This archived community thread from the APG vNext support forum discusses: Landing Page Examples.
About This Topic
The new Landing Pages feature available in the announcement section of the AdminCP allows you to create special pages outside the forum / blog system. It's u...
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Creating Landing Pages in APG vNext
APG vNext includes a built-in page management system that lets administrators create custom landing pages beyond the default forum index. Landing pages in APG vNext serve as product introductions, feature showcases, community welcome experiences, event announcements, or any other content-focused page that benefits from a custom layout distinct from the standard forum thread format. Understanding how to build and optimize landing pages in APG vNext helps grow community membership and improve first impressions for new visitors.
Creating a New Page in APG vNext
To create a landing page, navigate to Admin > Pages > Add New Page. Provide a URL slug that will become the page address, a page title, a heading, and a meta description. The page content is edited using the same WYSIWYG rich text editor available for forum posts, giving you access to text formatting, image embedding, table creation, hyperlink insertion, and raw HTML sections. Pages can be linked from the main navigation menu by adding them under Admin > Navigation > Menu Settings, making them immediately discoverable to all site visitors from the top navigation bar.
Setting a Page as the Site Home
You can replace the default forum index as the site home page with any custom landing page. This is useful for communities that want to present a branded welcome experience before visitors reach the forum discussion area. Configure the home page override in Admin > General Settings > Home Page and select the page you want to use as the entry point. The forum index remains accessible at its direct URL so members who want to jump straight to discussions can bookmark the forum index page directly.
Landing Page Design Principles
Effective community landing pages communicate the community's purpose clearly in the first visible screen before any scrolling is required. They provide a visible primary call to action such as Register Now, Join the Community, or Browse the Forum. They show evidence of activity — recent discussions, member counts, or highlighted popular threads — to reassure visitors that the community is alive and worth joining. They include trust signals like years of operation, notable member testimonials, or organizational affiliations. Avoid landing pages that are purely promotional without showing visitors what the community actually looks like and what conversations are happening now.
Using HTML Blocks for Advanced Layouts
For advanced landing page designs that require custom layouts beyond what the WYSIWYG editor provides, APG vNext allows inserting raw HTML through the editor source view or dedicated HTML content blocks. This enables embedding third-party widgets, custom CSS grid layouts, countdown timers, embedded video players, and interactive elements that the standard toolbar does not expose. When using raw HTML in page content, ensure it is sanitized and does not introduce cross-site scripting vulnerabilities. Only administrators with full trust should have access to paste raw HTML into page content areas.
SEO Configuration for Landing Pages
Each APG vNext page has dedicated meta title and meta description fields that should be filled with keyword-rich, unique content for every landing page you create. These fields determine what appears in Google search result snippets. Set a canonical URL for each page to prevent duplicate content issues if the same page is accessible via multiple URL paths. Use the structured data that APG vNext generates for pages to help search engines classify the content correctly. For a community home page, including the organization's name, founding date, and primary topic in the meta description provides strong contextual signals for Google's knowledge graph.
Landing Page Use Cases in the Real World
APG vNext communities use custom landing pages for a wide variety of purposes. An About page describes the community's history, primary focus area, and moderation philosophy to help visitors decide whether the community is right for them. A Getting Started guide walks new members through introducing themselves, finding relevant discussions, and understanding the forum's key features and rules. A Resources page aggregates the most useful threads, external links, and downloadable files relevant to the community's topic area. An Events page announces upcoming webinars, meetups, or community challenges. A Sponsors page acknowledges organizational supporters and provides a credibility signal for the community's legitimacy and longevity.
Tracking Landing Page Performance
After publishing a landing page, measure its effectiveness by tracking registrations that originate from the page. Configure UTM parameters on registration links embedded in landing page calls to action so you can attribute signups to specific pages in your analytics. Monitor the page's bounce rate — a high bounce rate on a welcome page may indicate the page is not matching visitor expectations set by the traffic source, or that the page loads too slowly on mobile devices. Iterate on the landing page content and calls to action based on actual conversion data rather than assumptions about what visitors want to see.
Looking for more help? Browse the support forum or check the Knowledge Base.