You’re sending out newsletters, participating on social media sites, and generally putting yourself out there for folks to find you. Your marketing machine is in full swing and people are coming to your website. Great! So, now what do you want them to do?
A website, like any other informational piece, needs to lead viewers in a direction—a direction you want them to take. If you sell products online, you want people to buy your items. If your site functions as a marketing piece, you probably want people to contact you or sign up for your newsletter or subscribe to your blog.
The best way to make sure visitors do these things is to clearly call out what you want them to do. This is a “call to action.” This can be many things:
- Get my free report.
- Sign up for a free chat.
- Apply for a discovery session.
- View my work.
Ask yourself what the number one goal of your website is, then make sure to call your visitors to action in a prominent and eye-catching way. Your call to action could be a statement at the bottom of each page prompting viewers to call you, an opt-in form for a free gift in the header with some compelling copy, or even a combination of the two. Or, maybe you want to send folks over to your blog and have them subscribe.
On her new website, Lissa Boles wants to take viewers to her blog or have them learn about her services. We developed a call to action at the bottom of her landing pages to give viewers a choice of where to go next.
Hazlehurst House, a historic event facility in Metro Atlanta, wants their visitors to call them or schedule an appointment using their online form. So, we prominently display a bright banner on the site with their phone number and link to their schedule an appointment form. This banner is on the home page and at the top of every other page.
This concept applies to smaller or secondary calls to action on your site as well. Instead of simply linking some text for people to download a recording or go deeper into your site, use a nice button or icon. Making these items stand out will help visitors get where they need to go, and they’ll have a great user experience on your site.
Initials, Inc., a party plan company that sells personalized gifts, wants visitors to connect with one of their consultants when they want to host a party. We made it super clear how to do this with fun buttons.
Whatever your goal is, make sure it stands out in a big way so people know exactly what step to take. Your viewers will thank you.
How are you calling your viewers to action? Please share your methods in the comments below.
