Content marketing serves a multitude of different purposes. It helps build brand awareness. It helps your business demonstrate its expertise. It helps your site attract more visitors by improving search rankings. But ultimately, all content marketing is created with one end goal in mind: to generate conversions.
That’s where call-to-actions (CTAs) come in. As the one thing that stands between a customer and a conversion, they’re pretty important. You can write the most spellbinding blogs or product copy the world has ever seen, but if you don’t wrap them up with the right CTA, you’ll be missing out on conversions.
In this introductory guide, we’re going to explain what CTAs are, why they’re so important and how to create them. Read on to find out everything you need to know about crafting CTAs that really work.
The definition of a CTA is simple: a short, typically two or three-word phrase that tells users which step to take next. CTAs come in many different forms, but all of them share a common aim – to transform users into customers.
CTAs are everywhere we look. From ‘Buy Now’, ‘Read More’ and ‘Contact Us’ to ‘Start Your Free Trial’, ‘Sign Up’ and ‘Download Now’, these short, simple messages play a crucial role in the success of any content marketing campaign.
No matter the context – whether you’re writing a social media post, website copy or text for a billboard or print ad – CTAs are a must. They point people in the right direction, leading them nicely towards the next stage of the purchase process. Get your CTAs right and you’ll be directly benefiting your company’s bottom line.
We could go on and on about the ins and outs of CTAs, the psychology behind them, what works and what doesn’t. Ultimately though, every industry and every business is different, which is why we’ve listed a handful of tips below to help you get started.
We put this tip first for a reason. CTAs should be tailored to appeal to your audience, so you need to understand their decision-making process in as much detail as possible.
If you sell high-value products or services, for instance, your prospective customers probably won’t want to hand over any cash until they’re totally confident in your offering. So, instead of pushing them into making a purchase too soon, consider writing CTAs that push users towards your About Us or Testimonials pages. This could then give them the confidence and reassurance they need to get in touch with you for a quote or make a purchase.
The best CTAs are often the simplest. We recommend making your CTAs as short and to the point as possible, authoritatively pointing users in the right direction. There’s no need to reinvent the wheel here; long CTAs can not only confuse customers but make them lose interest and head somewhere else.
Writing an effective CTA is only half the battle: you’ve got to put it in the right place too. Make sure your CTAs aren’t too high up the page, for example – users need to feel ready to progress to the next step. If you try and persuade them to convert before you’ve given them enough information, they’ll scroll right past your CTA.
Why would users want to learn more about a product if it doesn’t offer anything special or unique? Surround your CTAs with copy that gives users a reason to click. Communicate your product or service’s USPs, talk about your expertise, showcase all your five-star reviews… make sure you give customers a reason to progress to the next stage of their journey.
When you’re writing CTAs, it can be tempting to offer users plenty of choice. Adding multiple CTAs to the same spot can sometimes prove to be effective, but it can also bewilder and overwhelm users. If they’re given too many options, they won’t necessarily know which one to choose – and this can ultimately lead to frustration and a lack of conversions.
Using multiple CTAs can dilute the impact and effectiveness of each, so try to keep things simple and include just one concise CTA at each stage of the customer journey.
There’s no substitute for trial and error. If you’re not totally sure which CTA to use and where, A/B test a handful of different options to find out what works and what doesn’t.
They feel effortless. A well-written, well-placed call-to-action just makes sense – it’s logical and uncomplicated. If you take one thing away from this guide, remember that the most effective CTAs are usually simple and concise. There’s a reason why many CTAs are so popular and widely used!
Want to elevate your content and fill your website with conversion-focused copy that transforms users into repeat customers? Speak to the team at Brave today to find out more about how we could help your business.
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