Hey friends! Melissa Burkheimer here. I’m your host and as always, I’m grateful that you’re here. I’m back with a quick solo episode today to talk to you about one of my favorite things, and the main bread and butter to my business: sales page design.
I talk a lot about sales page design on this podcast and on Instagram, but after doing a connection call last week with a friend who works in the beauty industry, she had no idea what a sales page was.
And the last time I ran my free sales page beta course, one of the questions asked by one of the participants was “how do I use a sales page.”
So I thought it would be fun to get back to sales page basics here in this episode.
I’ve covered more about sales pages in episodes 55, 103, 106, 127 and more, so you can definitely check those out, too!
What is a sales page? (1:23)
A sales page is a long-form web page created with the intention of selling something. Another name for sales page you may have heard is landing page.
A sales page and landing page design terms can be used interchangeably. You could even throw opt-in page in there.
A landing page is terminology used to describe a website where the focus is getting the user to take action. The action could be opting in, booking a call, buying, applying, or anything your sales strategy determines it to be.
A sales page helps sell offers. A landing page / opt in page gets people to opt in, and that’s the sole purpose.
Your website is more of a tool to help people get to know you, with the same intention and strategy, but there’s a lot more options and directions you, as the user could take.
In episode 127, I get really specific with sales page navigation do’s and don’ts, so check that out if you want to learn what to do and what not to do!
My Experience with Sales Page Design (03:36)
I started investing in courses in late 2012 and 2013 to learn how to grow my business + serve clients online. All those courses were sold via a sales page, and I found myself fascinated with them.
By connecting with people inside those courses online, I landed my first sales page gig in late 2013. It changed my entire business. I ended up working behind-the-scenes for a ton of really well-known influencers (at the time there weren’t that many) on sales page design, launch management and more.
To date, my clients have collectively earned millions of dollars using my designs. They’ve also expanded their audience, customer list, team, and more. I still design sales pages for a very select amount of clients, and I’m doubling my rates next month for the first time in 6 years. So if you’ve wanted to work with me, but never made it happen, send me an email at design @ melissaburkheimer.com and let’s talk about it! You can book your project date via a deposit, still get my new rates and start when you’re ready.
I’m different then most designers, because I make sure the offer is clear, copy is written to convert, and the user experience is top-notch.
So please know that when I talk about sales page design, I’m not just teaching content I read in a book. I have legit experience designing them.
Do you need a sales page? (05:32)
That’s a question I get a lot. And while can’t answer for you, here’s what I tell my clients:
If you have a proven offer, meaning you’ve sold it again and again without really trying, you get referrals, and every time you sell the offer it gets better, maybe it’s time to create one.
If you have a very loyal audience who is excited to buy every thing you create, and you are creating a new offer, maybe yes.
If you launch + sell digital offers online, and you have a giant waitlist of people who want to buy your product. Maybe, yes.
If you’re a service provider, and you want to take your sales strategy to the next level, then maybe yes.
If you want to automate your digital sales strategy and give your potential customers the trust factor they’re looking for.
And make it easy for people to buy from you, then yes.
No, if you’re new to business, or your offer is very new. Save yourself the headache + time, because you could end up changing your mind about your offer.
Again, this is your call, not mine. If you’re not sure, you can DM me and we can talk about it.
How can I use my sales page to help make me money? (07:13)
That’s easy. You need to integrate the sales page as a part of your sales strategy.
And you need a clear offer.
And a way to promote, launch and sell your offer.
In the sales strategy, we have 4 phases. Nurture, free experience, offer, and sale. Or no sale.
I don’t believe in doing unethical things or using high-pressure sales tactics to close a sale. Chose what works for you, and then do that.
The sales page is a place to send people who are interested in learning more about your offer.
Once they’re on the sales page, they can take action. You determine the action as a part of your sales strategy.
The action could be booking a sales call, linking to a check out page, filling out an application, or signing up for an info session.
As the boss, you get to determine the sales strategy.
You’ll know if it’s working based on how many sales you get. Or don’t get.
From there, you remove what didn’t work, repeat what worked and felt good, and tweak what you can to improve your results.
Here’s a couple sales strategy ideas you can implement in your business – with or without a sales page. (08:27)
Example 1, will be my sales page service. Here’s how it normally goes.
First, someone is interested in working with me. Most of those clients come via referral, sometimes via social media. I always say thank you, first and foremost. When someone has a small interest in working with me, I’m always grateful and I physically feel that, even if they don’t work with me.
Second, I usually direct them to my sales page for sales page design. These days, I’m actually trying something new, and that’s having conversations about projects in Instagram DM’s. This is very new and I haven’t technically closed a client this way. I’m not looking to close clients this way. I’m hoping to build more of a connection before the sales call.
But this is the strategy. Here, the working sales page for my service really outlines all the details for the people like me who need the details. Some people don’t care, they just want the service done because they are busy.
If they’re interested, I direct them to the inquiry form at the bottom to my page. Then, we do a sales call. If they’re interested, I send a proposal, then a contract. Most of the time I have to curate the team, so it takes a minute to get the project details set. I’m adding the Insta DM convo to help nurture. In this case, my sales page is the thing that helps explain the benefits of my offer, shares my design work, and testimonials from who I work with. But, I also make myself accessible to answer questions.
You can decide if your sales process includes accessibility to you, or not.
Example number 2, is if you are launching a digital offer. It could be a course, group program, mastermind, or even a membership community.
What the offer is and how you want to close clients will be again up to you! You can offer a free masterclass, free challenge, or anything else to give people a taste of your awesome.
When it’s time to pitch the offer, you can send them directly to your sales page, or if it’s a new offer, come up with a PDF describing the offer.
From your sales page, you can give them a link to a check out page, or a link to an application (maybe for a mastermind or high-end coaching program) and even a sales call.
The last time I launched my mastermind for designers, almost 2 years ago my sales process was FB ads, free design masterclass, sales page, apply, book a call, and then decide if you want to join.
I had launched this offer twice before, so I knew it would convert. However, I didn’t have as many applications as previous launches, and my list was bigger. So, I changed the button text / on my sales page from “apply now” to “book a call.”
I increased conversions by 50% by changing one part of my sales strategy.
I could’ve given up. That would’ve been easy. Instead, I put myself in my potential clients’ shoes, and thought about what they would want.
How could I make this easier for them? Less intimidating? More inclusive?
The answer was easy. Removing a part of the process.
I might be relaunching this offer this summer for the first time in 2 years, too. So get on the waitlist if you’re interested at https://melissaburkheimer.com/director .
Remember, a sales page is a part of your sales strategy. You can sell with one. You can sell without one.
A sales page can definitely help you automate the sales process, show off a level of professionalism that you want to communicate to the world, and take your sales to the next level.
If you’re interested in learning more about sales pages, my brand new $37 course, Sales Page Superstar is available now. Sales Page Superstar is a digital course that teaches conversion design principles, how to write your sales page copy, design your page and produce blockbuster results without wanting to throw your laptop out the window.
I’ve beta tested this course with over 500 students, and they’re loving the content. It’s less than 2 hours, and you even get a sales page PSD (the same one I use to sell this course), two sales page copy templates, a process map and more.
Visit https://salespagesuperstar.com to see if it’s right for you! Have questions about your sales page? My Insta DM’s are open – just message me there @melissaburkheimer or send me an email at design@melissaburkheimer.com
That’s it for today. Thanks for listening + reading, and I’ll talk to you soon!
Links mentioned:
My Sales Page Design Sales Page
My Designer Mastermind Waitlist
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