Landing Page Visuals That Convert: Your Complete Guide

Visuals tap into our instincts and emotions to influence how we think, feel and act.

As a webmaster, strategically applying visual persuasion principles to your landing pages can dramatically lift conversions.

This definitive guide examines the psychology behind why visuals work and provides 16 research-backed visual strategies to increase your landing page ROI, alongside real web examples, data insights and optimization tips.

Let’s dive in…

Why Visuals Boost Conversions: The Science

Visuals influence conversions on a primal, emotional level before we‘ve had time to consciously rationalize what we‘re seeing.

Here’s what 38 neuroscience and behavioral economics studies reveal:

Visuals Activate Desire and Emotion

Our brains process images 60,000 times faster than text. Visuals trigger reactions in the amygdala where emotions and desires arise – before the thinking frontal cortex has kicked in.

So before we‘ve had time to rationally assess what we’re seeing, images have already activated emotional responses and desires.

For example, mouthwatering pictures of juicy burgers on a fast food landing page tap into appetite and cravings regardless of any health concerns the rational brain might raise.

Equally, pictures of success and status symbols activate desires to enhance our self-image. And images showing people enjoying life trigger positive emotions about a brand before we assess the facts.

According to the Zaltman Metaphor Elicitation Technique (ZMET), 95% of cognition happens in the subconscious part of the brain where emotions arise, rather than the conscious, thinking part. The subconscious determines our attitudes and drives behavior.

This makes selecting emotionally tactical visuals critical for influencing visitors. Images reflecting pride, security, happiness, status and belonging can effectively prompt viewers to feel aligned with those ideals and be positively predisposed towards associated products.

For example, retirement home or life insurance landing pages showing happy older couples spending quality time with kids and grandchildren tap into emotional desires for family connection. While viewers logically know purchasing the offerings won’t directly provide those scenes, seeing them displayed fosters positive, emotionally-loaded associations.

Visuals Command Attention

We have innate predispositions to rapidly notice and focus our visual attention on anything with the following characteristics:

• Movement
• High contrast
• Faces
• Emotional cues like laughter, anger or tears
• Sexual stimuli

For example, eye-tracking studies found online viewers look at faces first, mostly drawn right to the eyes. Our brains are wired to monitor others’ eye directions to understand where they are focusing their attention.

We also instinctively alter our own eye paths to mirror the acquired gaze directions we observe in images according to “joint attention theory”. So pictures showing models looking towards text or a call-to-action prompt viewers to intuitively turn their attention the same way.

Equally, scenes depicting high energy, contrasting colors, activity and movement command interest before the conscious brain rationally assesses the image content and relevance.

Skilled digital marketers leverage these principles deliberately to direct visitors towards desired landing page behaviors.

Visuals Boost Understanding and Recall

Viewing how a product works or the context it is used within enhances understanding exponentially more than text or audio explanations alone, as this chart shows:

For example, an investor reviewing financial visualizations depicting how a stock investment fund’s compound profit algorithm works will gain comprehension faster than wading through paragraphs explaining the concept without visual aids.


Even for non-visual learners, the dual encoding effect means combining textual and visual communication enhances recall and problem-solving performance over individually.