How to turn your 404 page into a basic internet marketing landing page
Ever think about how to spruce up your 404 page? How about not just sprucing it up, but also turning into a sales tool? Your 404 page can be one of the most highly viewed pages on your website. Whether it’s your error, or an error by the using typing in incorrect URLs, you 404 page isn’t hidden by any means.
Here are some tips for making a best-practice 404 “landing” page:
First of all, make sure that your 404 page directs users to your search forum. It’s very common for a 404 landing page to say something like, “Didn’t find what you’re looking for? Use our search box”. Often times, it will also have links to popular articles, just to make sure the user does take a next step rather than leaving the site.
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Second, the 404 page should promote your most broadly themed product. For Mequoda, our 404 page promotes the Mequoda Summit because it’s the most relevant product to anyone who visits the site.
You can also use it to get people to sign up for a free product and get on your email list. If you’ve recently re-launched a website, you might have a lot of people coming in from Google and landing on 404 pages. This is a fine chance to convert a visitor into a subscriber.
Finally, just make sure when you’re transforming the 404 page into a lead-generation machine, that you don’t confuse the visitor. When they land, they should know that they hit an error page. That point should be front and center.
Then you should make a point to navigate them to what they were looking for. You can do this with the search box. Finally, you can use an add to convert those website visitors. Designing in a different order will cause visitors to become confused and angry.
