How to Beef Up Your Wimpy Call-to-Action

Everyone knows you need to have a call to action (CTA) on your website and marketing materials. Otherwise, what’s the point, right? But not all calls to action are equal. Some are much better than others.

Take a look at your website and online marketing campaigns before reading this article. Then decide if your calls to action are too wimpy. Consider the following areas for how to beef them up if they need a little work.

Make it Stand Out

In general, people have very short attention spans. Most of the time, people skim through everything they read online. This is why your call to action needs to stand out. Make it larger, use a different color, or a prominent placement.

You may find pop-ups or pop-overs on a website annoying, but there’s a reason they’re so common: they work. They grab your attention away from the rest of the page.

Get Specific

A vague CTA is confusing and ineffective. If a prospect is confused, or unsure about what will happen next, they won’t take action.

Let’s look at an example: getting website visitors to sign up for your email list. Which option do you think will work better?

1. “Sign up for our email newsletter!”
2. “Top 10 tools to make you more productive. Enter your email to download now!”

The second option is much more specific, and tells you exactly what you’ll get when you put in your email address.

Make it an Easy "Yes"

The CTA at each stage of your marketing funnel should be an easy “yes.” Guide people through your funnel by making each next step a no-brainer.

You wouldn’t ask someone to marry you on the first date. It’s the same principle with marketing. It’s pointless to try to sell a high-ticket offering directly to someone you just met on social media.

Build trust with prospects by delivering value at each small “yes.” An example of this might look like:

1. Someone sees the headline for your blog post on social media: They “say yes” and click to read the article.
2. After reading the article, they see you have a free download available. They “say yes” and sign up to download it.
3. The download was helpful to them, and they find out you have a book for sale. They “say yes” and buy your book.
4. The book gave them great insight, and they want to work with you more. They “say yes” and fill out an application to hire you as a consultant.

Test and Revise

One great thing about digital marketing is that nothing is set in stone. You can constantly test out new ideas, and make small changes.

This can be paralyzing for some, because there are infinite possibilities. It’s important to simply get started. Try a new idea, then change it if it’s not working. You can even try a couple of ideas at the same time with A/B testing.

Create small experiments to try new ideas. Give your plan a set time limit, for example 6 weeks. Track the outcome of your plan then decide if you want to move on to some other idea.

Conclusion

Look over your digital marketing at a high level. Identify your calls to action and ask yourself:

1. Does it stand out and grab attention?
2. Is it specific enough?
3. Is this an easy “yes” or are you asking for too much at this stage?