Different calls to action (CTAs) ask for different levels of commitment from your website users.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Here are some examples:\u00a0<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
“Read the next blog post” asks for more of their time.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\u00a0“Follow me on social” asks for more of their time and attention on an ongoing basis in the future but in a non-committal way.\u00a0<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
“Sign up for the email newsletter” asks for their time and attention but also asks for a bit more of a commitment. <\/p>\n
Being on your email list means you can get in touch with them and they will be personally identifiable in your audience when they give you that information.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
“Buy now” asks for their money or commitment of their resources. They generally give you time, attention, and personal information as part of that commitment as well.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Different actions people take on your website or to engage with your business change the status of their relationship with you. <\/p>\n
A “buy now” button seems simple enough, but if someone buys from you, they become a customer or client rather than a part of your audience.\u00a0<\/p>\n
So different calls to action are associated with different relationships with your business. I call these different levels of calls to action.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Here’s something critical: using different levels of calls to action throughout your website can increase your visitor’s trust. <\/p>\n
If you only ask them to buy but don’t offer actions that require less commitment, they may not stick around long enough to build that trust. Offering CTAs that don’t require commitment or money can help people engage with you long enough to trust you for those deeper commitments. Like buying.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Ok, let’s look at some common of calls to action for the different levels of CTAs:<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
“Buy Now” generally asks your website visitor to become a customer or client.This is a direct sale call to action.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
If the visitor hasn’t purchased before, they are committing resources to your offer or product – their time, money, attention, and trust.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
If they have purchased before, you’re asking them to increase the investment they’ve made in your business. It’s not something to take lightly, because breaking that trust will destroy that relationship you were trying to build.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
When you place a “Buy Now” button on your site, consider the structure of support you have in place for your visitor to become a customer. The rest of your content around this kind of call to action can increase your visitor’s trust.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\u00a0When you give people reasons to trust your business and your offer or product to solve their problem it will help your visitors to feel comfortable purchasing from you. The CTA works together with the rest of your website to benefit your visitor and your business.<\/p>\n
For product-based businesses, here are some common CTAs for getting the sale:<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
You may want to customize them to your business and your products, but be careful to keep your CTAs clear (first priority), and then as brief as possible.<\/p>\n
For local retail businesses who don’t sell items from your site, your CTAs may look like asking people to take physical action:<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
For service-based businesses, instead of allowing purchases on your website, you may have CTAs like:<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Some of these may require the visitor to pay or commit money, while others may lean more to generating leads, which is what we are talking about next.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Another CTA that can be in-between sales and leads is “Download the app.” If you have a business with an app, having a website visitor download it can be a great way to stay in front of them as well as to have them purchase. You’ll likely use the app to stay in touch in a variety of ways.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
A Lead is an identifiable part of audience. You are asking them to give you permission to get in touch with them in the future. It’s a commitment of their time and attention and personal information.\u00a0<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
However, the most valuable leads are the ones that engage with you by giving you their time and attention, not just an email address. They are the ones who are most likely to move up to committing more resources – like money- for you to help them solve their problems. They might turn into customers or clients.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Common calls to action moving a visitor to a lead for your business are:<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Signing up for email or text messaging is one of the most common calls to action on websites. Having visitors give you access to their time and attention over time is valuable.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Some people prefer to allow visitors to sign up if they wish but offer no incentive to do so. They feel more authentic with this method, and they feel like their audience is more engaged.\u00a0<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Other businesses offer visitors something in exchange for their email address, typically known as a lead magnet.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sometimes it can be hard to know what to offer in exchange for people signing up for your email or text message marketing. Here are some ideas:<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
For online service providers, you could offer a lead magnet such as a quiz, template or pdf download, or ebook.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
For online stores, a coupon, freebie, free shipping, or rewards program can be a good incentive to provide you with their email address.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Whatever you choose, make sure it feels appropriate and authentic to your brand and serves your audience as well.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The next type of call to action allows people to become part of your audience but not in an identifiable way. They give you their attention and a way to stay in touch but only as a general part of your audience.\u00a0<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
There is less commitment in this type of call to action. So it can be used in a way to move someone a small step forward in their journey with you when they feel like giving you their email address or phone number is too much.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Examples of these types of calls to action are: follow me on social media, listen or subscribe to my podcast, or subscribe to my YouTube channel.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
You can ask someone to keep giving you their time and attention in the current moment by using calls to action to keep them engaged on your website or social posts. Links to other posts or pages on your site can keep them engaged longer on your site and deepen your relationship without asking for a deeper commitment, even one as small as following you on social. You are still building trust with someone if they are continuing to engage with your content.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Examples of these calls to action are:\u00a0<\/p>\n