When building a website, businesses are typically focused on design and ease of use. While these are both very important aspects, they pale in comparison to the importance of calls to action, or CTAs.
If you don’t have at least once CTA on each page of your website, you’re missing out on sales.
CTAs Boost Conversions and Tell Visitors What to Do Next
Calls to action help boost conversions by telling visitors what to do next. It doesn’t matter how professional your website looks or how easy it is to navigate, visitors will never take the next step if they don’t know how.
Whether it’s telling them to call your office or order through your online store, a call to action button makes it easy for potential customers to take the plunge.
A CTA can be used to encourage visitors to take any step, from buying products to downloading PDFs, filling out forms, or just clicking over to another page.
For companies that offer services, telling visitors to give you a call can greatly boost conversions.
The Anatomy of a CTA
The main purpose of a call to action is to entice visitors to take a specific action. The anatomy of a CTA is comprised of three things:
- Its placement
- Its design
- Its message
Placement Makes a Difference
Calls to action can greatly boost conversion rates, but placement is key in maximizing their effectiveness.
Experts recommend having multiple CTAs on a page, and they should be on every single page. The two most popular and effective places to place a CTA is at the bottom of a page, and in the middle of the content.
The company SPT Pipe makes great use of CTAs on their home page. At the bottom of the page is a big CTA button that asks visitors to call the company. If on a mobile device, tapping on the button will launch a call to SPT.
Calls to action are also effective when placed on the side bar of a blog page.
Design Entices Users
A CTA needs to be recognizable, and it needs to stand out on the page in order for it to be effective. How do you make a CTA stand out?
- Use bright, bold colors
- Use large buttons
- Separate the CTA from the rest of the content on the page
If the CTA looks just like the rest of the text on the screen, visitors will easily overlook it.
A strong, contrasting color will help your CTA stand out on the page.
The Message is Everything
Color, design and placement are important, but ultimately, the CTA needs to send the right message. If you’re not telling users what to do next – and in a compelling way – you won’t see much of a difference in conversion rates.
A single word change can boost your conversion rate by as much as 38%.
Each CTA needs to have a clear message. The user needs to know what’s going to happen after clicking on the button. Will they get a free eBook? Will clicking the button launch a phone call?
Be clear and honest about what will happen after clicking on the CTA button, so you don’t compromise the trust of your visitors.
