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Best Practices for Call to Actions Online
As online marketing grew so has the need to perfect the elusive call-to-action (CTA). A call to action is one of the main ways marketers can ensure that people get to the ad’s “next step”. While they have become a staple in social media marketing it is still a challenge for companies to find the best CTA for their ads.
With that being said, here are some tips for perfecting a CTA:
What is a Call-to-Action?
A call to action is a short phrase or sentence that is meant to prompt the audience viewing an ad to take the next step. The action taken is often: visiting the website, signing up for an email list, shopping for a sale etc. CTA’s often help companies get more clicks, followers, downloads and conversions from their ad.
Tips for Perfecting a CTA:
1. Use Strong and Clear Wording
Call-to-Actions should be as short as possible. Depending on the ad placement, the exact word limit will differ, for example, on a Facebook ad, you can have a longer call-to-action sentence on the post combined with a “shop now” button on the ad itself. On the other hand, a Google Display ad would require a much shorter call-to-action that is concise. Either way, a CTA has to be precise, compelling and clear for the reader to understand.
For example:
- Download my Guide
- Start Your Free Trial Today
- Don’t Miss Our Sale!
- Get 50% off today!
- Install Now
2. Give the Viewer a Reason to Click.
While a CTA is meant to entice the viewer it should also have a benefit for the viewer to click. This could be anything from a discount to a free quotation or guide. Essentially, you don’t want to just state what your business does, you want to show the customer what the business can do for them.
For example: Sign up for our bi-monthly newsletter and get 20% off your first purchase
3. Make the CTA process as seamless as possible
Digital ads need to be a quick and convenient process. You must ensure your CTA ads or buttons lead the viewer directly to where they need to be.
For example: if your Instagram ad says that viewers can get 30% off of the best selling dress on your website, it is important that the ad goes directly to that product on the website and not the main page.
This may seem obvious but this is one of the main ways customers are turned off of digital ads, the path from ad to the showcased product/service/offer needs to be as seamless as possible.
4. Make the ad looking Compelling
While we are focusing on CTA’s it is still important to highlight the fact that the ad itself needs to be intriguing. Whether it is an ad on Facebook, Instagram or Google, your photo, graphic or video needs to attract the viewer to click the ad itself.
For example, a quick graphic showcasing products on sale that ends with the CTA: “50% off on our website - shop now!”. Equally, it can be a simple Google Display ad, saying “Take the first step towards your dream vacation” with the CTA “book now” in a red rectangle. Your image and CTA have to both be equally enticing for the viewer.
5. Testing 1, 2, 3
As with everything on social media, it is important to test what works for your audience. Once you know the ad’s goal, whether that be website clicks or sales, you can test how the ad performs by measuring these objectives. It is recommended to try two sets of ads, that can be the same imagery but different CTAs or different imagery/wording with the same CTA. You can test both ads for a week and see which got the most clicks or conversions. Testing is one of the best ways to measure your ads’ success and ensure you are getting the best out of your digital ads!
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Need to boost your company’s branding and overall marketing goals? Connective Pros can help! Contact us via our website or send us an email at info@connectivepros.com to get a consultancy for your business.