Page Types

Every page type has a different job, a different audience temperature, and a different structural requirement. Writing a homepage like a landing page wastes the reader's existing context. Writing a landing page like a homepage dilutes the single action it needs to drive. The copy structure must match the page's purpose.

Three page types cover 90% of product marketing: the homepage, the landing page, and the pricing page. Each one has required sections, a recommended framework, and specific failure modes.

Homepage: serve your highest-value segment

A homepage establishes what a product is and who it's for. Unlike a landing page, it has to serve multiple visitor segments simultaneously. The trap: trying to write for everyone. The result: copy that resonates with no one.

"Acme is the all-in-one workspace for teams" could describe forty competitors. The fix: pick the highest-value segment and write the homepage for them. Other segments get served through navigation and targeted sub-pages.

Choose the segment that matters most right now. For early-stage products, the segment that pays. For late-stage products, the segment most likely to retain. "Sales managers at 20-to-50-person SaaS companies" is a homepage audience. "Anyone who manages a team" is not.

Required sections

| Section | Job | |---|---| | Hero | Headline + subhead + primary CTA. Lead with the user's Why. | | Social proof | 3 to 5 logos or one credibility stat. Above the fold. | | Problem | Show you understand their day. Specific, not abstract. | | Solution | 3 to 5 outcomes. One per benefit; not a feature list. | | How it works | 3 to 4 steps. Process clarity reduces anxiety. | | Testimonials | Specific outcomes beat generic praise. | | Final CTA | Restate the value prop. Repeat the primary CTA. |

Recommended framework

Why/How/What almost always. The reader knows nothing yet; lead with Why. StoryBrand works if the brand is mature enough for a strong narrative.

Avoid AIDA on a homepage. It's a cold-traffic structure that assumes the reader needs interrupting. Homepage visitors arrived intentionally; they don't need an attention grab.

The hero is the whole page in miniature

The reader who only reads the hero, and most of them will, should leave with the right idea. A homepage that requires scrolling to make sense has lost most of its visitors before section two.

Landing page: message-match the traffic source

A landing page is a single-purpose page that drives one action from one traffic source. It lives or dies by message match: the headline must mirror the promise that brought the reader here.

If the ad said "Cut your AWS bill in half" and the landing page opens with "Welcome to CloudSave," you've already lost the click. The reader assumes they clicked the wrong link and bounces within three seconds.

• Ad copy: Cut your AWS bill in half.
• Landing-page hero: Cut your AWS bill in half, without changing your stack.

The reader recognises the promise, lowers their guard, and reads on.

Framework by traffic temperature

| Traffic | Definition | Framework | |---|---|---| | Cold | Display ads, paid search, no context | AIDA | | Problem-aware | Knows the pain, ad named it | PAS | | Solution-aware | Comparing alternatives | StoryBrand or differentiation copy |

Required sections

| Section | Job | |---|---| | Hero | Headline (message match) + subhead + primary CTA | | Social proof | 3 to 5 logos or one credibility stat above the fold | | Problem / Pain | Show you understand their world. Specific, not generic. | | Solution / Benefits | 3 to 5 outcomes, one per benefit | | How it works | 3 to 4 scannable steps | | Testimonials | Specific outcomes beat "X is great" | | Final CTA | Restate value prop, repeat the CTA |

One CTA, repeated

A landing page is not a homepage. It has one job. Use the same primary CTA at the top, the middle, and the bottom. Don't introduce alternatives. Multiple CTAs split the reader's intent.

Pricing page: the reader is shopping

The pricing page is where persuasion frameworks don't apply. The reader already wants the product. They're comparing plans, checking limits, and looking for the catch. The job is clarity and confidence, not motivation.

What pricing copy must do

Name the plans clearly. "Starter, Pro, Enterprise" works. "Spark, Blaze, Supernova" does not. The reader should know which plan is for them from the name alone.

Lead with what's included, not what's excluded. The features column should read as a list of things the reader gets, not a list of things they lose by choosing the cheaper plan.

Highlight the recommended plan. One plan should be visually emphasised. This is the plan for the reader who doesn't want to think. Usually the middle tier.

Answer the "what if" questions. Can I switch plans? What happens if I go over the limit? Is there a contract? Do I need a credit card for the trial? These questions live in the reader's head; answer them before they have to ask.

Show the price, not the discount. "$29/month" is clear. "Save 60% on our normally $72 plan" requires math and feels like a trick. Lead with the actual number the reader will pay.

Common pricing page failures

Copy that re-sells the product. The reader is past the sell. They don't need another paragraph about why the product is great. They need to know what $29 gets them.

Feature names as jargon. "Advanced RBAC" means nothing to most readers. "Control who sees what" means everything. Name features in the reader's language, not the engineering team's.

Hidden pricing. "Contact us for pricing" on a page the reader expected to show prices. If you can't show the price, explain why and tell them what the call will cover.

The meta-rule

Each page type has one job. The homepage establishes what and who. The landing page message-matches and converts. The pricing page answers the shopping questions. Copy that confuses these jobs, a homepage that tries to convert like a landing page, a landing page that hedges like a homepage, will under-perform regardless of prose quality. Structure precedes style.