Marketing is full of terms, abbreviations, and generally confusing definitions, among which the most commonly used is CTA, or Call to Action. Although it has a separate term, Call to Action advertising is used by almost all if not all business types and models, sometimes without those being in charge of placing it realizing they are using a CTA.
So to leave no mysteries behind we decided to create a special article on Call to Action, which includes Call to Action definition, marketing Call to Action types, what are the best Call to Action types for a website, and Call to Action best practices.
Let’s see what we have!
What is Call to Action (CTA)?
So what does Call to Action mean?
Call to Action is a commonly used marketing technique that by utilizing words motivates people to take the desired action – like subscription or purchase – immediately.
Marketing Call to Action types come in different shapes and sizes – as a hero image banner on a landing page, a headline ticker, or the most famous of all – as a button.
Regardless of their difference in appearance, there is one thing that unites all these CTA methods together – their ability to offer a good enough incentive to inspire website visitors to perform the desired action right on the spot.
Let’s move to the next section to see which Call to Action advertising types you can implement on your website.
Call to Action Types
Now that we’ve cleared Call to Action definition, let’s see what are the best Call to Action types for a website:
1. Offering information
The “Read More”, or “Find out More” CTA type commonly used for the above Call to Action purpose is exactly what it sounds like – clicking on it allows your customers to view more of the information they are interested in and signals you which content is more popular among visitors.
Use it on blog pages, product descriptions and everywhere else where you are not looking to disclose the whole content from the get-go.
2. Enticing to join
Everybody’s pretty concerned with their safety and privacy while browsing the web nowadays, so it might take a little extra something to make your website visitors leave their contact info or purchase your product right away.
This is why this type of Call to Action advertising uses CTAs like “Download your Free Copy”, “Get a Free Trial”, “Request a Demo”, which allows users to get something for free before committing.
3. Offering deals
This type of CTA marketing is the most popular and effective of all – it offers users a great deal on the product they’re interested in and is usually combined with a timer that’s running out unless they hurry.
It includes Call to Action phrases like “Get 10% Off Today Only”, “Buy 1, Get 1 Free”, “Receive -15% Your Next Purchase”.
4. Inspiring to share
This marketing Call to Action type is not like any other before or after it – it doesn’t require words. By simply placing Social Media icons next to articles, images or other valuable content you might offer you already signal your visitors about the opportunity to share it with others.
Just locate the famous Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and/or other logos next to the information you’d want to share – no words needed.
5. Closing the deal
This is probably the most important CTA type, as without you offering a convenient way for your customers to finalize the sale, you won’t be able to gather any orders.
Use phrases like “Buy Now”, “Contact Sales”, and “Book an Appointment” for this Call to Action type.
Testing Call to Action
Since we are a CRO Agency we can’t just tell you what Call to Action best practices to implement – that won’t be accurate or effective. What we can do is tell you that each audience is different, which means you will have to test your CTAs to make sure your customers enjoy your Call to Actions, and we’ll give you an idea of where to poke that bear (not literally – seriously DO NOT TRY IN REAL LIFE. They don’t like it – we asked).
But if you do need some more CTA guidance, our founder has already shared some wisdom in 5 Parameters Of High Converting Call to Action Button article.
1. Test colour
You can not imagine how much more leads have been generated because a company decided to A/B test the colour of their CTA button. A lot. And it’s not only about the CTA button colour itself – it’s about how much it pops in contrast with its surroundings.
2. Test placement
The simple act of moving your CTA button out or in the zone of your visitors’ eyesight can increase or decrease your conversions. Test to see at which point of reviewing your website visitors are the readiest to see your Call to Action button and actually act upon it.
3. Test copy
Even a simple act changing the text of your CTA button can drastically increase your sales. Like it did for Netflix, for example, where welcome Call to Action button went from saying “Sign up Now” to “Watch Free for 30 Days”.
4. Call us
And we will master all the testing and conversion optimization for you 😉
Conclusion
СTA, or a Call to Action, is one of the most important elements on your website. It directly interacts with your customers and is usually the last thing they press on before making that final purchase.
To make sure your CTAs are at their best test, test and test again. And when you need help testing – call us, we like to participate 😉
