The Offer They Can’t Refuse

When using email to communicate with your readers, there are many ways to engage and inspire. Imagery, text, offers, charts, and links help differentiate your campaigns and pique subscribers' interest, but getting them to open your email is only half the battle. The next step is to inspire action through a compelling and powerful call to action (CTA). When it comes time to plan your next campaign, follow these tips to incorporate action-inspiring CTAS into your emails the right way (and avoid the wrong way). THE OFFER THEY CAN'T REFUSE DOS AND DON' TS FOR A SUCCESSFUL CALL TO ACTION GETTING THE CLICK A really great CTA will balance your goals alongside the needs of your subscriber. Because your ultimate goal is to persuade the reader to click, your CTA should compel your subscribers to do something-make a purchase, register for a webinar, request Information, visit a website-while simultaneously communicating value. Tall order? Perhaps, but it's not as hard as you might think. 1 FORMAT 2 LANGUAGE THE RIGHT WAY CTAS can be text- or image-based, and buttons often perform better than text links. Whichever you choose, be sure there is a relevant To encourage conversions, use language that is simple and straightforward. Tell your readers exactly why they should click, and do so. what they will get a download, landing page, form, or other destination behind the click. Buttons can be more than a rectangle containing text, they can also be other shapes, images, or anything that is obviously 'clickable. Get Started Today after theye Use strong action-oriented verbs and add a sense of urgency. CTAS should be direct and answer "what?" "why?" and "when?" in seconds. 3 CONTENT The Kitchen Supply Co. 4 SIZE SHOP NEW SALE The content of your message should be engaging and encourage the reader to act. The body of your message should support the CTA. Craft design elements to help lead the reader's eye toward your CTA. Readers typlcally scan an email quickly rather than reading each word, so making your CTA prominent is imperative. Make sure the button is big enough to stand out without being overpowering. Text size is also vital; choose a font that Is legible and properly sulted to the size and color of the button itself. Exclusive Offer: FREE SHIPPING • SHOP NOW 9. 5 COLOR 5. Free gift Save $25 today only Use color to draw attention to your ADD TO CART W ADD TO CART W 6 PLACEMENT Hand dags CTA by designing it in color to the background. Also consider how well the color fits in contrasting The most effective location for a CTA button is often above the fold, or the part of the page that is visible before the user is required to scroll. Placing the CTA higher in your design gives you the opportunity to draw a response from readers who are too busy to scroll to the bottom or thoroughly read your email. with your color palette and the theme of your email. SHOP NOW Etc. Watches SHOP ETC. WATCHES TREAT YOURSELF! REPETITION Repeating the CTA gives the suggestion more weight. Offer multiple opportunities for the reader to click-through in your message by strategically scattering clickable elements throughout the email. Make sure that logos, SHOP NOW Etc. Watches ► SHOP ETC. WATCHES 8 WHITE SPACE TREAT YOURSELF! Call more attention to your CTA by balancing the size of the button with an appropriate amount of negative space surrounding it. Place other images or text further away from the CTA to give it much Images, headlines, and products link to approprlate landing pages to maximize conversion rates. A deserved individual attention. Buttons with NO arrows Buttons WITH arrows 10 BULLETPROOF BUTTONS 13.6% 17.1% 4.9% WHITE BUTTON: WHITE BUTTON: While image-based buttons may command higher click rates, image blocking (a default setting on many email clients) may mean your SHOP BUTTON: 4% SHOP BUTTON: 9 ICONS AND IMAGES Incorporating visual cues in your CTAS can help Increase conversion rates. For examples, a shopping added to an "add to cart" beautifully designed button is invisible to the user. Combat image blocking blocking by using a "bulletproof" button tochnlau technique: combine HTML text. and preserve your CTA Through A/B testing done in conjunction with Digital Evolution Group, Helzberg Diamonds discovered that readers were MORE LIKELY to click when an arrow icon cart Icon button is both helpful and recognizable. Adding icons to both text links and buttons can background colors, and background images to create a button that will be visible even when Images are disabled. When in doubt, always Include alt text as a back-up maximize the user experience and encourage clicks. was added to their buttons. precaution. 10 Images are not displayed. Images On Display Images below - Always display Images from [email protected] No Image BULLETPROOF BULLETPROOF 10 No tmage 1 CONTENT 2 LANGUAGE THE WRONG WAY Be sure your CTA follows through on promises made in your subject line, headlines, and body copy. Use subscriber-friendly language and avoid unfamiliar names, abbreviations, or potentially offensive terms. Instead, match the tone of your CTA to the tone of your email. Avoid using passive voice. While "click here" may seem sufficient, it doesn't explain the benefit of clicking and doesn't encourage your reader to take action. To successfully persuade the viewer to click, create a sense of urgency by mentioning a limited time offer. ll | 2:50 3 SIZE Shoe Lover 4 ICONS AND IMAGES Appropriate sizing of a CTA Is imperative. A button that is too large will overpower everything else around it. A button that is too small Follow standard conventions, and CLICK HERE! avoid adding images that are unfamiliar to your reader or icons that fail to further clarify the purpose link not found may get lost. Your button should be large enough to stand out without overwhelming the design and other of the button or link. content. € 6 MISSING LINK Viewers often click on logos, products, Images, and brand names. Link appropriate pages to each of these items or risk 5 PLACEMENT If you plan on having multiple CTAS in one email, avoid placing similarly styled buttons close to each other. Offering too many options may confuse or overwhelm the reader, so make It clear what you want the subscriber to do. frustrating users and missing click opportunities. 8 TIRED AND UNTRUE Don't get in a rut. Run simple A/B split tests on buttons and links to test language, colors, graphics, and more. Try action-based vs. value-based CTAS, passive vs. active language, or different placement strategies. 7 MOBILE Remember your mobile audience. Buttons should be touchable and at least 44x44 plxels for your campalgn to be mobile friendly and fat finger-proof. SOURCES: FULCRUMTECH.NET I BLOG.EXACTTARGET.COM I HONGKIAT.COMI CRAZYEGG.COM I LYRIS.COM I DIGITALEV.COM litmus