How to write the best call-to-action phrases?

Think about the last time you subscribed to a service or app, what guided you so eloquently through your sign-up process?

It's likely the result of effective and strategic CTAs. Indeed, a series of strategic CTAs makes it clear to your visitors which action to take next and helps remove friction from your customer's journey.

If you're a product manager or marketer, you know how important it is to have a CTA that stands out and gets results.

What exactly goes into writing the best call-to-action phrases?

In this blog post, we'll break down the elements of a great CTA and give you some tips on how to write your own. So whether you're working on a new ad campaign or modernizing your website, these tips will help you write a CTA that gets results.

A great CTA is like a well-crafted piece of art. It takes time, effort, and a lot of revision to get right. But the payoff is worth it because a great CTA can make all the difference in whether or not your campaign is successful.

So let's get started!

What is a call-to-action (CTA)?

A call-to-action (CTA) is an imperative sentence that urges the reader, listener, or viewer of a piece of communication to take some immediate action.

It can be as simple as a word or phrase, like "Buy now" or "Sign up here." Or, it can also be more complex, like an image or a button.

It's important to remember that a CTA should be clear and concise so that your audience knows exactly what you want them to do.

Here are some basic elements of effective calls to action that help you to write the best call-to-action phrases.

Basic elements of effective calls to action

1. Strategic Placement

• The strategic placement of call-to-action buttons can make a big difference in whether or not website visitors take the desired action.
• Place your CTA close to your value proposition, unique selling points, or social proofs.
• This ensures your key CTA stands out and is more likely to be seen and clicked on by visitors without scrolling down the page

2. UI/UX Design

• The color of the button must contrast with your background to make it easy to locate
• If you have primary and secondary CTA, such as a free and paid plan sign-up button, make your primary CTA button pops off with a different brighter color

3. Benefit-oriented

• Give your visitors a reason why they should take the action
• For example, "Sign Up For Weekly Goodies", "Try 14 days Free", or "Review to Donate"

4. Actionable

• As the name suggests, the purpose of CTA is to encourage the user to take action
• Use action words such as ''learn more", "watch more", or "shop now"

5. Make it Short

• Good examples of effective CTA typically are no longer than 5 to 7 words

6. Sense of Urgency

• CTA that has a strong sense of urgency compels users to take action immediately before they forget or put off the action
• For example, "get today's deals", "limited time offer", or "limited editions"

Analyze your CTA in a matter of seconds

You can analyze your CTA performance using Howuku "Events" feature and get your CTA insights in a matter of seconds.

Howuku automatically tracks all actions taken by your web visitors. You can create no-code events simply by entering the button text you want to analyze and you will see related data instantly. Note: The button text Howuku is tracking is case-sensitive.

Not sure what to analyze? Howuku will suggest the popular events that are generating clicks on your website to help you identify what events on your website engage the most with your visitors.

Get Comprehensive Insights That Tell the Whole Story

You can see which days your events are getting more clicks, which sources or marketing campaigns bring you more engaged visitors as well as a detailed list of your engaged visitors from the event performance.

Click on the visitor's ID and drill down to see the full list of activities your visitors are doing on your website.

Watch session replays to find out what are the causes of friction that make your visitors leave your flow or learn more about your ideal visitors who completed the desired action.

Pro tip: You can filter recordings by events as well to watch only the sessions that contain certain key events to get insights quicker.

Events Use Cases

Marketers - create no-code events almost instantly and see how your visitors from different sources or campaigns interact with your CTA.

UX Professionals - see how your users interact with the key elements of your page, and identify the causes of friction in your flow.

Product Managers - get insightful data based on your requirement with the use of custom properties and customs events. Find your ideal power users and learn from their behavior.

Conclusion

In conclusion, if you want to write a great call to action, you need to be clear, concise, and persuasive.

You can do that by offering your readers something they can’t refuse and doing it in a way that will make them want to take action.

Keep these tips in mind and you’ll be well on your way to writing a great call to action that will help you achieve the desired results. So don’t wait – get writing and see the amazing results for yourself!

If you have any questions or would like help crafting the perfect call to action, contact me – I’d be happy to help!