Updated: 4 days ago
A microsite is a branded content website that promotes a company’s product, service, campaign or event. Microsites typically use a different domain/subdomain and brand identity than a company’s main website, but often link to the main site. These interactive, visual and content-heavy sites help brands connect with their users. As their name suggests, microsites are small, sometimes just a single web page but if done right, can positively impact a brand.
A microsite has a different purpose from its parent website and often has a more tailored aesthetic compared to the broader site. They tend to be information-heavy and yet don't provide much information about the parent brand or company itself. For example, they do not typically contain pages like “About Us,” “About The Team,” etc.
A website is a company’s “face,” and yet it doesn’t need to present every campaign, event or new products. Microsites can therefore be the perfect one-off, short-lived platform to keep your launch tight and targeted.
Use Wix's website builder to create your site from start to finish.
TL;DR: what is a microsite?
A microsite is a small, standalone website built around one product, campaign or event, usually with its own domain or subdomain and its own look. Use one when a launch or story needs more room than a single landing page but shouldn't crowd your main site. Keep it focused on one goal, link back to your main brand and plan how you'll track its traffic. With Wix, you can build a microsite from a template or let the Wix AI Website Builder generate one from a description of your campaign, goals and preferred design.
Microsite vs landing page
Don’t confuse microsites with landing pages. Landing pages are typically single pages within microsites or parent sites that appear in response to a search result listing, marketing promo, marketing email or online ad. Companies use landing pages for lead generation and a microsite is not technically a type of landing page.
Feature | Microsite | Landing page | Main website |
|---|---|---|---|
Size | A few pages, sometimes one | One page | Many pages |
Purpose | One campaign, product or story | One action, such as a signup | Your whole brand and business |
Address | Often its own domain or subdomain | Usually on your main site | Your main domain |
Lifespan | Often short-term | Campaign-length | Long-term |
Navigation | Its own small menu | Minimal or none | Full site menu |
By contrast, companies use microsites to communicate a specific message, generate interest, spread to a new market or simply engage users.
Not everyone loves microsites. Some critics have noted that big brands favor microsites because they let them hire a cheaper or faster vendor for a smaller project separate from their main website’s codebase, budgets, processes, etc. Those same critics note that tracking microsites’ analytics can be extremely tricky – from an SEO perspective, they involve starting over without any of the parent website’s domain authority, PageRank clout or existing links.
But for many companies, particularly those on the smaller side, the benefits of microsites can outweigh these potential negatives.
Why and how can I launch a microsite?
Companies use microsites as a platform for potential customers to discover their brand and perform a given action. That action can range anywhere from simply reading the content to registering for email newsletters or making a purchase. While a microsite can share brand components with the parent site (such as logo design, color schemes, typefaces etc.), you may also choose to change these to make the microsite stand out or communicate a distinct message.
Many companies turn to microsites to provide information about a certain product, service, or new technology. For example, a carmaker might unveil a microsite for a new model. Or a party goods site or events hall might launch a site for a certain holiday (Halloween, Christmas) or special event (the Super Bowl). And with the rising prevalence of pay-per-click (PPC) advertising, microsites may carry specific, contextual ads or keyword-rich content with the intent of boosting SEO ranking.
How to create a microsite with Wix
Define the single goal of your microsite, such as launch signups, event registrations or awareness for a cause.
Start from a website template or describe your campaign to the AI website builder to get a first draft.
Give it its own look and a short menu with only the pages the campaign needs.
Connect a separate domain or subdomain so the microsite has an address people can remember.
Add one clear call to action and a link back to your main website.
Publish, share it through your campaign channels and track results in Wix Analytics.
Not sure a microsite is the right format? Compare the main Types of websites first.
Microsite examples that get the job done
IKEA: The European multinational leveraged its established branding as a one-stop home shop to address COVID-19’s dramatic lifestyle change: Spending nearly all of our time at home. Its Life at Home microsite presented a visually compelling, easy-to-use but also informative report on maintaining mental wellbeing during a stressful, unexpected and “abnormal” time. It even came with a snappy tagline (“A home space for our headspace.”) Above all, the microsite formed positive associations between the importance of healthy relationships and living spaces with IKEA’s branding, making customers likely to make online IKEA purchases even while physically visiting the stores remained impossible.
Patagonia: The California clothing retailer partnered with the film studio Farm League to build a Blue Heart microsite, highlighting the environmental damage caused by hydroelectric dams to Europe’s last remaining wild rivers. Unlike most microsites, Blue Heart avoids prominent Calls-to-Action (CTAs) that would lead visitors back to the company’s main site. Rather, through a short film, interactive map and articles, it focuses on the higher cause. The microsite transcends mere lead-generation, instead showcasing the parent company’s genuine commitment to a pressing international mission.
Adobe: Visitors to My Creative Type complete a short, 15-question survey gauging their thinking, behavior and outlook. A playful, visually creative video illustrates what each answer says about the person completing the test. Finally, the site assigns one of eight creative “personality types,” reflecting the visitor’s strengths, motivations, potential and advice for furthering creative goals. Visitors can then download their results and share them on social media. This fun, fascinating microsite not only allows users to assess their own creative strengths, but also connects them to Adobe’s array of creative software choices.
While a microsite is not a landing page, there are many elements of landing page design that work to make a microsite a success too.
What is a microsite FAQ
What is the difference between a microsite and a website?
A website covers your whole brand and stays up long-term, while a microsite focuses on one campaign, product or event and is often temporary.
Do microsites help SEO?
They can rank for their own topic, but they start without your main site's authority and links. If search traffic is the main goal, a section on your main website is often the stronger choice.
How long should a microsite stay live?
As long as the campaign or story it supports. Some run for a few weeks around a launch, while others stay up as a long-term resource.
