Great calls to action are usually part of a great design and they contain great copy. Moved to click a call to action on a website? It is usually because it stands out from the page and because the wording intrigues you. If there are multiple CTAs on a site, they must be differentiated from each other both by color and word choice to guide the reader easily.
When you are designing your website, it is important to keep these ideas in mind. The design should be simple and uncluttered so that the CTAs leap off the page. Use contrasting colors and first-person language to hook your visitors at the beginning. Let’s take a look at a few other ways to improve your CTAs:
- Action—When creating your CTA, use active words and phrases like “Show Me” or “Talk To Us.” You could also write your CTA to be more inclusive or team-oriented with phrases like, “Let’s Start a New Project” or “Join the Club.” The end goal is for your visitors to want to get to know you and your company.
- Clarity—The best CTAs are the ones that don’t try to confuse visitors with tricky language. Nothing will make a visitor leave your page faster than a link that doesn’t go where it says it will. Make sure that each CTA written on your page is clearly written and avoid guilt-tripping language if a user chooses not to participate. For example, if you have two CTAs, one saying “Learn More” and the other saying, “No Thanks.” Leave it at that. Don’t put “No Thanks, I Don’t Care about Learning.” Let’s not insult the customer.
- First Person vs Second Person—Some studies have shown that CTAs written in first person (“Sign Me Up”) get more clicks than those written in second person (“Get Your Free Template”.) Do some testing on your website to see which way works better for your visitors.
- Extras—Oftentimes people worry that if they sign up for a service, they will have a hard time canceling in the future. You can add extra information to your CTAs like a money back guarantee or a no hassle cancel option to reduce this anxiety. Offering these extras encourages your visitors to click because they know they won’t get the run around if they don’t like what your company provides.
- Test and Retest—Once you have created your CTAs and have been using them, review the results. Change up your CTAs periodically to see which works best and continue to optimize your content. Encourage new clicks with different word choice, colors, placement, and button style.
After you’ve made an effective CTA, remember to follow it up with an easy sign up or learn more procedure. After all the effort you made to get the perfect CTA, you wouldn’t want to lose them by making it difficult to follow through.
Have some ideas about great CTAs? Talk to us in the comments.
This article is written by Mickie Kennedy, founder of eReleases (https://www.ereleases.com), the online leader in affordable press release distribution. Download your free copy of 7 Cheap PR Tactics for Success in Any Economy here: https://www.ereleases.com/free-offer/cheap-pr-tactics/