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How Call to Actions (CTAs) Optimize Conversion in Your Marketing Offer and Sales Funnel
Sometimes incredible content just doesn’t get the conversions we want.
You have a great offer, articulated it well, designed it beautifully, so what’s going wrong?
A common mistake is neglecting or misusing a CTA.
One of the best ways to improve conversions throughout your entire sales funnel is with a call to action (CTA).
Simply put, the CTA is what you are asking your audience to do. It could be to “order your X today” or “book your breakthrough call,” but the key is that the CTA should align with the intent of your audience.
It may be tempting to provide options, but ultimately you should only leverage one CTA at a time. Be crystal clear about the action they should take.
But it’s not enough to just throw a “buy now” button on everything. To truly improve your conversions, you must use CTAs strategically.
That’s right, there are different types of CTAs, and different times to use each.
- Power and Action Words: It’s not just about what you say, it’s also about how you say it. Use power and action words to trigger action. Even swapping out one word to be more actionable can increase conversions.
- Example: switch “order information now” to “get information now”
- Benefit-Focused: Benefit-focused CTAs articulate just why the target audience should do something. Why should they download your eBook? How will it benefit them? Including the benefit in the CTA gets people thinking about what they have to gain and why they should proceed.
- Example: Unlock Marketing Secrets by Downloading the Free Workbook!
- Scarcity: Scarcity is all about letting people know your offer is for a limited time. It makes it seem like there’s a short supply, and if they don’t act quickly, it will run out. This creates a sense of urgency and can help trigger conversions.
- Free: People love free things. Emphasize anything free in your offer. Maybe what you want at that stage of the funnel is the person to set up a meeting. Position your CTA to reflect that this meeting is a great opportunity for free information or advice. The same goes for downloadables, or even paid offers that include a free bonus.
- Example: Schedule Your Free Consultation
- First-Person: Writing CTAs in the first person helps the audience feel more connected. It creates a sense of ownership and personalization.
- Example: instead of “order the book” try “send me my copy!”
Using Call to Actions in Funnels for Upsells and Downsells
CTAs can also help you increase conversions with upsells or down-sells. Imagine that you offer three different coaching courses. One is a basic class for $150, the second is a middle-tier course for $350, and the last is an expert course for $750.
A prospect in your sales funnel expresses interest in the middle class. An upsell would be convincing them to opt for the expert (and more expensive) course. On the other hand, if the customer seemed unable to commit to the mid-tier course, you could down-sell by offering the less expensive beginner course to convert them into a paying customer.
However, to properly use CTAs to upsell or down-sell, you must understand the customer funnel journey in depth.
What you need to know is that you should not try to upsell or down-sell at any random stage in the customer journey. Upselling and down selling won’t come into play until customers are at the bottom of the funnel, and ready to negotiate.
Value stacking is a helpful strategy for moving customers through the funnel and closer to your offer. It’s about offering something free of value to warm up prospects. For example, you may use a free lead magnet to garner contact details, which you can then use to continue communicating with the prospect.
Showing benefits is also an important part of upselling and down selling. Emphasize how the offer benefits the prospect. For an upsell, it may be added features or more depth. For a down-sell it may be the affordability and chance to really try things out before committing to a higher price tag.
Using Call to Actions in Email Campaigns
One of the most prominent places to use CTAs is in your email campaigns. Every email should have a clear CTA, that suits the goal of the campaign.
Let’s take a look at the different types of email campaigns and some example CTAs:
- Welcome & Fulfillment Emails: These are the first emails you send after a customer signs up for your newsletter. Here you will thank them and begin building a relationship. The CTA will depend on your offer, but some examples include:
- Download Our Free Style Guide
- View Our Latest Collection
- Onboarding Emails: Onboarding helps ensure customers get the most out of the service they pay for. If you offer a long course, then onboarding will include several emails. The CTA should relate to the content and intent of the email. Here are some examples:
- Click Here to Login to Your Account
- Check Your Progress (or Check My Progress)
- Newsletters: A good old newsletter is about sharing the latest updates and announcements like new blog posts, deals/sales, events, company changes, etc. Example CTAs include:
- Save 25% Now
- Get Information About X (blog topic)
- Reserve Your Spot Today
- Promotions: Promotional emails help to push prospects closer to the offer. An example is a cart abandonment email, where the email automatically goes out when people leave unpurchased items in their cart.
- Complete My Purchase
- Keep Shopping Now
Design and Content
What your CTA says certainly matters, but the design is another huge part of garnering conversions. You want a CTA that invites and triggers a behavior. It should be bold and stand out from the rest of the content while still suiting the overall design.
When it comes to creating a well-designed CTA, both the appearance and the content matter. Design and content are two critical elements of all content, including your CTAs. But which comes first? Should you craft your CTA graphic button first or write it out? Ultimately, design and content go hand in hand, especially when your CTA is one part of a larger piece of content.
Engage 2 Engage is Here to Help!
When it comes down to it, asking your prospects to do something is one of the most effective ways to get them to do it. Yet, you must ask the right way. The CTA must align with the audience intent and funnel stage. This is why well-written, well-designed CTAs are so effective.
But when it comes to crafting compelling CTAs, it’s often easier said than done. It takes a lot more thought and time than people realize, and that’s why we’re here to help.
Engage 2 Engage is dedicated to helping small businesses and entrepreneurs implement successful marketing strategies to grow their businesses. Our team of experts is here to help you with every aspect of marketing, including CTAs. Click to learn more about our programs and which service is right for you!
