Calls to action, abbreviated as CTAs, invite your target audience to take an action. CTAs usually come in the form of something clickable, such as a bit of text with a hyperlink, a button, or even a photo. By taking this kind of action, a person signifies their increased interest in your brand, product or service, moving them along down the sales funnel. When a person clicks on your CTA, that becomes a conversion – an action you can track as a measure of success. CTAs are a key ingredient in any digital marketing strategy, and that’s why marketers are constantly trying to perfect the art of creating the most clickable CTA.
Let’s start by saying that there’s no agreed-upon formula for creating the most effective CTAs. What may work well for one particular audience, may not work for another. There’s a lot of trial and error involved in this process. However, there are some things to consider regarding your CTA’s design, context, placement and copy that can help you get closer to the best version of your CTA the first time. Here’s a quick guide to creating CTAs that drive conversions.
Design + Color
Your CTA should stand out. No, that doesn’t mean a full-screen, animated pop-up that flashes in red. But it should be the easiest thing for them to find within their view. That means the color of your CTA should contrast highly with its background, and the shape of it should set it apart from other elements on your page. It should draw attention, but make sure it’s not disruptive to your user’s experience.
Context
Surrounding your CTA with the right context is incredibly important. Context will guide your reader where you want them to go, and answer questions and ease apprehension along the way. This means adding supporting language or graphics that explain why a person should click on your CTA and how they will benefit from it. For example, if you put a CTA at the very top of a blog that seemingly had nothing to do with your CTA, the reader would be very confused and likely just continue on to the content, or leave the page entirely. However, if you placed the CTA just below your blog’s concluding paragraph that directly pertained to the CTA, you’d have a better chance at success. (Hint: You’ll find an example of this strategy at the end of this blog.)
Placement
Placement goes hand-in-hand with context as both need to consider one another to succeed. Where you place your CTA will depend in part on your medium – is it an email, a website page, a display ad, or something else? General best practice on a website is to place your CTA “above the fold” (or “above the scroll” in the digital world). The idea is that a person would be able to see it without having to scroll down. Some other common CTA placements are:
- At the top of a web page (such as a banner)
- At the end of blog posts
- In the sidebar
- In a welcome pop-up message
- In the middle of a blog post
- In email marketing content
The most important thing is that your CTA does not impede the user from moving through your website. Nothing is more frustrating than a pop-up message that won’t go away!
Copy
The language you use on the CTA itself should make it very clear to your audience what action they’re taking and what the outcome will be. Use a strong, straightforward command verb that creates a bit of urgency. Some examples of CTA language include:
- Download Your Free Guide
- Subscribe to Our Newsletter
- Learn More
- Let’s Connect
Make sure your CTA isn’t too much too soon – consider where the user is in the buyer’s journey. If this is the first encounter a person has with your brand, “Buy Now” might be too much to ask. But “Learn More” or “Download Our Free Guide” might be less forward.
Test, Analyze Results, and Test Again
Creating optimal CTAs is a work in progress, and the best way to learn what works well is to test and analyze. Try out different options for copy, design and color, context, and placement, and see how each impacts your conversion rates. You can even try some A/B testing to see what performs better.
If you’re looking for some real-life examples of CTAs that work, check out this HubSpot blog with tons of great examples. If you’re feeling stuck and need more guidance or manpower to help you create the leads you’re looking for, talk to the team at PRIME about how we can help. Our expertise may be just what your business needs.
If you enjoyed this edition of PRIME Pulse, take a look at some of our other related articles:
- 4 Steps Toward a Better Content Marketing Strategy
- 5 Reasons Your Website is Never Really Done
- 10 Ways to Communicate Empathy and Authority Amidst Crisis
- 4 Reasons Your Messaging is Falling Flat
- The How-To on Facebook Marketing Campaigns
