If your website or app sells products, generates leads, collects registrations, or requires users to take action, optimizing your call to action (CTA) should be at the top of your to-do list.
A call to action, or CTA, is a button, banner, or link designed to persuade the user to click or take a desired action. Most people don’t realize how many CTAs they click on each day, from hitting “order now” on a food delivery app to “shop the collection” on a retail site.
Whether you place them on your pricing pages, product pages, or landing pages, a well-designed CTA button makes it clear what the user will get and helps increase conversions. Here’s everything you need to know to create a CTA that converts.
What is a CTA in marketing?
In marketing, a call to action, or CTA, is a word or phrase that tells your target audience what to do next. They can be simple text, but are often clickable links within a CTA button.
You can use CTAs in almost any type of marketing message. In fact, a customer may see several CTAs on their journey from unknown prospect to repeat buyer.
For example, someone might click a “learn more” button on your Facebook ad, then click a “subscribe now” button on your landing page and finally click a “buy now” button from your newsletter.
How to Create a CTA that Converts? Here are 8 tips.
A good CTA will grab attention and make it hard to resist taking the next step in ads, emails, landing pages, and more. Read on to learn how to write CTAs that drive conversions no matter where they are located.
1. Use a strong verb to start your CTA
You don’t have much space to get your message across. Don’t ramble. Let your audience know exactly what you want them to do by leading each CTA button with an action verb.
Action verbs vary depending on the type of business and what you want your customer to do. Here are some ideas:
- For an e-commerce site: Use words like “buy,” “order,” or “add to cart.”
- If you are promoting a newsletter or content: Use words like “download” or “subscribe.”
- For a service-based business: Use CTAs like “call now” or “schedule your appointment.”
What you don’t want to do is simply say that something exists. “Our latest trends are available” won’t inspire action, while “click here to discover the latest trends” feels dynamic and is more likely to improve your click-through rate.
2. Include words that provoke emotion or enthusiasm
If you want more clicks and conversions, you need to generate an emotional response in your audience. An enthusiastic CTA that leverages emotional copywriting can make all the difference.
For example, if someone is looking to book a family trip and sees a CTA like “Plan your dream vacation today!”, this will get them excited and have them imagining their ideal trip. They are likely to click on the link.
Other ways your CTAs can generate excitement include:
- Reduce risk or insecurity
- Building trust
- Create urgency
- Communicate value
3. Give your audience a reason to act
In other words, tell people what they will get if they click. Will it help them do their job better, lose weight, or save money? This ties in closely with your value proposition or USP (Unique Selling Proposition).
Your USP is one of the key pieces to attract new leads, so combining a good value proposition with an attractive CTA is an excellent strategy to increase clicks.
A good example would be: “Call us to start saving money today!” Not only do you mention the action you want the user to take (call today), but you also give them a reason to do it (save money).
4. Take advantage of FOMO (fear of missing out)
This is one of the most effective tricks for creating a CTA that converts. The fear of missing out, known as FOMO, is a powerful motivator. When people feel like they might miss out on a unique opportunity, they rush to take advantage of it.
One of the best uses of FOMO in a CTA is to mention a limited-time offer or promotion.
You probably get emails like this all the time. Phrases like “Buy today! Sale ends Monday” work especially well on long weekends. Or “Buy now while supplies last!” during the holiday season. It’s hard to ignore a message like this, especially when there’s a sense of urgency.
As with excitement and enthusiasm, leveraging FOMO in your CTA can ensure more clicks.
5. Adapt the CTA to the type of device
Creating an effective call to action is crucial, but it’s also important to customize it based on the device your audience is using. Google considers desktop computers and tablets to be similar devices because they have similar screen sizes and people use them in similar contexts.
For example, someone watching TV at night and sees an ad for a product they’re interested in might grab their laptop or tablet to find out more. In this case, a CTA like “Find out more” or “Buy now” may be the most effective.
However, mobile devices have different search behavior and intent than desktop and tablet users. Since 80% of local business searches on mobile devices result in a conversion, it’s a good idea to customize your CTA for these users.
6. A/B test your CTAs
A/B testing is a great way to identify which CTAs generate the most clicks and which ones don’t work as well. While some calls to action are often effective in theory, there’s no guarantee that they’ll work in your specific case until you test them.
Digital marketing is a trial-and-error process, and your CTAs are no exception. Something might seem like a great idea on paper or sound great when a colleague recommends it, but the only way to know for sure if it will work for your business is to try it out.
Your target audience may not respond well to a CTA that is considered “surefire,” which can be frustrating. To create a CTA that converts, you should conduct A/B testing. You can experiment with creative CTAs and compare them to traditional ones. If your audience doesn’t respond well to your ads, trying something out of the ordinary can be a good strategy.
7. Use first person and active voice
Studies have shown that changing the text of a CTA from the second person (e.g., “Get your free template”) to the first person (“Get my free template”) can increase click-through rates.
Why does first-person work? Because it presents the action from the user’s perspective. This is a great idea for an A/B test: compare the conversion rate of a second-person CTA to a first-person CTA to see which one resonates better with your audience.
However, the choice of tense is not the only factor to consider. It is important to combine the first person with the active voice for best results. The active voice makes the message clearer and more persuasive, while the passive voice can create ambiguity.
8. Make it impossible to ignore and easy to find
Even if you’ve written a compelling CTA and chosen an attractive background color, it won’t do any good if no one sees it. To create a CTA that converts, make sure your button is visible. It should be large enough to stand out on the page, but without looking overblown or spammy. If a user is ready to take the next step, they shouldn’t have to search for the CTA button — doing so could confuse them and leave the page.
CTA buttons should be placed where users tend to look next. Ideally, they should be placed at the top of the page (above the fold) or in a prominent position.
For example, you could repeat the same CTA multiple times throughout the page or implement a sticky navigation bar, especially if your page is information-heavy. Following the natural flow of navigation, most sites or apps place a CTA button right below the content that users need to interact with.
Strategic placement is also important on mobile devices. If you use a mobile-optimized landing page, it is recommended that the CTA be visible without scrolling (above the fold) so that users can see it immediately upon entering the page.
It can be easy to fall into bad habits or settle for the status quo when it comes to your CTAs. However, by adopting the best practices discussed in this article, you can optimize your CTAs to drive the best possible results. Over time, you’ll find that you can create a CTA that converts and improves your return on marketing investment.
