At its most basic level, a marketing campaign has three elements: a delivery method, a landing page, and a confirmation (thank you) page. They work together to fulfill the campaign objective, usually to secure downloads or registrations.
Each element plays a role in the process. The delivery method captures attention and directs traffic to the landing page, the landing page provides some additional information on the offer and collects the required input from the user, and the thank you page confirms the information was received.
Of the three elements, the thank you page tends to be the most formulaic and least optimized. We’ll look at the thank you page in more detail and explain 4 ways to get more from your campaigns by optimizing thank you pages.
What is a Thank You Page?
A thank you page, or confirmation page, immediately follows the landing page in the campaign sequence. Typically, you’ll be automatically redirected to the thank you page after successfully completing the landing page form.
The main purpose of a thank you page is to confirm the receipt of information and set expectations for the fulfillment of the offer. For example, if the user completed a form to download a given white paper, the thank you page could direct users to an automated email sent to deliver the asset to their specified email address. Alternatively, the thank you page could contain a link directly to the white paper pdf.
Where do Thank You Pages go Wrong?
The problem with a lot of thank you pages is, they thank you – and that’s it.
It’s true, the duties of thank you page are simple. They can be accomplished without much space or effort. In most cases, a couple of lines of copy will get the job done.
The key is not to stop there. A couple of lines of copy aren’t going to fill up a webpage in any meaningful way. Use the available space.
Remember, users are getting pushed to the thank you page, like it or not. Everyone who completes a form will be sent to a thank you page. That means the users who are getting sent to the thank you page have at least shown enough interest to submit their information through a form.
It’s a wasted opportunity if all that’s waiting for this valuable, captive audience is a couple of generic sentences. The use of the additional space is what separates an effective thank you page from the rest. Let’s take a look at a few ways to get mileage from thank you pages.
1. Encourage Sharing
A thank you page is a great place put sharing buttons. Some users will take the opportunity to show off their knowledge by sharing their registration to a webinar or their download of an asset. Others use the buttons to pass your content along to those they think would also be interested. It’s a good idea to make sure your sharing is compatible with either approach. Include options for major social media sites, as well as email.
Whether users end up sharing to their networks or individuals, they’re helping you content to reach a broader audience. Sharing coming from outside your company also adds legitimacy to the content. If you’re accumulating some respectable share totals, sharing counters are a good way to do that same thing.
2. Double Up
You’ve just convinced the user to fill out your form. They’re interested and they’ve converted. They get redirected to the thank you page. What better place to build on this success?
The thank you page is a great place to offer up a complimentary asset or registration, particularly if you save the user’s information and avoid making them input the same things again. Not only does this get more of your content in the hands of the leads, but it incentivizes multiple submissions, which can help to move leads through nurture more quickly.
3. Show Off Your Other Content
Even if you don’t want to hit leads with another form, you can still use the extra space to show off your ungated content. A slider with a selection of your blog posts is an obvious choice, though videos, infographics, and SlideShares are also great options.
Though ungated content won’t help to gather additional information or progress nurture in the way that a form could, it can help to reinforce your thought leadership. It also provides a pathway to continue through the thank you page, rather than leaving it a dead end.
4. Direct the Reader to Key Web Pages
Every website has those pages that aren’t necessarily the most fun or trafficked, but play an important role in influencing the ultimate purchase decision. These pages might be things like the process page, the service pages, or case studies.
The thank you page can be used to highlight these key pages and drive qualified traffic to them. Because visits to these pages often have scoring values associated with them, this technique can also help to boost lead scores.
Let us know what you think:
- Would you consider your thank you pages effective?
- What do you do to make your thank you pages stand out?
- Are your thank you pages a source of additional conversions?
