What is a call to action?
As the name suggests, a call to action is a phrase—typically presented as a button on a website—that is designed to nudge a prospect or existing customer towards whatever action a marketer or brand needs them to take, such as signing up for a newsletter, downloading a piece of content, answering a survey, or making a purchase.
If you wish to learn more about this concept, check out the FAQ section below:
Question #1: How do I write an effective call to action?
As a general rule, to write an effective call to action, you need to know two things:
- The audience
- The result of taking action
Let us take a closer look at each one:
First, the only way you will be able to craft an effective call to action is to understand who your audience is and what they are looking for. The goal is to use words and/or phrases that do not only resonate with them, but also clearly illustrate what the benefit of taking action would be for them.
Of course, the only way you can illustrate the benefit of taking action for your audience is to know what happens when they do. Are they going to get access to a piece of content they are looking for? Will they be able to successfully book a flight? Will they be able to buy the item they want?
Examples of good calls to action include:
- Book my seat!
- Download your free copy!
- Start for free!
Now, if you are looking to present your call to action in button form, make sure that you use eye-catching colors. Keep in mind that no matter how expertly written your copy is, if no one sees the button it is written on, then you will not get any clicks.
Another thing to take note of is that if you are presenting your call to action in banner form, make sure you do not make it look like an ad because people tend to automatically skip those due to banner blindness.
Question #2: Where should I place my call to action on my website?
As a general rule, you should place your call to action where the prospect or customer would naturally be more inclined to click on it. For longer pages, it would be wise to repeat your call to action several times throughout the page.
But how exactly would you know where the prospect or customer would naturally be more likely to click on your calls to action? Well, a good way to find out is to read your web copy. As you go over it, you should be able to figure out which sections to add your calls to action in.
If you are unable to do so, then it is likely that there is a problem with the copy on your website. It should be written in a way that naturally guides visitors to where you want them to go and what actions you want them to take. The calls to action are just there to make it easier for them to take action after you have convinced them to do so through your copy.
Question #3: Is it okay to have different calls to action?
Yes, it is okay to have different calls to action. For this to work, however, you need to implement call to action button hierarchy. This means that you should not make all your call to action buttons the same size, design, and colour. The main one should always be the biggest and/or most noticeable one.
Keep in mind, though, that there is such a thing called choice paradox, which refers to the fact that the more choices we are presented with, the more difficult it is to make a decision, which often ends in no decision being made in the end.
This means that the fewer different calls to action you present your prospects or customers with, the more likely it is that they would take action.