How to Write an Effective Call to Action in Your Emails to Improve Your Marketing Performance
Like it or not, the purpose of your email marketing campaign is to convert your recipients into customers. It’s to get them to respond so that you can “close the sale” and turn leads into paying customers. That’s why you need to use a compelling call to action in your emails.
However, writing effective calls to action in your emails can be tough, but this post will give you the basics of what exactly a call to action is, as well as some tips on what to write and do in your emails to get the right response.
Let’s start with some basics.
What Is a Call to Action?
A call to action, or “CTA,” is the part of your email that tells your reader what they should do next. By including a CTA, you’re guiding your customers through actions that benefit them and your business. These actions can include:
- Signing up for classes
- Registering for events
- Making purchases
- Requesting more information
Now bear with us to discover some of the most effective approaches that can help improve marketing performance.
Most Effective Tips to Write & Integrate CTA in Your Emails For Optimal Marketing Performance
Here are some tips to help you write an effective call to action in your emails for high marketing performance:
- Know your goal
Be aware of your target audience — know their needs and desires to tailor the unique selling proposition (USP) that speaks most to what they want. Always consider the holistic (big picture) value proposition of your offer. The first thing to do when writing a CTA is that you must keep in mind what’s the objective you are writing it for. One of the most common mistakes that email marketers do is that they use irrelevant and nonappealing CTAs which result in poor marketing performance. Therefore, always make sure to know your goal and devise a CTA aligned to it.
2. Don’t be afraid to ask for action
Being confident about what you’re asking for as a hinge of uncertainty in your tone can have a huge impact on the reader. If you yourself are skeptical about the CTA then it won't function optimally. Be specific about what you want readers to do (subscribe, download, register, etc.). This way they know exactly what they’ll be doing after they click. Clarity means that the reader knows exactly what they need to do when they see your CTA. Don’t leave them guessing or lost in confusion about where they’re going next.
3. Keep it short, precise, and above the fold
Make sure your call to action is easy to see and understand at a glance. If it’s too wordy, confusing, or hidden in a bunch of text, people are less likely to click on it. Also, stay bold about your call to action. Don’t make it small and meek and hard to see! Make it stand out from the rest of the page so that people notice it right away.
Avoid generic words like “buy now” or “click here.” Get creative and use language that is specific to the message you’re sending. Also do get creative and use language that is specific to the message you’re sending. Don’t overwhelm readers with too much text — keep it short and simple.
Readers are more likely to click on a call to action if it’s paired with an image that increases brand awareness or demonstrates how the product works.
4. Match your CTA to what your offer
If you want to improve the overall marketing performance of your CTA then one of the best approaches is to stay in line with the objective and motivate the reader to click through on your call to action because you’ve given them something enticing in return for their time and effort.
5. Only include one CTA per email
Many companies make the mistake of including multiple CTA’s in an email. While they may get more clicks overall, there is a large chance that they won’t get as many conversions. Why? Because it becomes too confusing for the reader to choose which one to click on.
Only include one CTA per email. When you only have one CTA, your subscriber knows exactly what to do and will be more likely to take action.
The easiest way to implement this tip is to make all other links non-clickable and make the CTA link look different from other links.
6. Include urgency and scarcity when appropriate
Urgency and scarcity are two powerful elements of persuasion that can be effectively incorporated into CTAs. Most people don’t want to miss out on an opportunity or seem uninformed about a situation, so adding a sense of urgency or scarcity to your CTAs can be effective in generating leads.
The fear of missing out (FOMO) is a powerful motivator. In fact, the FOMO effect is often the difference between someone hitting “submit” on a form or closing the window. Explicitly adding scarcity and urgency to your call-to-action button can help push people over the edge.
Include a countdown timer on your landing pages. The user knows they have to act fast, or else they will miss out on the offer. The timer also increases their sense of urgency to buy now so they don’t miss out on an incredible value.
Conclusion
Whether you want your customers to sign up for a newsletter, download an app, or make a purchase, one thing is critical: getting them to take action. For that reason, creating an effective call to action in your next email campaign is a great way to improve your marketing performance. All the above-mentioned tips will help you make your CTAs a lot more appealing. Therefore, make sure to break down the components of a call to action and optimize it with these simple tips.
