8 Online Marketing Tips for Stronger Calls to Action

Alan Robezzoli • February 22, 2014

Black and yellow megaphone under the words Better CTA's, introducing online marketing tips for stronger calls to action

In our last post we covered the types of calls to action (CTA’s) every website should have. In this post we’ll cover ways boost your online marketing results by making your CTA’s more effective and persuasive.

One of the best ways to move leads through the sales funnel (and eventually convert prospects into customers) is with a compelling call to action. As people browse your marketing material, they want to know what to do next. A strong call to action – a clear, simple, and compelling offer that persuades them to take the action you want – lets them know what to do.

A call to action may include asking your readers to …

Here are 8 ways to tweak your CTAs to significantly increase conversion rate:

1. Use actionable language

Keep it simple and concise, and use action verbs, such as discover, unearth, find, learn, and download. Here’s an example: “Download E-book and Template Now.”

2. Align CTA copy with your landing page

Make sure the wording used in the CTA is the same as the wording used on the landing page you send them to. If you ask someone to download a “crash course” on SEO, it may be confusing to call it an “ebook” on the landing page.

3. Include a clear value proposition

Let your readers know the benefit of clicking on your CTA. Provide a brief description of what happens when they click on it; Will they save time? Will they save money? Will they become experts in SEO?

4. Play up the time-sensitivity

People are busy. One of the best ways to keep your reader focused on your CTA is to create a sense of urgency and encourage your readers to click on your CTA right now. You can do that by using words like “now” or “today” on your CTA button.

5. Make sure they see it

To make sure that people don’t simply skim over your CTA, make it large, and make it pop off the page with contrasting design. Placing your CTA above the fold will usually result in more clicks. Placing it below the fold typically results in higher-quality leads (because they took the time to read past the fold and therefore tend to be more interested). Wherever you place it, you want it to get noticed.

6. Make the button look clickable

Make it clear that it is a button that can be clicked on. You can do this with shading, borders, or contouring to give it a 3-D look.

7. Add alt text

There are still many people who have problems displaying images in their browsers. They may get an error, or maybe they purposely block images from appearing. Including alt text in your CTA allows your reader to see it no matter what, and alt text can help boost your SEO.

8. Personalize CTAs for different segments of your audience

With the right software, you can tailor your CTA to only appear to a select group, so that visitors, leads, and customers each see something different.

Need Help with Your CTA's? Contact PMI Today!

Although there is no magic formula for the perfect CTA, these tips should help. You still need to continue tweaking copy, design, sizing, placement, etc. and testing what works best for you. If you need help developing better calls to action for your marketing campaigns, please contact us.

This post is based on “ The Complete Checklist for Creating Compelling Calls-to-Action ” by Ginny Soskey.

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