7 Landing Page Mistakes Killing Your Ad Conversions

We audit dozens of ad accounts every month. And the most common problem isn't the ads — it's where the ads send people. Here are the seven landing page mistakes we see killing conversions.

1. Sending Ad Traffic to Your Homepage

Your homepage is designed for everyone. Your ad is designed for a specific audience with a specific intent. When you send ad traffic to your homepage, you're asking visitors to figure out what to do next.

The fix: Create dedicated landing pages for each campaign. Match the headline to the ad copy. Match the offer to the audience. Every click should feel like a seamless continuation.

2. Too Many Choices

Every link, every navigation item, every sidebar widget is an opportunity for your visitor to leave without converting. Landing pages should have one goal and one CTA.

The fix:

• Remove the main navigation
• Remove the footer (or minimize it)
• Remove any links that don't lead to conversion
• One primary CTA, repeated 2-3 times on the page

3. Slow Load Times

A 1-second delay in load time can reduce conversions by 7%. Most landing pages we audit load in 4-6 seconds on mobile. That's unacceptable.

The fix:

• Compress all images (use WebP format)
• Lazy load below-the-fold content
• Minimize JavaScript
• Use a CDN
• Target: under 2 seconds on 4G mobile

4. Weak Above-the-Fold Content

You have about 5 seconds to convince a visitor to stay. If your above-the-fold content doesn't immediately communicate value, they're gone.

The checklist:

• Headline that matches the ad promise
• Subheadline that expands on the benefit
• Hero image or video that shows the product/result
• Primary CTA visible without scrolling
• Trust signal (rating, review count, or social proof)

5. No Social Proof

People trust other people more than they trust brands. If your landing page doesn't include social proof, you're relying entirely on your own claims.

Effective social proof types:

• Star ratings and review counts
• Customer testimonials with photos
• Brand logos ("As featured in...")
• Specific results ("10,000+ businesses use...")
• User-generated content

6. Forms That Ask Too Much

Every field you add to a form reduces conversion rate by approximately 4-5%. We've seen lead gen forms with 8+ fields. That's conversion suicide.

The hierarchy:

• 2 fields (name + email): Highest conversion rate
• 3-4 fields: Acceptable for qualified leads
• 5+ fields: Only if you're filtering for enterprise leads
• Phone number field: Drops conversions 25-30% unless it's optional

7. No Mobile Optimization

Over 70% of ad traffic is mobile. Yet most landing pages are designed on desktop and barely tested on mobile.

Mobile-specific fixes:

• CTAs should be thumb-friendly (minimum 48px height)
• Forms should use the right input types (email keyboard for email, number pad for phone)
• Text should be 16px minimum (no pinch-to-zoom)
• Critical content should be visible without scrolling on mobile

The Impact of Fixing These

When we redesign client landing pages addressing these issues:

• Average conversion rate improvement: 45%
• Cost per lead reduction: 30-40%
• Best case: 3x conversion rate (we've seen it multiple times)

The math is simple: if your landing page converts at 2% instead of 1%, your effective CPA is cut in half without spending a single extra dollar on ads.

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