Are you looking for a way to optimize your conversion rates?
Now is the time to think about how to create effective call to action buttons. These buttons are probably the most important factor to convert visitors to your website into buyers.
To do this we need to write a word that encourages your prospects to enter and then progress in the conversion tunnel. But it’s not just wording. You need to create an atmosphere.
Follow our tips & tricks to create a great call to action button!
What Is A Call To Action?
In the world of internet marketing, calls to action are also known as CTA buttons or links placed on different pages of a website driving the visitor to preform an action. These buttons are commonly found on landing pages, category pages, product sale page, blog articles, pages of payment, etc…
Visually, the call to action guides your visitors through your website and tunnel conversion, telling them to take a specified action. This action can also encourage potential customers to:
- Fill out a form
- Read an article
- Share content on social networks
- Subscribe to a newsletter
- Buy a product
- Proceed to payment
In short, the call to action can be used wherever you want your visitor to perform a task. The Call-to-Action should be goal you wish to have accomplished by the visitor. If your goal is to have the visitor purchase something, than the Call-To-Action should make that possible or take them to the next step in the process. But visitors will not just click your Action, you have to Call them!
How to Create Better Calls To Action
We want the visitor to click the button but there are many reasons why this never happens. When creating a call to action we need to consider many aspects to optimize them. Not just the button, but everything surrounding that click.
Follow along with the list and check for mistakes.
1. CTA Button Size
Because the call to action must be one of the most visible elements on a web page, it must be big enough to get attention and not get lost in the content.
The rule is to give your button a size that makes sense. In other words, it must be large enough for visitors to your website to comfortably click on it, but not too imposing at the risk of appearing too teasing, artificial, or make it seem like your begging.
Since the majority of traffic now comes from mobile devices, no matter which size you choose, make sure it’s big enough to read, view, and click on a smartphone. A minimum size of 44 x 44 pixels is recommended for any clickable element.
2. CTA Color
To bring out your CTA and get the attention of the user, you need to create a contrast with the surrounding content.
For this, your call to action button must be colored. Preferably, forget about white, gray and black. Use a color that stands out, is catchy and consistent with your brand.
You can also consider using orange, red or green that would tend to convert better than other colors.
However, this decision-making will also depend (and especially!) On your website’s color scheme, existing design elements, and background color. The color you choose will work in conjunction with the colors of your website, or because it will contrast completely with the rest of the page.
If you have trouble figuring out which color gets the most attention, you can create several buttons and take the test at a glance. You can use a tool like Button Optimizer to create them quickly and then put them all side by side. Which one is the most noticeable? Which one stands out the most? Which one do you look at first?
3. CTA Button Contrast
To encourage the user to click on your call to action button, it is logical that they know that it is clickable. Yes, it sounds obvious, but to get more clicks, your button should look like … a button!
For this, choose a rectangular shape, delimit it with clear borders and surround it with white or empty spaces. If necessary, frame it to create more contrast.
4. Button Hover Effects
You can also create a hover to change the appearance of your button when hovering over the mouse:
- Color change
- Gray / sobering effect
- Size change
- Appearance of shading
5. Price Text
Try using different variations of the the way you display the price on the page. Know that there is a lot of psychology around CTA buttons and the prices they see before a buyer decided to add to cart.
Try some different ways to display price:
$9.99 -> 9.99 – Removing the currency symbol to disassociate the money from your hard earned dollars
$9.99 -> $ 9.99 – Placing a space between the currency symbol and the numbers.
$9.99 -> $9 – Remove the cents all together. Looks much cleaner and less confusing when trying to compare prices from a long list of items.
$9.99 -> 9.11 – Replace large numbers with smaller ones.
6. Button Placement on the page
Another consideration to consider when creating your call-to-action button is its placement in the page.
If your CTA Button is not in the right place at the right time you may miss a conversion. When your visitor is ready to act they should be able to access the Call-to-Action.
So where should you put your call button to action?
The answer is that it depends. Ideally, especially in the context of an e-commerce site, it must be present above the fold. But this is not always true, because its placement will depend mainly on the case.
Spotify action call button
On spotify.com, the CTA is placed at the top of the page and is simply supported by a “minimalist” design and a catchphrase.
In fact, to know the ideal location of your button in the page, you must take into account the position of your visitor in his shopping cycle and ask you if it corresponds to what your CTA offers at that time. Your intention is not to spam a potential customer with a call-to-action button that is not yet ready to click.
If your CTA button is about a particular offer, putting it at the end of a relevant blog post may for example be the best option for echoing the content that has just been consumed.
7. Surrounding Content
The call to action button may be a separate element in your page, it must be served, supported and consistent with the content around it.
However, do not bother to use excessive visual effects to direct the eyes of your visitors to your button. Avoid arrows and flashing elements.
Instead, bet on the sim-fold. Incorporating empty space around your CTA Button that will make it stand out from the rest of your content.
You can also use your content more subtly, for example by choosing images of people facing your button or looking in their direction, as in this example of Netflix:
Images of positive emotions, such as fun, can also help increase the click-through rate of your button.
Finally, support your call to action button with compelling messages. Around it, you can place reinsurance items, such as customer reviews, collateral (“no risk”, “no commitment”, “money back guarantee”, “and secure payment”) and promises of confidentiality.
8. CTA Text Wording
When writing the wording of your call-to-action button, the words really matter. Combined with good design, they can inspire people to take action.
In as fewest words possible. The wording of your call-to-action button must be a like knockout! It must be clear, clean, concise, precise and hard-hitting.
To achieve this, choose just a few words very carefully. Four or five words are enough, no more than 60 characters. If your CTA Button is more than 10 words, it will lose efficiency.
When users see your call-to-action button they should be ready to jump or ready to click. Your wording must be readable at a glance. If more than two seconds are needed to read it, it is too long and too late. You have lost all that momentum.
10. Action Verbs
Your call to action button should clearly describe the direction and decision you want your visitors to take.
To do this, avoid passive language, and favor action verbs that suggest momentum:
- Book
- See
- To start
- Rejoin
- Read
- Discover
- Get
- Try
Avoid friction verbs, which can make people hesitate and lack impulse and punch, such as “submit”, “order”, “Buy” or “save”. Your CTA should have the visitor suggest action as if it were obvious.
11. Emergency Call-to-Action
To give visitors the impression that they must act and make a decision quickly, a CTA can use urgency and scarcity.
This tactic is well known to marketers to trigger the fear of missing or missing an offer. This is what happens when a call to action button encourages “try it now,” or when a return account is triggered to show that the offer will soon expire.
Words like “now,” “today,” or “limited offer,” inserted into the wording of your call to action, stimulate people to take action. As long as people feel in a hurry, you have reached your goal.
12. Minimize Risk
Many visitors will have some level of confusion as to whether they should buy or opt in too your offer. Even if they are 90% sure they want it, an easy way to lock up their next action is to offer a risk free guarantee.
In your call to action or near you CTA button, you can use word “Guarantee” in order to reduce the risks perceived by the user. Offering any type of money back guarantee or free trial period helps convince the user that they’re taking little to no risk by clicking your call to action button.
13. Using the “I”
A call to action to the imperative gives a clear and direct command of what to do.
But you can consider abandoning the “you” or the infinitive, for the benefit of the “I”. It’s a good way to include your visitor, personalize their experience and make them feel they are in control of the process.
Some studies have shown that using the first person can increase conversion rates.
14. Offer Benefits and Value
To create a good call to action, do not forget to clearly present your offer’s value proposition in your wording with a few strategic words.
Avoid generic CTA buttons such as “click here” or “contact us”. Instead, tickle your visitor’s desire by clearly indicating that they will get something useful or enjoyable by clicking on your call to action button.
The more you describe the action you want your prospect to take and what they will get by clicking this button, the better. Get inspired by this example:
In this example, CTAs in the first column use an action-oriented verb, of course, but they tell visitors nothing about what they will get back after clicking. In the second column, they know the benefit they will get from their clicks: get a free guide, join the fun, stay connected…
Be creative! As long as your CTA directly reflects the message of the surrounding content or which preceded it, it will appear much more attractive to your potential customers. Your call to action button should resonate with your article or promotion, and invite the visitor to continue the journey and experience they have undertaken, like Booking:
Test Your Call To Action Button
Once you have implemented all these tips, nothing says that you have created the best CTA possible. There is no secret: the only way to find out is to test different variants!
Use A / B tests, dividing the number of impressions by the number of clicks, to evaluate the impact of changes to your CTA on conversion rates.
Try different messages, colors, sizes, designs, placements … they can all affect how your call to action button is viewed, interpreted and perceived.
Test one item at a time, until you find the most effective combinations. In many cases, even small changes can have a significant impact on conversion rates.
CTA Conclusion
In conclusion, if there are good practices, there is no magic formula to create a good call to action. No color, size, or text will certainly improve your conversions. You must choose elements that fit your niche and your audience.
It is also what surrounds your CTA button, the story you tell on your website, which will make the difference. All the elements that surround and lead to your call to action must build a kind of anticipation in the minds of your customers.
The effectiveness of your buttons does not only depend on your choice of words or color, but rather the promise made to your visitors that their situation will improve after clicking on it.
