Landing Pages: Why Freelancers, Startups, & Book Authors Need Many of Them
A sample chapter from my upcoming book, Smart Email Marketing and Content Integration for Startups and Freelancers, Needing Landing Pages for Growth
Content Marketing Education for Readers on Medium and My Website. As this story is longer than usual email sizes, you may want to try reading it online, as your email reading tool might cut it short.
Dear friends, today I will share insights from a chapter of my new book Smart Email Marketing, which will be globally published on 30 April 2025. Many freelance writers asked me a question, “What is a landing page and why does it matter?”, so I decided to turn it into a story with several examples so that you can learn about their value and importance, and start creating ones for your business if you don’t have any yet. Many new writers are unaware of this powerful growth tool for Substack, too.
When I first started building my email list in the 1980s and promoting my services independently, the Internet as we know it today did not even exist. Websites were not around yet.
Instead, we used bulletin boards on Bitnet, Usenet, ARPANET, and AARNET — posting thoughtful messages into small online spaces where curious minds gathered.
Everything was simpler, slower, and far more personal. Every message carried more weight because communication was deliberate, and every connection felt like a quiet discovery rather than a transaction.
Even then, I learned an important truth: having only one point of connection was not enough. If you missed someone’s attention in one place, you might never reach them again.
Fast forward to the 2000s, and that early lesson remains just as relevant, though the tools have changed dramatically. A landing page today is much more than just a webpage — it is a focused invitation. It is the modern version of those early messages, crafted to meet people where they are, to welcome them at the right moment.
It is where a visitor becomes a subscriber, where a casual reader turns into a loyal client, and where a spark of curiosity transforms into meaningful action. The technology has evolved, but the heart of it remains the same: offering value, building trust, and opening doors.
A landing page is a standalone page with a single purpose: to guide a visitor toward taking specific actions. Those actions might be subscribing to a newsletter, signing up for a webinar, downloading a free resource, or purchasing a product.
For example, for my Substack newsletter, I created a landing page, which helped me gain thousands of subscribers on Substack and helped two of my publications to be bestsellers in March 2025.
My Substack Work & Community Building Focus - Dr Mehmet Yildiz
Here is a mini landing page every Substack writer can generate by using the code in the Growth Tools section of Settings
When you copy and paste this code to your landing page as HTML, it can nicely format it for you:
<iframe src="https://drmehmetyildiz.substack.com/embed" width="480"
height="320" style="border:1px solid #EEE; background:white;"
frameborder="0" scrolling="no"></iframe>Here is a sample one,
whom I interviewed lately, created in his latest blog post on my website:
Unlike a homepage, which offers many navigation options, a landing page removes distractions and focuses the reader’s attention entirely on the intended goal.
Early on, I made the mistake of thinking I only needed one or two landing pages. But through experience — both successes and missed opportunities — I learned that the most effective entrepreneurs and startups create multiple landing pages tailored to specific audiences, offers, and moments in time.
In my experience, creating targeted landing pages has been one of the smartest decisions I've made. They played a pivotal role in helping me build a mailing list of over 700,000 subscribers, sell thousands of books, and attract new consulting clients without incurring significant ad expenses.
Each landing page served a distinct purpose, allowing me to connect authentically with different segments of my audience.
When I launched a new book, I did not just post it on my main website and hope people would find it. I created a dedicated landing page tailored to the book’s core promise.
I explained what problems it solved, who it was for, and why it mattered. I offered sample chapters, an early access bonus, and testimonials from early readers. For example, each landing page turned a quiet book launch into a thriving sales channel.
Similarly, when offering my consulting services, I created separate landing pages for different types of clients — startups seeking growth strategies, established companies requiring digital transformation, and independent writers looking for platform development.
Speaking directly to each group’s needs made the difference between a cold pitch and a warm, immediate “yes.”
If you want to grow your subscribers and want to do email marketing or affiliate marketing, creating many landing pages for freelancers, startups, and book authors is essential.
What Is a Landing Page in Simple Words?
A landing page is where trust is earned. It is where attention transforms into commitment. Without it, all the content you create — your articles, social media posts, podcasts, and interviews — risks floating aimlessly without a clear call to action.
For freelancers and startups, especially those operating on limited budgets, landing pages are critical assets. They work for you 24/7. A well-designed landing page can:
Capture leads while you sleep.
Explain your value in a clear and focused manner.
Support every campaign you run, from email marketing to content promotions.
Test new offers and ideas quickly without needing to overhaul your entire website.
Some people hesitate to create multiple landing pages because they fear it might come across as “pushy” or “too salesy.” But it does not have to be. A good landing page feels like a natural next step. It feels like an invitation to something valuable, not a pressure tactic.
Building many landing pages allowed me to:
Tailor my messaging for different audiences.
Highlight specific products, services, or offers without confusing visitors.
Improve my conversion rates by speaking directly to what each group cares about most.
Build stronger relationships with my readers and clients by meeting them where they are.
If you want to grow sustainably and authentically as a writer, freelancer, book author, or business owner, start thinking of each new project, service, product, or campaign as deserving its dedicated landing page.
You do not need dozens all at once. You can start with one for your main email newsletter. One for your flagship service. One for your upcoming book. Then add more as your needs evolve.
Each landing page you create is like a handshake extended into the world — a focused, thoughtful invitation saying, “Here is something I created with you in mind. If it speaks to you, let us take the next step together.”
In my case, those handshakes turned into a network of loyal subscribers, readers, and clients who stayed, engaged, and grew with me over the years.
The lesson is simple but powerful: Your landing pages are not just marketing tools. They are trust-building platforms. They are bridges between your work and the people who need it most.
If you approach them with care, clarity, and a spirit of genuine service, they will become one of the most valuable assets in your freelance or startup journey.
Creating an Effective Landing Page: High-Level Guidance with Best Practices and Pitfalls
Landing pages are not just digital placeholders; they are purposeful bridges between your audience’s curiosity and your business’s offerings. To make them effective, it is crucial to design them with clarity, relevance, and a clear focus.
Drawing from my decades of experience, I can confidently say that the landing pages that brought me thousands of subscribers, book sales, and client inquiries all shared common principles — principles that are both simple and powerful when executed thoughtfully.
First, every landing page must have a clear and compelling purpose.
Whether the goal is to collect email addresses, promote a book, invite sign-ups for a webinar, introduce a new product, or launch a new service, the page should focus on one explicit action.
Too many landing pages fail because they attempt to do too much at once. When you try to capture every opportunity, you dilute the visitor’s attention and lower your chances of success. Always design your landing page to answer one question: “What is the next step I want the visitor to take?”
The structure of a successful landing page generally follows a logical path: a captivating headline, a concise explanation of the offer, a few points highlighting the benefits, a strong call-to-action (CTA), and, when possible, an image or testimonial that builds credibility.
The headline must grab attention immediately and connect emotionally with the visitor’s needs or desires. The supporting text should be easy to scan, using concise sentences and clear, explicit language, while avoiding unnecessary jargon.
Another vital aspect is visual simplicity.
A cluttered page creates confusion. Minimal design, balanced white space, and a strong emphasis on the CTA button will guide the visitor naturally toward taking action.
You can select fonts, colors, and images that align with your brand identity without overwhelming the message. The goal is to make it as easy as possible for visitors to say “yes.”
When creating a landing page, it is critical to remove distractions. Unlike a homepage that might link to many areas, a landing page should have minimal navigation options.
Every link that pulls visitors away from the CTA reduces conversions. In my experience, even removing the standard site menu can increase conversion rates by focusing the visitor’s attention entirely on the offer.
Now, let's discuss the emotional aspect — the hook that makes a landing page memorable and impactful. The best landing pages tell a micro-story: “Here is your challenge. Here is a better possibility. Here is how we can help you get there.”
When you frame the offer as part of the reader’s journey, you create a deeper connection with them. I attribute a significant portion of my subscriber growth and book sales to landing pages that were framed as solutions to specific, relatable problems rather than generic promotions.
Testing is another piece of the puzzle.
No landing page is perfect from the start. I continually tested headlines, CTA button colors, page layouts, and form fields. Small changes often led to significant differences in sign-up rates. It is a learning process grounded in curiosity rather than perfectionism.
Each month, I spend time reviewing the metrics from my landing pages because numbers tell a story that words alone cannot. In April 2025, when I reviewed one of my landing pages promoting a new book, I could see exactly where my readers were coming from, how many clicked through, and which platforms were truly driving results.
To give you an idea of metrics, here is a screenshot of the dashboard for some of the books coming from a specific landing page on one of my sites. I have hundreds of landing pages on various websites for my digital assets, similar to the one shown in the screenshot.
Then, for each book, the landing page link provides specifics, as shown in the following screenshot. For example, for this specific book, the most clicks this month happened for its Amazon digital version, and the fewest clicks were for the Waterstones paperback version. It gives me ideas on where readers from this specific landing page are likely to be interested.
There can be many types of landing pages. I will give you a few samples.
Here is a sample landing page for my recent book, Substack Mastery, which over 100,000 freelance writers have found and read its free chapters and helped it become a bestseller in 2024:
Substack Mastery Book Official Page - Dr Mehmet Yildiz
You can create landing pages for sales, too.
Here is a landing page I created for my digital books on Patreon shop:
Here is a specific sales landing page for a book I created on Kit (Convertkit), offering a discounted price for my email subscribers on that platform:
It is also an excellent tool for marketers and publishers.
For example, to grow ILLUMINATION, I created hundreds of landing pages for it, like this, indexed by Google, giving it thousands of backlinks. This publication gained many followers.
Here is a sample one for ILLUMINATION on Kit, which I created in 2020, which brought us thousands of subscribers:
I want to emphasize that it's not just one landing page on one platform — I have created multiple landing pages for each of my 40+ books, which are hosted across my broader content ecosystem, including my website on WordPress, ConvertKit, Substack, LinkedIn, Reddit, Quora, Patreon, and more.
Having this variety is about meeting readers where they already are. Each page acts like a small doorway leading into my work. By tracking real-world engagement rather than guessing, I can refine my messages, adjust my strategies, and build more meaningful connections with my audience. Every click, every visitor, every small insight adds up to smarter decisions and bigger opportunities.
I would like to highlight some common pitfalls to avoid, including overloading the page with excessive text, using confusing or ambiguous call-to-actions (CTAs), requesting too much information upfront, and designing pages that are not mobile-friendly.
In today’s world, many visitors arrive via smartphones or tablets. If your landing page is hard to read or slow to load on these mobile devices, you lose them before they even see your offer.
Finally, always deliver on the promise you make. If your landing page offers a free guide, provide it immediately and make it valuable.
Trust begins with that very first interaction. In my consultancy, every successful client relationship often started with a landing page that set the right expectations from the first click.
In summary, a high-converting landing page is a focused, simple, emotionally compelling page that speaks to the visitor’s needs, offers a clear and easy next step, and respects their time and attention.
With thoughtful structure, testing, and a genuine offer, your landing pages can become one of your strongest growth assets, as they have been for me for over four decades.
Now I have opened my website to guest bloggers and allow them to create their own landing pages to gain visibility for their articles, newsletters, books, services, and products.
Blog Posts by Digitalmehmet Contributors - Dr Mehmet Yildiz
This site covers eclectic stories & newsletters from 100+ topics on Medium & Substack, contributed by 36,000+ writers…digitalmehmet.com
Recently, an economics professor and a digital educator
has created a landing page for his LinkedIn Growth course:LinkedIn Growth Mastery - Dr Mehmet Yildiz
Dr. Ashish Juneja has a Ph.D. in Economics and over 17 years of experience in content marketing and education. digitalmehmet.com
Here is another sample landing page created by
, who is a Udemy instructor and a bestselling Substack author:From Zero to Substack Hero Training Program on Udemy - Dr Mehmet Yildiz
This official page is a central reference point for the From Zero to Substack Hero Training Program. The course is…digitalmehmet.com
If you're interested in publishing landing pages on my content ecosystem, please send a message using this contact form. I will be happy to support you.
Please don’t believe those who undermine email marketing and call it sleezy or spammy. They are the ignorant people who have no idea how the digital world works. I explained it clearly with eye-opening examples:
Why Email Marketing Is Not Sleazy or Spammy
It’s a Proven Tool Used by Respected Professionals and Businesses to Build Meaningful Connections
As mentioned by the American Marketing Association, email marketing is one of the most cost-effective digital marketing strategies, delivering an average return on investment (ROI) of $36 for every dollar spent. The estimated ROI for email marketing is between 3.600% and 4.300%, but my personal ROI was 6,500% as I followed best practices through experimental learning. I will share those nuances in a conversational tone.
More inspiringly, in the DMA’s (Data & Marketing Association) 2015 report, businesses saw a 53% increase in email marketing ROI, with 18% of respondents reporting earnings of over £70 for every £1 spent. Startups and freelancers looking for an affordable yet powerful way to grow should see email marketing as an essential tool, not an afterthought.
I noticed that freelancing business owners or startups neglecting the email marketing channel lose 90% of growth opportunities. All big corporations have been doing it for years.
What If 90% of Your Growth Is Waiting in an Inbox?
Not Using Email by Freelancers or Startups Resembles Running with Only 10% of Resources and Missing 90% of Growth…
The Smart Email Marketing Book Will Be Available Across Many Bookstores on 30 April 2025
This 384-page book is in preorder via multiple bookstores.
However, as the book has passed editorial QA, I have started uploading digital and audio chapters for the members of Content Marketing Strategy Insights publication, which also includes my Substack Mastery books, From Zero to Substack Hero training program, and my other exclusive content for freelance writers. You can get a 20% discount to join this network and reap the benefits of the Substack Mastery Boost.
Link to the book page on Substack for members.
This book is not directly about Substack, but it will be invaluable for freelance writers, book authors, or startups using that platform.
This email marketing book follows my two Substack books, which helped hundreds of freelance writers successfully start Substack and helped some of them become bestsellers. Here are the links to the Substack books if you haven’t heard about them before.
Substack Mastery: Insider Secrets
A Powerful Toolkit for Advanced Substack Newsletter Mastery
“Substack for Avid Readers” I also wrote a short book for readers to start Substack who want to start this platform. It is called
They are all available to the members of my Content Marketing Strategy Insights in digital and audio formats.
Aiden, who now shares the scripts here, turned my book into a comprehensive education program on Udemy titled From Zero to Substack Hero and also made it available to the members of my Content Marketing Strategy Insights publication on Substack.
If you prefer to take the course on Udemy, here are the links to the discount vouchers:
From Zero to Substack Hero — Level 1
Here is a sample video of the course:
Thank you for checking out these resources if you are a freelance writer. They can educate you and increase your confidence. I offer a 20% membership discount to get you started with this low-cost education and marketing service covering the Substack Mastery Boost Pilot program.
You can find some samples of the Smart Email Marketing book in my list, which I will be adding as I publish on this platform:
Smart Email Marketing Book Chapters by Dr Mehmet Yildiz
If you are a new writer on Medium, you might check out my writing list to find some helpful stories for your education. Writing, Content Development & Marketing Strategy Guides
Thank you for reading my perspectives. I wish you a healthy and happy life.
This is a wonderful tutorial which took me to the memory lane as I was a heavy user of the AARNET in Australia when conducting research for academia and federal government as a public health officer. thank you for writing this valuable piece. Your Smart Email Marketing book helped gain thousands of subscribers on Substack and made me a bestselling authors which was a dream to me before. I reviewed your book and provided an editorial testimonial of it. Those who missed it here is the link:
My Foreword and Editorial Review of the Smart Email Marketing Book
Email Marketing Was Rocket Science to Me Until I Read this SMART Book by my distinguished mentor, Dr Mehmet Yildiz.
https://medium.com/illumination/my-foreword-and-editorial-review-of-the-smart-email-marketing-book-e97d89bf1496
I will join the launch on 30th April and answer reader questions as I read this book multiple times and also listened to the audio on my Google Play in its first day. I reckon it is a must read book for every freelance writers especially on Substack.
@Dr Mehmet Yildiz - thank you so much for continuing to guide newer writers like myself in navigating and promoting our work in the digital age. As you know, they didn’t come much greener than me! I'm still learning, but I’m deeply grateful for all your support along the way.
I am honored to see you include my landing page as an example in your story.
You’ve been a true godsend, not only to me, but to so many others who have found encouragement, opportunity and community through you Illumination Health and Wellness network.
I cannot recommend you highly enough. For any writer seeking to grow, learn and share their work with integrity, I wholeheartedly encourage them to join the Illumination community. It’s one of the most supportive and invaluable spaces I've encountered.
Thank you again for all that you do as your generosity and leadership continue to make a real difference. :)