Remington Begg
A Great CTA will drive your click
Content is the gasoline that drives the inbound marketing car, but all the content in the world won’t convert visitors into leads if there’s no “next step” for website visitors. That next step happens because a call-to-action or CTA, tells them to. The CTA directs and incentivizes your site visitors to perform an action. This action takes them to a landing page with an offer, and they fill out a form that collects their information and moves them into your marketing funnel. Take great care when creating your CTAs, they are the spark that ignites the gasoline, propelling your inbound Ferrari down the road to success.
There is a lot of psychology behind why people click on things. For example, did you know that our brains perceive some buttons to be more clickable than others? Psychology like this can be used by smart marketers to develop campaigns that grab people’s attention more effectively. While each audience is different, and your buyer personas are going to be attracted to different CTAs than audiences from other verticals, but generalities do exist. Below are four tips on how the right button shape, color, copy, and placement can help skyrocket your click rates.
Size and Shape
There are four adjectives you should think about when creating a CTA button—big, rounded, tappable and tested. The most popular are rectangular buttons, but since our brains are programmed to shy away from pointy things, give that rectangle some nice rounded corners. Buttons should also be big enough so that they are easily tappable from mobile devices.
Attention Grabbing Color
Color is one of the biggest factors that cause people to either click on a CTA or not. In a survey by Kiss Matrics it says that 85% of people say color is the main reason they choose one product over another. There isn’t a magic color that converts people the best, so choose a color for your CTA button that stands out from your site design and grabs attention. Orange and blue are widely used and effective. You can also use a color that inspires an emotional response.
For example, everyone knows that green means “go” and that’s definitely a good thing when it comes to CTAs. It’s also the easiest color for the eye to process, it relaxes the mind and promotes growth. Orange is said to encourage immediate action and associated with inexpensive items and impulse decisions. Consider using orange when asking people to sign up, buy, or download now.
Clickable Language
A CTA is nothing without actionable copy. This is what moves someone to take action right away and directs them what to do next after they’ve read that piece of remarkable content. It should be irresistible and specific. Use “Download Free eBook” rather than “Click Here.” Also use active verbs like “Start” and “Get” to engage people. Simply adding the word “now” to a CTA button can boost conversion by creating a sense of urgency.
One recent study found a 90% better conversion rate using first-person language.
For example, “Start my free trial” instead of “ Start your free trial.”
Effective Placement
Each page and blog post should have one purpose. You don’t want CTAs competing for attention and confusing your site visitors. Make it crystal clear the action you want them to take. Placing CTA buttons above the fold will cause your visitors to see it even if they are quickly glancing at your page or email. Visitors spend almost 80% of their time above the fold, so placing a CTA in this area will allow you to catch the people who are ready to act now without forcing them to scroll to the bottom of your content.
Creating white space around your CTA will help it stand out from the rest of the page content. Simply add padding above and below the button, not so much that it looks awkward, just enough to give it some breathing room. This should attract the eye without making it feel cluttered or lost in too much white space.
Every website and group of buyer personas are different, so you’ll have to test all of the steps listed above. Test to find out which colors, type of language, and position on your site gives you a higher conversion rate. A/B test one variable at a time to find the optimal performance, do this and you’ll be on your way to increased leads and inbound success. For more information on how to increase your marketing leads using inbound marketing, download our free Inbound Marketing Guide.
