Messaging
6 min read.
The five-second test for B2B landing pages
If a buyer can’t say what you sell after five seconds, no ad budget will save the click. Here’s how we run the test.
the short version.
If a buyer can’t tell what you sell and who it’s for in five seconds, fix the headline before you spend another dollar on ads.
Teo Vasquez
Copy, content & SEO
Show your landing page to someone outside your company for five seconds. Then close the tab and ask two questions: what does this company sell, and who is it for?
Why five seconds
That’s roughly how long a buyer gives a new tab before deciding whether to read on. If the answer isn’t obvious by then, they go back to the search results or ask a competitor.
How to fix a failing test
Rewrite the headline as an outcome, not a category. Put the product on screen above the fold. Cut every sentence that would also be true for your competitors.
