Building a high-quality email list is one of the most important things that a growing small business can do, and opt-in pages are the key to capturing those much-needed leads. By crafting the right offer and placing opt-in forms in the right locations, you’ll be able to transform your business’s web traffic into marketable contacts.

The better optimized your opt-in landing pages are, the more value you’ll receive from your hard-won web traffic. And the more effective you are at generating quality leads, the more your business will grow and the more sustainable your income will be.

Confused on what landing pages are? Stop right there, as we’ve got some resources for you:

• Get the basic definition of what landing pages are.
• Learn about the difference between landing pages and home pages.
• Hear about the basics of landing page design.

Okay, back to our regularly scheduled program…

Let’s consider the math behind opt-in pages.

Imagine you spend $200 to get 800 people to visit your opt-in page, which has a conversion rate of 15%. This means that 120 people join your email list and perhaps 10% of leads make a purchase worth $60. That’s an ROI of 3.6x. Increase your landing page conversion rate to 30% and you now get back more than 7x what you spent on ads.

If this sounds like a skill that’s worth your time to learn, then this is the article for you! In this article we’ll explore what an opt-in page is and why it’s important for your business. We’ll also investigate how to create landing pages and when to use landing pages. Next, we’ll highlight 11 of the top-performing (highest-converting) opt-in page examples and discuss what they do well and what they could do even better. And, finally, we’ll wrap up by answering your most pressing opt-in page questions so that your business can get on the road to more leads and conversions.

What is an opt-in page?

According to LibraryAware, “Opt-in pages, formerly referred to as subscribe pages, are webpages where patrons can “opt-in” to receive library communications, like newsletters or promotional emails that your library sends to specific interest groups,”

Opt-in pages are used by marketers to encourage prospects and customers to share personal data with them. An opt-in page typically requires a customer to fill out their name, email address, and other identifiers.

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Why are opt-in pages important?

Opt-in pages are important because they help your online business flourish. The traffic that arrives on your website or landing page is valuable. But you won’t be able to harness any of that value unless you capture key information about each visitor. Your opt-in page does just that—it offers a piece of content in exchange for their contact information. Once you have that address, you now have a qualified lead that you can market to. Scale that to all your web traffic and you can see why getting your traffic to opt-in is important.

What is the purpose of an opt-in page?

Opt-in pages are email sign up forms that allow visitors to sign-up (opt-in) to your email list or register for an online event. When a user submits the form, they are giving permission to the marketer to send marketing follow-up emails. This is the beginning of the journey, as you enter customers into the sales funnel.

Digital opt-in forms can be included in landing pages, web pages, and pop-ups.

What should be included on a landing page?

When it comes to high-converting landing pages and opt-in pages, it’s not always about what you include, but rather what you don’t include. High-converting landing pages and opt-in pages typically contain the following elements:

1. Benefit-driven headline or unique selling proposition (USP): The headline tells visitors why they’re on the page and it gives them a reason to continue reading. A headline should pique the curiosity of the visitor and make them instantly want what you’re offering. In most cases, the best way to spur emotion on your landing pages is by describing the customer’s pain point or pointing them towards a positive future vision.
2. Compelling description of the offer: Successful offers are easy to understand, tailored to a unique audience, and they can be expressed in both features and benefits. When it comes to lead generation landing pages, most businesses offer a piece of freebie content (known as a “lead magnet”) in exchange for the customer’s contact information.
3. Clear and consistent branding: Aim to create a cohesive customer experience that carries them through the first click on an ad to the final close of a thank-you page. Choose fonts that speak the language of your business, stick with your selected color palette, keep the design of your page simple, and don’t forget to include your business’s logo.
4. Submission form: A submission form is where your customer inserts their valuable contact information (name, email address, phone number, etc.).
5. Compelling visuals: The graphics and images you use should spark the emotion you want visitors to feel while also clearly communicating what your offering is. You want to design landing pages that elevate key content that needs to be communicated. Support the copy, as opposed to distracting from it. Images should also be sized so they load quickly but still look great on any device.
6. A single call to action (CTA): A strong call to action should compel a customer to take action: to give an email address, download an ebook, complete a purchase, etc. A call to action is usually a button where the visitor is directed to take that action. A strong CTA button should be specific, concise, and include high-contrast.
7. Supporting evidence and/or social proof: The best landing pages include testimonials or reviews from former clients or users. Testimonials provide social proof that can help reassure a visitor that what you’re selling is worth the opt-in or purchase.

Discover more essential landing page elements →

What is the difference between a landing page and a squeeze page?

What is a landing page? Landing pages are single webpages that are singularly focused on one goal (known as the point of conversion). This goal could be any number of different actions: sign up for a free trial, download an eBook, register for a webinar, etc. Get the guide to landing pages →

What is a squeeze page? Squeeze pagesare short-form, concise landing pages singularly focused on getting an email address (and perhaps a name or phone number). The squeeze page is designed to squeeeeeeeeeze an email address out of a website visitor. Squeeze pages, sometimes referred to as a lead capture page, are the most common types of landing pages. Learn the ins and outs of squeeze pages →

Opt-in pages are a kind of landing page or squeeze page with email sign-up as its primary objective.

What is the difference between an opt-in page and a landing page?

While opt-in pages and landing pages share a common goal, which is to collect as many leads as possible, there are a few differences between the two.

An opt-in page utilizes a lead magnet (otherwise known as a practical gift that users want to get for free) and typically displays the fill-in fields for personal information above the fold. An opt-in page is also used to convert visitors into leads.

Landing pages are designed to sell products, so typically they are longer and contain more details and images.

Opt-in page examples

In this section, we’ll break down 11 of the top-performing (highest-converting) opt-in page examples that we’ve come across. We’ll also highlight what each opt-in page does well and what it could do to be even more successful.