Calls to action (CTAs) should be an integral part of every website, with one call to action appearing on every page. Calls to action are buttons, text or images that encourage and lead a user to take action. The action can be anything from buying a product, signing up for a newsletter or downloading a brochure. Calls to action are what drive conversions from website visitors to users of your business. These are our top tips on how to maximise the use of calls to action on your website:
Clarity, clarity, clarity!
Make sure that it is very clear what you want the user to do, how to do it and what benefits they will receive. Don’t be cryptic or woolly with your words, CTAs are all about getting across a clear and succinct message. CTAs should be used as signposts to tell users what to do next. For example, when they have finished reading a blog or article, encourage them to sign up to your newsletter to get similar content straight to their inbox.
Stand out from the crowd
Calls to action need to stand out visually. Make clever use of positioning, size, colour and white space to ensure that the eye is always drawn to the call to action and it isn’t lost on a busy page. It’s also important to make sure that your CTA is obviously ‘clickable’, your users need to be able to see quickly what action they need to take to receive what is on offer.
Quality not quantity
Don’t overdo it, or your message will be confused and lack focus. Aim for one call to action per page and make it the best you can.
Get creative
Where possible, try and come up with copy and images for calls to action that are a little bit different. We’ve all seen thousands of sites with CTAs shouting “SIGN UP NOW!” that may be your goal, but can you think of a new way to say it? It’s easy to ignore words and phrases that we see over and over again, word it a little bit differently and it’s more likely to catch the eye.
Always deliver
You’ve strategically placed CTAs on each page of your site, you’ve worded them expertly and designed them to perfection – now make sure you deliver on your promise! If you’ve offered incentives for purchases or sign ups, make sure you fulfil them, if you’ve promised to provide information within a time frame, be sure you do it. If you don’t deliver, users won’t return to you or your site.
Use CTAs as a way to measure site success
Keep a track of your responses – how many people have signed up to your newsletter, requested a call back, brought a product or responded to another call to action? If you’re not seeing the results you were hoping for then revamp your calls to action and see if the figures increase.
AVAMAE are experts in creating websites that increase conversion rates and revenue, call us for a chat about how we can make calls to action work for your business.
