From higher click rates on a website to more registrations for the newsletter to a more prominent placement of a product on a landing page: the call to action plays a significant role in generating conversions.
What is a call to action?
A call to action (CTA) is known among marketers as a targeted request on a user that aims to generate an immediate reaction. The CTA animates the user to interact with a page, an ad or a search result. For instance, this can be to enter data for a lead generation, to register for a newsletter or to place an item in the shopping basket.
Why the call to action is so important
Imagine a visitor is on your website. They scroll through the content. They even read some of your text. Then they suddenly leave the page. Why? There can naturally be many reasons for this, but often it is because it is not clear to the visitor what they should do next. A clear call to action was missing.
The call to action – more than button text
Many think that calls to action are primarily button text below an online article, which, for instance, asks the user to “Discover more here” or “Buy now”. But usually this button is just the highlight of the call to action – the ultimate request to be active.
Imbedded in the call to action is a lead-in, which prepares the user to perform an action. In this introduction, trust is created and any reservations the user might have are eliminated. Frequently, the CTA is followed by a lead-out, which aims to convince the user to click on the call-to-action button. This often takes place in the form of assurance of data privacy or the naming of additional benefits.
What an effective call to action looks like
A call to action should be concise and precise. Short and snappy sentences speak to the user in a much stronger way than CTAs that stretch across several lines. The imperative is ideal for formulating such CTAs: “Discover more!” is better than “More information”. But remember that the call to action is a request – and should not sound like a command.
The call to action should also be highlighted with a different colour so that it catches the user’s eye. Its positioning should also be carefully chosen. Generally speaking: the more space a call to action has, the more space it has to make an impact and grab people’s attention. At the same time, a call to action at the top of your website gets more attention than a button at the buttom:
A "Subscribe now" button on Visable 360
Never losing sight of the customer journey
When writing a call to action, the desired result should always be kept in mind. What would you like to achieve with the CTA? Should the user buy a certain product, make an appointment, send an email or register for something? Depending on the result, the CTA can animate to, for instance, “Read more” or “Order now”. You may also give the user a choice between different options:
Source: visable.com
Conclusion
Granted: it’s not always easy to find the right call to action. But all efforts pay off. CTAs have huge potential to significantly increase the number of conversions via a newsletter or a landing page. At the same time, it is worth it to try out different text formulations and test them for their effectiveness.
