How to create a high converting landing page as a beginner

Why Landing Pages Matter for South African Businesses

A well-designed landing page can transform how you capture leads and drive sales. Unlike a general website, a landing page has one clear goal: convert visitors into customers or leads. For South African small businesses competing for attention online, a focused landing page often outperforms a cluttered homepage.

Whether you're promoting a service, launching a product, or collecting email signups, a landing page gives you a dedicated space to communicate your value proposition clearly. This guide walks through creating an effective landing page, even if you've never built one before.

Start with a Clear Goal

Before designing anything, define what you want visitors to do. Your goal determines every element on the page.

Common Landing Page Goals

Typical goals include:

• Collect email addresses for a newsletter or lead magnet
• Generate service enquiries or consultation bookings
• Drive product sales or trial signups
• Promote a specific offer or campaign

A Cape Town marketing agency might create a landing page to promote a free website audit. Their goal is clear: collect contact information in exchange for the audit. Every element—headline, copy, form—supports this single objective.

Write a Compelling Headline

Your headline is the first thing visitors see. It must immediately communicate value and relevance.

Headline Best Practices

Effective headlines:

• Address a specific problem or desire
• Promise a clear benefit
• Use simple, direct language
• Create curiosity without being vague

Instead of "Welcome to Our Services," try "Get Your Free Website Audit and Discover Why Visitors Aren't Converting." The second headline is specific, benefit-focused, and addresses a real problem.

Support with a Subheadline

Your subheadline expands on the headline, providing context or additional value. A Johannesburg accounting firm might use: "Headline: Simplify Your VAT Submissions" with subheadline: "Join 200+ South African businesses using our automated SARS-compliant invoicing system."

Focus on Benefits, Not Features

Visitors care about what your product or service does for them, not what it is.

Translate Features into Benefits

Instead of listing features, explain outcomes. A feature like "Cloud-based accounting software" becomes a benefit: "Access your financial data anywhere, even during load shedding." This speaks directly to South African business challenges.

Use bullet points to highlight key benefits. Keep them concise and focused on customer outcomes: "Save 10 hours per week on admin tasks" or "Reduce invoice processing errors by 90%."

Include Social Proof

People trust other people more than marketing copy. Social proof builds credibility and reduces hesitation.

Types of Social Proof

Include:

• Customer testimonials: Real quotes from satisfied customers with names and businesses
• Case studies: Brief success stories showing results
• Numbers: "Join 500+ South African businesses" or "R2 million in invoices processed monthly"
• Logos: Display logos of well-known clients or partners

A Durban web design agency might feature: "We've helped 150+ local businesses increase online enquiries by an average of 40%." This specific, local statistic is more powerful than generic claims.

Design a Clear Call-to-Action

Your call-to-action (CTA) button is where conversion happens. Make it impossible to miss.

CTA Best Practices

Effective CTAs:

• Use action-oriented text: "Get Started," "Book Your Free Consultation," "Download Now"
• Create urgency or scarcity when appropriate: "Limited Spots Available" or "Offer Ends Friday"
• Use contrasting colours that stand out from the page
• Place above the fold (visible without scrolling) and repeat throughout the page

Test different CTA text. "Get Your Free Audit" might perform better than "Contact Us" because it's more specific and benefit-focused.

Keep Forms Simple

If your landing page includes a form, minimise friction. Every additional field reduces conversion rates.

Form Optimization

Ask only for essential information:

• For lead magnets: Name and email are usually enough
• For service enquiries: Add phone number if you need to call
• Avoid asking for company size, budget, or other details upfront

You can collect additional information later, after they've engaged. A simple form reduces hesitation and increases submissions.

Optimize for Mobile

Many South African users browse on mobile devices. Your landing page must work perfectly on smartphones.

Mobile Considerations

Ensure:

• Text is readable without zooming
• Buttons are large enough to tap easily
• Forms are easy to complete on small screens
• Page loads quickly on slower connections

Test your landing page on actual mobile devices, not just desktop browsers. What looks good on a large screen might be unusable on a phone.

Test and Iterate

Your first landing page won't be perfect. Use data to improve it.

Key Metrics to Track

Monitor:

• Conversion rate: Percentage of visitors who complete your goal
• Bounce rate: Visitors who leave without interacting
• Time on page: How long visitors stay
• Form abandonment: Visitors who start but don't complete forms

Use tools like Google Analytics to track these metrics. If your conversion rate is below 2-3%, test changes: different headlines, CTA colours, or form lengths.

Tools for Building Landing Pages

You don't need coding skills to create effective landing pages.

Beginner-Friendly Options

Consider:

• Unbounce or Leadpages: Dedicated landing page builders with templates
• WordPress with Elementor: Visual page builder for WordPress sites
• Webflow: More design control, still no coding required
• Simple HTML/CSS: If you want complete control and have basic skills

Start with templates and customise them. Most platforms offer South African business examples you can adapt.

Conclusion

Creating a high-converting landing page doesn't require advanced design skills or large budgets. Focus on clarity: a clear goal, compelling headline, benefit-focused copy, strong social proof, and a simple conversion path.

Start with a basic version, launch it, and use data to improve. Test different headlines, CTAs, and layouts. The landing page that converts best is often the simplest one that clearly communicates value and makes it easy for visitors to take action.