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When it comes to digital marketing, both landing pages and microsites play a pivotal role. However, marketers are often confused which they should invest in and which they shouldn’t. Here we’ll outline what landing pages and microsites are, what each best works for, and the instances when you have to select either to invest in a new landing page or a microsite.

Landing pages

The very first page that is displayed when you log into a website is the page you essentially, “land” on. Landing pages are the primary home page for the company’s website as a whole. They display key products/services from across categories. Also, you’ll find information like company values, mission, about us, staff details & CTA.

Microsites

Microsites are small sites that form part of the parent website. They are useful to companies that have a very large portfolio of products/services and want a standalone site. The key differentiator between the parent site and the microsite is the site URL. Although embedded in the company’s main website, microsites have a different URL. For example, TasteTheFeeling.Coca-Cola.com, is dedicated to the Taste The Feeling campaign.

Differences between landing pages and microsites

Criteria	Landing Page	Microsite
Purpose	To display the company’s entire range of offerings & take the visitor through the sales funnel. Landing pages offer the best opportunities to provide direct CTAs to customers.	To display a particular category of products/services, provide related information –both academic & promotional -and facilitate conversions for that category.
Development	Easier to make and inexpensive, since they are a part of the parent site. Plus, they can also be installed using only a plugin.	Time consuming & expensive to develop because they are essentially separate sites.
Engagement	Not very engaging because they provide limited information about company offerings.	Highly engaging because of extensive information about the product/service –acts as a one-stop information center for the offerings
Traffic generation & bounce rate	Not as great at generating organic traffic & lowering bounce rate as microsites, because of the expansive focus on all products/services.	Excellent at generating organic traffic & has lower bounce rate because of its focus on a single product/service.
Performance tracking & ROI	Very easy to track the performance of the landing page, as everything is available in one spot. This also makes it easier to calculate ROI.	Microsites can be confusing to some customers, and they might be overlooked. Additionally, microsites are detached from the parent site, making it difficult to track site performance and ROI.

Choosing between landing pages and microsites

So given the above, when should you choose landing pages and when should you choose microsites?

Choose landing pages if:

• You have a small portfolio of products/services. 
• You do not have a large budget for site development. 
• Your objective is to push prospects through the sales funnel by making a compelling argument for your brand and showcasing only main products/services. 
• Your prospects require hand-holding in decision making.

Choose microsites if:

• You have a very vast portfolio of products/services. 
• You have a large budget for site development.
• Your objective is to create brand awareness and stimulate brand engagement, with sales taking a back seat. 
• Your target market takes independent decisions and needs extensive information to aid in decision making.

At Reversed Out Creative, our Covington Kentucky web design company has extensive experience building both landing pages and microsites. We will certainly advise you on the solution that is right for you and build you the page/site of choice!

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