How to become a thought leader in your industry? Create a network of thoughtful people, and build a side-project out of insightful resources. Take Slite. 3 chapters, 10K+ char/chapter. And a Product Hunt launch.
First, a table to quickly highlight the main differences between Ghost and Medium. Then, it breaks down the Medium user experience, and showcases the main features of Ghost with many testimonials. More importantly, CTAs are softly suggested.
There are 1000 ways to write a great title. I'm going to focus on three.
Explain what you do
When your product is unique all you have to do is explain what you do as simply as possible.
Hooks
Most products aren't unique. So a hook adds oomph. The easiest way to write hooks is to address your customer's biggest objection.
Own your niche
Some startups transcend hooks. Another pattern is to own your niche in one line. Write with conviction. You're THE solution.
02. Subtitle
Subtitles are where you get specific. Introduce the product. Explain exactly how it creates the value in your title. Keep it brief.
03. Visual
Show off your product in all its glory. The goal is to get as close to reality as possible.
Don't show fancy illustrations. Show your product. Or even better, your product in action.
fmfmerianMake your visuals appealing—modern, clear, and pretty. And Keep plenty of negative (empty) space to make copy and visuals pop.
04. Social Proof
Social proof (above the fold) adds instant credibility to the value you're promising.
Take Privy for example. Any startup can write “How small brands sell more online”. But it's their “18,000+ reviews” that make you believe it.
05. CTA
Your CTA makes taking the next step easy. Most buttons emphasize action: Sign Up, Start Trial etc. Here's three more compelling CTA types.
Call to value
Buttons which emphasize “value” over “action” usually perform better. The trick is to fulfill the value your title promises.
fmfmerianIt's a sequel of the magic teased in the header copy. It feels natural to click it because it helps the visitor continue the narrative we kicked off.
Objection handle
Add a few words to your CTA to handle the user's biggest objection to clicking.
Email capture + CTA
Pair email capture with your CTA to make signing up as easy as possible. This doesn't mean sacrificing customer info. You can collect it during the onboarding.
fmfmerian Sometimes, the best CTA is to keep scrolling. Then have a CTA focused on converting further down the page. Or cut the ATF section short so visitors must scroll to see the rest.
Above The Fold: Recap
fmfmerian The ATF section starts a narrative. In five seconds, your customers try to establish whether or not you can help them. Make their life easy. Clarity over creativity.
The first thing you do below the fold is to make concrete the value you promise above the fold.
The second thing you do is handle your customer's biggest objections. This means talking to customers.
Group together reoccurring objections. Use their own words to handle them.
fmfmerian Tap into real experiences. B2B SaaS marketers often want to bury the bad stuff. Focus on the pain points to create better connections.
07. More social proof
Above the fold social proof is about credibility. Below the fold social proof is about inspiring action. It's a free pass to sell your product.
Use existing customers to bring to life the value you promise.
"Get a smile you love” = Customers smiling
“Email reinvented” = Customers describing the difference
“How small brands sell more” = Sales numbers
fmfmerian If you don't have any customer testimonials, write one and find an existing customer that matches. Actually go to them and ask if they’re willing to write a similar testimonial or stand behind this one, tweaking it to however it applies to them.
08. FAQ
There's going to be features and objections you want to mention that don't fit in neatly above. This is where your FAQ comes in.
Write them down. Reframe into questions and answers.
fmfmerian You can also feature your most high-converting blog posts.
09. 2nd CTA
We've done the hard selling. It's time for our 2nd CTA.
This time we've got the luxury of space. So instead of dropping one measly button remind the customer why they're clicking.
fmfmerian Many SaaS companies miss the opportunity to educate or provide added value to prospects. Showcase resources in a lead magnet CTA—free usable template and toolkit, or reports.
10. Founder's note
Finally, you leave the customer with a story that makes you easy to sum up.
Put yourself in their shoes
Explain their problem
Take ownership of it
Show the happy ending
You're walking them down a path they'll want to walk themselves. Oh, and people buy from people.
Your landing page is your sales pitch. Never forget this. Examine each element and ask:
Would this help me sell if I met the customer in person?
If not, remove it. If you don't know go out and sell to customers in person.
You'll learn that fancy words and random images of people shaking hands don't get you far. More importantly, you'll learn the attitude of your customer and the words you need to convince them.