As a company, your ultimate goal is to drive consumers to your business, right? What if I told you that there is a simple, straightforward method that will help guide users on your site to become potential customers? This method, which we will refer to as a CTA, is so valuable and easy, you’d be crazy not to utilize multiple across your website! If you already have CTAs on your site, consider this a refresher course on their importance and see if there are any tips to help improve what you already have.
What is a CTA?
CTA stands for Call-to-Action, which is a button or link on your website that prompts your lead to take action while simultaneously making it easier for them to do so. CTAs are used to encourage a specific conversion, whether it be to request a free quote or download a brochure. The goal is to boost conversion rates and maximize the effectiveness of your website by using CTAs to target exactly who you’d like to convert and for what.
The most significant key factors in a high-quality CTA are its design, placement, and of course, the message. Is it bold enough? Easy enough for users to find? Is it clear and concise? These characteristics may not seem complicated, but a poorly-created CTA could be detrimental to your conversion goals.
How Should a CTA Look?
Design
The most crucial aspect of a CTA is that it’s recognizable - worst case scenario here is that users aren’t able to locate or even recognize your CTA and thus won’t engage with it. Think: bright and bold colors with good contrast, large enough to see clearly, a brief and clear message without too much copy. Make it stand out from the rest of the page!
Quantity
Accessibility
Make your CTAs prominent and easily accessible from every page. You want to give users an opportunity to convert into a lead, which means making it really easy for people to find these buttons. Don’t make them work for it!
What Are Examples of CTAs?
There is a very likely chance you’ve seen CTAs on just about every website you’ve been on. A CTA can technically be anything you want it to be based on your company’s goals and values. Some common types of CTAs:
Form Submission
This could be any type of online form that collects user information, such as “Contact Us” or “Request a Quote.” These are found on pretty much every website as an easy resource for people to get in touch with a business. In turn, they allow said business to collect contact information for sales purposes and lead nurturing.
Shop
For any eCommerce website, this is a no-brainer. If you sell products on your website, you’re going to want users to make a purchase. Implement this CTA on your homepage, sidebar, product pages, or anywhere you get a decent amount of traffic.
Marketing Materials
Have a quality PDF or brochure you want to share with your users to help them learn more about your business and product? Creating a CTA that’s linked to your marketing documents is a educational resource and incentive for users to click.
Blog Content
After someone reads a blog article and arrives at the bottom of the page, where do you want them to go next? This could vary based on the blog’s topic - for example, if the article is about a specific product, create a CTA that leads to that product page to encourage users to shop. It could also be a simple “Contact Us” style CTA that leads to a form for users to inquire further.
Social Sharing
This is another common CTA that does well when used within blog posts. Social icon buttons with direct links to platforms such as Twitter or Facebook allow readers to share an interesting article they find on your site. These buttons can also live in a website’s header/footer - link them to your company’s social profiles so people can check out your social media presence.
CTAs are a crucial tool to boost engagement and guide prospects to take the next step - if you want people to take action, you have to ask them. In this day and age, attention is quickly lost, so bold, memorable CTAs are the best way to turn users into leads (or, at the very least, explore your site longer). Every user on your site is a potential customer, so encourage them to the end goal as much as you can and make the process as simple as possible.
Still have questions about getting CTAs added to your website? Contact us at Page One Web Solutions today for more information!
