Businesses today need more than a webpage, they need to create an experience that turns leads into loyal customers. A custom website, with well-thought-out call-to-action messages, will capture a viewer’s attention and nurture that lead. We’ve put together this article to show why that works and how to incorporate CTAs that get real results.
Why Call-to-Action Placement Matters
Did you know that visitors to your website make a judgment call in the first 50 milliseconds? This is one of the reasons website design is so important. Viewers judge your business very quickly, and their attention is either captured or drawn elsewhere. If they’re brought in, what are they going to do next?
Your call to action is the opportunity to tell your visitors what the next step is. If they’ve read to the bottom of an informative page, tell them to click to sign-up for your newsletter. If they’re on a product page, you’ll want to tell them how they can buy the product they’re looking at. What your CTA is and where it’s placed makes a huge difference to the customer experience.
How To Know What the Next Step Is
With a product page, a button to purchase the product is a natural CTA. But what is a good next step for someone just arriving on the homepage of your site? Or coming to a blog post from a search engine? Or arriving from social media?
These questions make it clear that you need to think about your customer’s journey. When they went to a search engine for information on how to repair their oven, your blog told them how. The next thing they might need is a link to a product page with the replacement part. Where did the visitor come from, and what do they need next?
7 Ways To Incorporate Call-to-Action Messages on Your Custom Website
One of the reasons businesses choose to hire website designers is so they can experiment with what their audiences respond to. This means they can create a giant yellow button that says “Buy now!” They can then test to see if a red button that says “Add to Cart” improves their conversions and leads to more sales.
The online marketplace is an exciting opportunity for experimentation and learning about what your audience responds well to. There are probably countless ways that a creative designer may come up with building compelling and effective CTAs on your site. Here are just some of the ideas that have proven to be effective today:
1. A Pop-Up on Arrival
When a customer first arrives on your homepage, they aren’t going to be ready to buy yet. They are at the top of your sales funnel. They’re interested, but not going to put their credit card information into your website. However, this can be a good time for your first exchange with the potential customer.
This is where a timed pop-up can be useful. For example, 30 seconds after arriving, a pop-up appears offering them a discount with a CTA button that says “Continue.” They need to put in their name and email address, and you’ll give them this discount if they purchase. Now, you can email them the code, warming them up to make a purchase.
2. Main Navigation Bar
The beauty of the main navigation bar up at the very top of your site is that it’s always available no matter what page they’re on. Most internet users now take for granted that if they want your main offer, they’ll find it there. This could be a simple “Contact Us” link.
Other options for this space include “Sign-up For A Free Trial!”, “Start Your Membership Today!”, and “Call Us At 888-888-8888!”. This way, no matter what page they’re on, they’ll always know how to take an easy next step. Your CTA here should open a line of communication moving forward if they decide they’re done viewing your site.
3. Strong Hero Images
What would someone first arriving on your homepage be interested in seeing? And what would you like them to do next? Your hero image is the main featured picture that appears first on the main page of your website. A viewer may want to naturally browse your collections at this point.
For example, people arriving on a bookstore’s website would love a large and colorful hero image showing off new books. That image may include a short phrase like “Shop now!” or “Click to see our top picks!”. The CTA then links them to a browsing category page where they can shop for new books.
4. Push Notifications
This is another option for a CTA that can appear when first arriving on your business website. The sign-up pop-up can ask them to enable push notifications so they can be notified of new product drops. They just have to click the link that says, “I’m in!”.
Push notifications are growing in popularity, in large part due to their effectiveness. Businesses have seen a 30% click-through rate with these, which is something worth considering.
5. At the Ends of Content Pages
Maybe you have a blog, an instruction page on how to use your product, or an about page. At the bottom of a few paragraphs of content, you can include a call-to-action message. On an about page, it may make sense to tell them to learn more about your products by browsing. Since they’ve shown interest, you could also ask them to call you to schedule an appointment.
You’ll have to think about why the viewer decided to read the content on that page. Once they’ve gotten to the bottom, what makes the most sense for them as a next step? Do they now have instructions on how to match high heels to any dress? Link them to your category page for dresses.
6. A CTA in Your Category Page
This is a less traditional but definitely fun option and one that you’ll only be able to put together with a custom website. Say you love the idea of your customers signing up for your newsletter to get a discount. Viewers are not really clicking to do that when they first arrive on your main page. They aren’t invested enough yet to give up their email.
On a category page, you can put the same offer in the middle of the page, surrounded by photos of your products. This way, the customer is looking at what you have for sale and a discount offer at the same time. They enter their email, click the “Give me my discount!” button, and get an email with a code that expires in 24 hours. They now have some urgency pushing them to buy the products they were browsing as soon as possible.
7. Your Blog’s Sidebar
This is a good space to write a more detailed call to action. Do you have something you want to tell them more about? For example, do you have a rewards program or newsletter you want them to sign up for?
You can write a one to three-sentence paragraph detailing what benefits the program has. Below this, you can include a button with your shorter CTA. An example paragraph could be, “Free rewards program! Earn 30 points with every purchase + a sign-up bonus valued at $25!”. Then the bright and large button could say, “Yes! Sign me up!”.
It’s no secret that online sales are a lot more competitive today than they were 20 years ago. Today, small businesses have to elevate their website, copy, and advertising to see the results they dream of. As digital marketing experts, we’ve seen how details like quality calls-to-action turn casual traffic into real customers. Contact Next Level Media Crew to schedule a strategy call for your business.
