ground up.
Website Redesign: Overhaul your outdated site with fresh layouts and smarter performance.
Targeted Web Pages: Landing pages, product showcases, and niche pages designed to grab attention and drive action.
Our web design services in Pretoria, Cape Town, and across South Africa are trusted by businesses of all sizes.
Ready to create a landing page that actually works?