• by Janet Driscoll Miller , October 4, 2011

On Saturday, Disney World and I both turned 40. So for the past few days, I've been vacationing down at Disney World, and I can't tell you how impressed I've been, as a marketer, at the company's ability to keep its brand strong with every type of interaction it has with customers. As I thought about it, I realized that there are some great lessons from the "Disney Way" that all of us could use in our landing pages to enhance our brands and conversion rates.

1. Experience must be equal to or greater than expectations. The thing that impresses me most about the "Disney Way" is that they strive to exceed your expectations. From the smallest detail to the greatest, they make sure that guests' experiences are memorable in a positive way. 

Similarly, with landing pages, you have to at least meet (if not exceed) an ad respondent's expectations. I always like to say that the most important rule of landing pages is that you must "keep the promise" you make on the search engine ad and carry that through to the landing page.  

2. Quality is job one. At Disney everything is about quality. From the food to the lodging , everything is topnotch. If it's not, it won't represent the brand well.

The same holds true for your landing pages. Make sure that your page, and your offer, are of high quality. When an ad respondent comes to your landing page, you have approximately eight seconds or less to make a lasting impression. If you do a poor job on messaging, layout, or the offer, visitors will abandon quickly without converting. Put TIME into your landing pages -- make them the best they can be.

3. Personalize the experience as much as possible.

I celebrated my birthday at Disney World.  I received a button with my name on it, and everywhere I went, "cast members" wished me a happy birthday -- by name. They went the extra mile to truly personalize my experience.

When an ad respondent comes to your landing page, you often know certain information about them off the bat, based on the search query. Use that information to your advantage. Disney knew it was my birthday because they asked me when I registered for my vacation. Then they did everything they could, knowing this information, to personalize my experience.

4. Always be testing (ABT). Just as salespeople have the mantra to "always be closing" (ABC), marketers should have the mantra to "always be testing" (ABT). Just today, on my way out of the Magic Kingdom, a "cast member" had me take a quick survey regarding, of all things, custodial services. At Disney, they don't want you to see the trash pickup. And while that may seem mundane, to Disney, it's an issue important enough to survey guests about. 

Your landing pages need constant research and testing, too. No matter how mundane a test might be, it may have a large affect on your conversion rate. Changes as simple as a button color, for instance, can have great effects on conversion.

5. Always exit the ride through the gift shop. At Disney World, most of the rides exit visitors through the gift shop (also true at Graceland, by the way). What better way to immediately capitalize on the experience? 

Perhaps you don't have to make the hard sell on your landing pages -- depending on your offer -- but definitely remind visitors of your value in addition to the offer itself. 

Just like Disney, you're a business. You've got to optimize your landing pages with user experience to improve conversion rates.