Most people think of “teaser pages” as the placeholder content you put on new domains. However, in 2010 the Federal Trade Commission reinvented teaser pages by creating fake Websites to illustrate how deceptive marketers try to deceive consumers on the Internet.
The FTC teaser pages link back to the FTC Website…hm. Aren’t these just doorway pages? Well, not really. These are educational sites that instruct and inform the consumer on the site. You can, however, learn more about consumer scams and how to protect yourself from them by clicking through to the Federal Trade Commission’s Website.
A doorway page is just content that is created to get the user from point A (usually a search engine) to point C (some page beyond the doorway). There is no real value or benefit to the consumer in a doorway page. Only the marketer benefits from doorway pages.
But wouldn’t it be great if other Websites pointed their visitors to YOUR Website “for more information”? I can see hordes of spammy Websites in your dreams right now, but let me point out that the “doorway domain” is an old spammy concept. Many a faux Web marketer has already tried to create semi-useful teaser content that ended with “Click here to learn more”, which was usually an affiliate link. Search engines don’t like that. Yes, it’s a form of reflective marketing but it’s a high-risk, user-unfriendly method.
How to Create Useful Teaser Pages
If you want to create teaser pages, follow these guidelines:
- Each teaser page should offer unique, complete value in itself. The user should be satisfied with the experience.
- Each teaser page should address a different topic or angle.
- Each teaser page should be fully relevant to your product or service.
So let’s say that you sell boiled eggs online. Let me tell you, there is NOT much opportunity for creating teaser pages about boiled eggs. Hence, if you manufacture 100 or 1000 or 10,000 teaser pages for your boiled egg Website you’re letting greed and stupidity make your marketing decisions for you. Black hat spammers do this because they know that the “main” Website will be penalized and they are ready to put up another one in its place.
So if you are marketing something as esoteric as boiled eggs teaser pages offer only a limited range of opportunities for you. But you could publish teaser pages that focus on Humor (creating a wonderful, laughing experience for users), Opinion (sharing very clearly disclaimed points of view about the quality and value of boiled eggs), and Facts (such as a Frequently Asked Questions page).
Each of these reflective marketing concepts has been implemented in standalone Websites by multinational companies and, to the best of my knowledge, they have not suffered any negative consequences in their search marketing as a result of these campaigns. The teaser sites/pages created unique value for the consumer, offering complete on-site experiences. Obviously, each of the sites included information about who made the sites and where consumers could find out more information.
It’s not as simple as setting up a widget on a page somewhere. The widget does not create enough value. Rather, you use teaser pages and sites to tell the kind of story that for whatever reason you feel cannot be told on your main site — but which is nonetheless important, interesting, and relevant to what you do.
Examples of How to Leverage Teaser Pages
A Website selling bicycles could publish a teaser page about a cross-country bicycle trip. Clearly identifying the relationship between the teaser page/site and the seller ensures that consumers are not being deceived.
A Website selling vacation packages can publish microstories about great vacations that people had after purchasing one of the packages. You would have to reach out to your customers and ask them to participate in the marketing campaign.
A Website selling books can create a teaser that creates a special experience for book buyers, such as a book exchange page or a book reviews site where the reviews are written by readers.
Avoid Using Teaser Pages to Violate Search Engine Guidelines
You should not look at teaser pages as a link building strategy. If you go out and publish 100 teaser pages you will obviously be creating that content only for the links. The teaser pages should attract their own traffic, stimulate their own consumer interest. But they can then help promote your company Website in a clearly defined relationship.
But the execution doesn’t end on the teaser site. You have to make sure that it links to content which is relevant to the teaser content, too. That is, you don’t just want a teaser site to link to your product or service page. It would be better to have the teaser site link to a page that explains how the consumer — coming from the teaser page — can learn more and benefit from browsing your site. They have attached unique value to what you have to offer in their minds — don’t destroy that value by trying to sell them something when they were not looking to be sold.
The sales conversion comes down the line. Teaser pages help build brand recognition and value. If you misuse them both consumers and search engines will notice and respond appropriately.
Read More about Search Engine Optimization
How Long Does It Take Google to Credit A Website with Links?
Natural Backlink Profile: Endless Ways to Build One
Website Not On Google? Why Some Internal Pages Aren't Indexed
RankBrain and Neural Matching: What Is the Difference?
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