I found myself trying to scroll down as well, and when I realized I couldn't, the second wave of animations snapped my attention back to the top, and I said "well, let's see what this is about".
I think walkthroughs like that one rely on the "aha" moment. Once they had my attention, it was an impressive, easy to follow, informative mini-tour. It's getting that buy-in that's tough.
While I imagine it turns many people off, I also assume that those people have low interest in what the page is about.
So in that way, there's a sort of upfront filtration, where the people who aren't very interested get turned off, but the people who are watching intently get a better-than-usual payoff.
I'd really like to see the research that went into the page. Stripe's design team is on point, so my guess is that they did their homework.
I am all for http://contrastrebellion.com/
The connect landing page did a poor job of explaining what it was or did. It named dropped some things it hoped I would recognized, had a fancy graphic that kinda lags on firefox, and I couldn't figure out what kind of problem it solved.
It's sort of about letting people transfer money to other people, with me sitting in the middle somehow? I have no doubt it exists for a reason, but a reason I can not ferret out.
OsX Chrome 42
The Mac Pro landing page is another example, a lot of people think it's amazing, but I've seen videos of that where it just doesn't work for some people - something weird is going on here as it's clear the designers + front end people aren't seeing such problems with parallax, so why are others, and is it rare or more common than expected?
The other two don't support mobile (at least in FF or Chrome; firewatch is bugged) which is an unfortunate oversight by now.
Honestly, because we're an app company rather than an e-commerce or SaaS company, a lot of the effort we put into these pages is largely for the benefit of the press (who often research apps on desktop). The vast majority of end users discover our apps through the App Stores themselves, so we put even more effort into our icon, screenshots, app preview, description, keywords etc.
As for conversion rates, sadly Apple hasn't opened up any analytics to developers for their actual App Store product pages (even though they announced they would a year ago at WWDC), so what users are doing when browsing the actual stores is largely a black box - we have no idea how many people view our app store previews or screenshots etc. or even where they came from (many deep-linking schemes we've looked at are pretty brittle or don't work at all).
Conversion rates on the website landing pages are pretty good - there's not much else to do on those pages than download the app, and chances are you came there with that goal.
Honestly, if you're reacting to the video showing iOS 6 I think you're probably focusing on the wrong thing.
It was really just to put something in on the domain root. Only a couple people actually use paste.click, and it was written just for my own use initially, but people asked wtf it was every time I linked to something on it so it got a "landing page". I didn't put all too much thought into it, but after I pushed it live I realized that it's everything I want in a landing page.
It describes what it is, has some examples, and that's about it. No marketing speak or buzzwords. Now, obviously its not a product or anything, and I don't intend to market it or care about who uses it, which gives me some leeway, plus there's not all too much to say about it, but I wish more landing pages had a similar feel.
The yaml homepage is pretty much my ideal website, (though I'd prefer a dark theme, but Im picky) never visited that directly before, I'm a fan. :)
With that said, the service is also killer, if you're interested, I wrote some shorthands (aliases/functions) that you (or any user of the service) might have for, check it out: https://coderwall.com/p/l-7kqg/dead-simple-pastbin-service-f...
I have a a very similar function in my .zshrc ( http://paste.click/s/bGGcnq ) rolled into a single function, though xsel is probably less portable/supported than pbcopy now that I think about it. The last two examples I have bound to Super + S and Super + V, but unfortunately there's no portable and simple way to do that, so I left the config for it out. ( For awesome wm if anyone is curious http://paste.click/s/xydBVJ )
http://bellroy.com/slim-your-wallet/
http://www.fiftythree.com/pencil/
Stuff I use or have used:
http://mailchimp.com/features/
I realize that I'm likeliest to signup for something if somebody I trust tells me that it's worth a shot, and/or if it's really easy to get started and tinker around.
I have to scroll/click to get any information other than a generic, marketing heavy one-sentence description, while most of the space on my screen is wasted.
Something off the top of my head for comparison: http://www.ultravps.eu/en/
From this page, I know immediately what they're offering, for how much, why choose them, who they are, how to reach them AND they still have room for fancy images and useless marketing stuff (testimonials). And I didn't even have to scroll or click anything.
(Yeah, I don't remember the article outlining that it did. But I remember that it did. Magic started off as a kind of hack or whatever.)
It's cool seeing the initial sketches and the other variants of the page they had considered.
...more links but less "plasticy".
Also:
In general, when I arrive on a landing page, I'm thinking:
* What does your product do?
* Why would I want to get it?
* How do I get it?
Sometimes, I already know the answers to one or more of those questions when I arrive. In the case of Apple's Macbook Pro page (http://www.apple.com/mac-pro/) I already know the answers to all three questions, so it's about generating desire when I look at it. In the case of Stripe, I want to know why I would use it over Paypal or building my own Gateway. In the case of http://www.getjustlanded.com/, I need all of the answers when hitting the landing page (and it does a good job of answering them).
After I'd done this exercise, I realised that all our marketing content needs reworking. So what started out as a landing page redesign has transformed into a giant playbook on how do we convert clients needing XYZ job done?, incorporating everything from cold sales emails to online demos.
Great read. And your landing pages look sublime.
Disclosure - I created and own this site. But it's worth listing here because I know that it performs extremely well (conversions typically above 50%).
I'm obsessed with simplicity the design is really the natural conclusion of minimalism, i.e. virtually no design, nothing superfluous and a simple CTA.
The words are simple, but the choice to include the risky language is not 'simple', in that it's risky/innovative/uncomfortable/attention-grabbing (depending on viewer's perception). I guess a good word is 'unusual'.
I recall that just before I published the site, I decided to change the CTA from the boring placeholder I had to something more playful and human. It was the first thing that came to mind It just seemed like a fun idea. It worked so I kept it.
Reading your comment, I'm tempted to try something more conventional but it's too easy to be skewed by responding to a single data point. It's edgy so it's bound to be polarising (I've also received positive feedback on the very same text).
I might run a split-test to get some data on it.
I admire the boldness and as a Linguistics major I can confirm the craziness of the word, re: standing out, is way more valuable than any imagined revulsion that I may be assuming.
Best of luck.
Totally agree. And early data says you might be right.
I set up a split test on Optimizely with 2 more variations and both beat the control:
Control SEX UP MY INBOX 35% CTR
Variation 1 DISCOVER NEWSLETTERS 61% CTR
Variation 2 GET STARTED 58% CTR
Variation 1 is winning so far (74% lift, 79% significance). I'll keep it running because right now it's skewed toward HN traffic, and we're a weird bunch here - we seem to behave differently to everybody else
Anyway, thanks again for the feedback. Looks like you're onto something.
(Though they all seem be very similar stylistically. Clearly a selection bias on part of the site owners.)
Super simple, super clean.
It also has a few fancy animated svg illustrations and a well-done effect when you hover over the main cta.
This is a fairly common layout, but when it's all set in Roboto - Google's primary body font that they developed for the branding purposes - it starts to look like an "over-influence". Except Google's version is more refined and doesn't assume everyone has a 24" monitor.
I especially love their mobile responsiveness and have modeled our own after them:
Web developers, no matter what platform you like, ALWAYS test your thin fonts on as many platforms as possible and make sure it is easy to read.
It's great for FB but would be horrible for just about any other product or service.
When I look at that, I think "Worst landing page ever...what the hell does it do, why should I bother, and how do I get it?" But then, if I have to ask those questions...I've probably missed the point, and SnapChat would be useless to me. The whole point is for it to spread virally, so a landing page is pointless.
Best LP I've ever designed, 67% conversion rate.
Maybe you should have some explanation here. I just saw the action buttons and went clicking. When I came to the end I have no idea what anything is.
Also, as someone mentioned. It seems like a super niche thing.
This guy has tons of really great UI break downs of popular sites as well as great tips and checklists for your own use
So far we we seem to getting many more newsletter signups with a simple one line message as opposed to a full list of features and benefits. Although results are also dependent on the source of traffic.
You seem to be asking for something but not explaining why I or your users should Give you the data you want.
If this page is getting lots of signups...I would guess many of them are signing up because they want answers to those questions...but might have no interest in converting into users... I would be wary of opt ins that come looking for something unspecififed because many will immediately be disappointed when they don't find the answers on the other side of the opt in form.
Your use of space here is peculiar to me. Traditionally your eye tracks to upper-left, where you have your logo, but there is nothing else there. Your eyes trace right and down from it, and there is just nothing else to look at. The next thing my eye catches is the social buttons top-right. Good design leads your eye to your CTA.
You're giving as much space to some stock-photography hand as you are to the screenshot of your app. I get the "right hand man" metaphor but users don't care how clever you are.
The primary call to action is actually below the fold on my 15" macbook pro. You could walk away from that site thinking the social links were the point of the page given their prominence.
Your headline "a car guys right hand man" doesn't actually tell me what your product is. Few people will want to join a "beta program". You specifically ask for help but you're really making clear what the value prop is aside from "shaping the community" which is not something most users will care about.
Finally, I would encourage you to put in the sweat equity to gather enough data to make the product usable. People aren't going to come in and do all that work for you, they will open the app, search for the car they're interested in, and never come back if it's not there. So you could do something like have all the data for recent model years, or specific makes, etc. Gathering that data is a schlep and THAT is your value proposition.
You make a good point about where the page leads the users eyes. I think moving the social links to below the call to action and raising the rest of the page up and to the left would help bring the CTA more in focus. Based on our tests we'll also be replacing the extra text with a simple message "A car guy's right hand man. Look up the technical data you need to work any vehicle right on your phone or tablet."
The product will definitely have enough data to be usable when we start releasing it. However, it's impossible for a small team to gather every technical data point for every year, make and model ever which is where the community comes in. The landing page should probably state that more clearly, or maybe just leave the community aspect out completely since it's not relevant before launching.
An article, 4 nouns and an adjective. This isn't parseable without 3 or 4 passes. The idea is spot on, it's short and simple, but improve the English to make a reader's life easier. You have seconds to let someone know what you do and this is wasting time.
> Torque Specs > Fluid Capacities > Body Dimensions > Tow Ratings > Maintenance Schedule
Ruby, Python, Javascript... You told other commenter's here that this list is meaningful to people in the know. It's not, there is no context. Why are you listing these words?
> We're building a community of comprehensive, accurate vehicle data. And we need your help gathering info about the cars and trucks you work on. Technicians and DIYers, join the beta program to get first access to the app and help shape the community.
Now I know what you want, but not really why. What is in it for me? This will presumably take me time and effort to use, what do I get out of it. Don't tell me it is obvious, again if I substitute tech terms for auto terms I still have at best a vague sense of what I am getting myself in to. Paint a picture.
Try again
Sure, it might be interesting and eventually pleasing to look at, but in the end it is like obsessing about the manufacturer of a specific Coin-Slot-Component of an Arcade-Machine.
And that means it only makes you happy, if happiness is the sound that coins make in your purse. And that is a quite boring and limited outlook on happiness in my opinion.
And the thing is, the most harmful thing about it is it will never be complete, never be good enough. You'll look at something neat and you'll want to copy it, you'll want to change your layout and at the end of the day that's just a huge waste of time.
I struggle with it and It's a really bad thing.
I made this one: http://nappee.com/
I'd be happy to ask you a feedback.
You nailed it.
Really nice catch.
If the average app-maker did landing pages like this, conversion rates would be appalling.
Have tried to make them as clear as possible but it's harder than I first thought.
I wouldn't sign up to into.technology unseen. If the landing page previewed the current issue e.g. list of topics, and the selection demonstrated excellent curation then I might.
I would bounce from pleasant very quickly because its unclear what differentiates it in the crowded metrics space. My lazy assumption would be that its a bit player not worth investigating, better to stick to the market leaders.
Does Pleasant have any unique strengths you can make its primary focus? For example, the box "People, not IP addresses" intrigues me. I have worked with sites that may only have 5 users but they are the whole business and paying enterprise figures for the service. If your niche was "analytics for when you serve VIPs not crowds" or something, it would get me quite excited and I'd immediately be thinking of cases where this might be a better fit than the alternatives.
I'm going to go through all of the copy and trim it down a bit, you're not the first to say that there's a bit too much. Thanks for saying that it communicates integrity, etc - I'm trying to build a good company (products made with care, giving money to charity, pricing fairly and helping other businesses, etc), so that's really great to hear.
> If the landing page previewed the current issue e.g. list of topics, and the selection demonstrated excellent curation then I might.
Good idea, I'll add a link to the latest issue on the homepage of into.technology.
> Does Pleasant have any unique strengths you can make its primary focus?
Pleasant is a tricky one, it took me a while to try and describe even to myself why it's different (really not a good start when building a business, I know). There are two main features. The first is the simplicity. I'm aiming to get people using Pleasant as little as possible: you login, you immediately see statistics relative to previous days/weeks/months and can get an idea as to whether things are trending up or down. If you need more info, there are more in depth pages, auto-generated user reports, etc. I've found that even Google Analytics is very complicated - I'm hoping there's a demand for a simple, cheap analytics service.
The other feature is the user identification. You can add a few meta tags / form attributes onto your site and users that have identified themselves (i.e. logged in, signed up for a newsletter, etc) will show up in your analytics, along with their gravatar, etc. I think I need to emphasise this feature a bit more.
> If your niche was "analytics for when you serve VIPs not crowds" or something...
Interesting idea. I'm currently targeting regular people, small business owners, etc - people who don't need the power of a full on analytics service. But you might be right that this could be worth investigating. I'll give that some thought.
http://pleasant.io/ I like that it explains everything I need to know. As a business owner I really do not like "hipsters" pages which provide very little useful information. However, maybe you need to add more prominent "why?" - "Simple, straight-forward" is little too vague. Panic for Prompt 2 gives examples: "Restart your server from a coffee shop. Fix a web page from the back of a car. " Or something like "How we're different...". Look stripe landing page: they clearly explain why.
It is not "text heavy" but you should increase font size and clearly emphasize your competitive advantage (why part).
I'd say it feels a little like a mobile-on-desktop kind of thing. Did you maybe do mobile-first and not follow through completely? A side-by-side graphic and/or intro with a CTA might feel more natural on the desktop.
Putting the graphic alongside what you have now might even be enough to make it feel right; something like this (I'm not a designer!): http://i.imgur.com/HJMrEsU.png
Yep, you guessed it -- it's kind of a mobile-on-desktop bootstrap sort of thing. (The app itself is responsive as well, even moves the toolbar to bottom of screen.)
I think the side-by-side graphic and intro w/ CTA is a great idea. It could even separate into a single column on mobile. and huge thanks for taking the time!! (it's an awesome idea. are you sure you're not a designer?!)
Keen to get more feedback / critique or ideas we could A/B test.
https://www.apple.com/ca/imac-with-retina/
did it for me. It really gets the point of the extra resolution across in a dramatic way.
I know its kind of mainstream (and not sucking up to YC) but I just love it and always use it as an onboarding example.
We'd love any feedback on ways to improve it.
Humbly, info@demoit.io
Aesthetically, it's not that great. The big checklist is generally a bit ugly (especially the roll-overs), the hero image just doesn't work on any level for me, and the pricing panel looks like it used to have some siblings at different price points (like everyone else has, for better or for worse) but has now sadly become an only child. Also, the video should really be a video, rather than just audio.
If you get some traction and start making a few bucks, hire a good designer to take this to the next level.
We've been dog fooding it and finding it really useful, but we just launched and are still working on getting the word out.
We'll see what incremental changes we can make until we can bring on a top notch designer. Thanks again!
- try to make your case above the fold: "zip, click, demoed!" and picture does not convey any information.
- fix some "beautifications" issues (checks are ugly, etc.)
- make it "bare": that will also convey how easy your product is
- add demo
Consider making a custom one for mobile. After zooming out it still convinced me, but it may turn some people off.
Btw, I know it's not a trivial thing to do, and what you have is great. Just would like to have even more people see it :P
The page also is not responsive.
Why in particular do you like this landing page?
Suppose you just got on an elevator with some guy in an expensive suit with a Rolex watch. Just to be polite he says "What do you do?"
You've got until he gets off the elevator to score funding for your company.
I've come up with effective elevator pitches in the past but not having such luck with what I'm working on now. :-(
If you do have at least an attempt at one, use it for your landing page's meta description as well as the first paragraph after your title element. For the whole thing to show up in the search engines it must be 160 characters or less.
Seems like the main USP is that you get notified of price changes of products in which you are interested, but this is hidden behind scrolling and waiting. I only bothered to wait because I visited through here.
Personally, I would add something like "Add products to your Amazon wishlist. We'll tell you when the price changes." underneath "Superpowered wishlists for Amazon".
Screenshot:
http://i.imgur.com/8CpS67L.png
Latest stable Chrome @ OSX.