7 CTA Mistakes That Kill Your Conversion Rate.

Are you sometimes wondering if your CTAs aren’t wearing caps of invisibility? They go unnoticed; they don’t convert. Why? We examine the most common CTA mistakes, starting from a popular misconception that CTAs should be short. Then we will talk about what lowers button visibility, matching the message to the recipient, and testing.

Win Zero Moment of Truth. Download free ebook and learn how to obtain customer reviews, tap into pre-shopping and Real-Time Marketing.

1. You’re too concise

Many marketers believe that less is more when it comes to CTAs. They reduce the number of words, so they try to slim it down at any cost. However, too short CTA can backfire because it doesn’t deliver the needed information. The sole “Buy” or “Register” CTA doesn’t tell you what will your get or what will happen after you click, on the contrary to longer copy.

Compare CTAs listed below:
– Register now [concise CTA]
– Register now to get 20% off [longer CTA]
– Register now. Get 20% discount for the Conference [CTA with a subtext].

Lengthy copy explains why to click. See the 2 below:
– I download
– I download my free ebook

The latter allows putting more persuasive words (“my”, “free”) in the CTA.

Conclusion? Give longer CTAs a try.

2. CTA makes no sense outside the context

When you carefully craft each line of your message or landing page, you assume that your reader will devote the same attention to the text. Unfortunately, it won’t happen. People don’t read on the internet; they scan. So actually they will read your headline and the CTA, maybe they’ll take a look at a bulleted list. Hence, you must encapsulate all the vital information in the headline and CTA, so a user can decide whether she is interested in your offer pretty quick.

In other words: imagine that your visitor sees only the headline and the CTA. Are they informative enough?

Don’t treat it as a limitation to your creative freedom. It’s not about producing dry, descriptive copy, but if you think up a fancy headline, balance it with more informational CTA, or the other way round. But these 2 must be understandable and clear even without the context.

Also, be sure that your headline matches CTA. Do they refer to the same problem and communicate the same benefit?

3. Your CTA doesn’t catch eye

An efficient CTA works like a magnet. It must be distinctive and shouts, “HERE I AM! CLICK ME!”
To achieve that, focus not on the button’s color, but on the contrast. No secret color makes a button more visible. The secret lies in contrasting it with the background. Also don’t distract users with too many messages surrounding the button. Use white space to make CTA more visible.

Maybe a striking button is less pretty than a cohesive design of the whole page, but be ready to sacrifice aesthetics for a clear message and conversion.

Take also a closer look at the size of the button – is it big enough? Maybe it’s tiny and visitors can’t find it? Test your creation with a larger button and see if it performs better.

4. You hide your CTA

If you tend to place your button on the bottom of your website or landing page or email creation (because you assume that user will read it through and then click), you might kill your conversion rates.

CTA should be put above the fold, so a user sees it before she starts scrolling down. If your landing page is long, you can put 2 buttons or try scrollable button.

5. You don’t test

A/B testing is a key to successful marketing. Test:
– Length of the copy
– Size of a button
– Place of the button
– Given copy.

6. CTA doesn’t match the audience

No campaign can work if you choose recipients badly (or don’t choose them at all, adapting “spray and pray” paradigm; it’s the same as wrong choice). You create a given campaign with a precisely defined group of audience in mind, like people on a particular stage of the sales funnel, or sharing the same interests, or with the same scoring.

Selects recipients of a given campaign (Marketing Automation platform will help) and tailor CTA to their needs: think about benefits you offer and language you speak. If you send a campaign to fresh leads don’t use complicated words and don’t expect actions for which they’re not ready.

7. You underuse CTAs

CTA should be at the heart of every single campaign and creation you set. It’s not restricted to landing pages or email marketing. Put it on banners, in social media, in your blog posts.

Each campaign you design should have a definite aim. What do you want to achieve? What user will get from it? Present that in a form of a CTA.

To sum up

When crafting your CTA, remember:
– Don’t be afraid of longer copy. Instead of shortening your CTA by force, make sure that all necessary information is included.
– Assume that your user is lazy or busy. She reads the headline and the CTA only. Does your creation still make sense if she reads only that and scans the rest? Does she get immediately what you want her to do and what do you offer?
– Make it super-easy to find the button. Make it big and use contrast.
What CTA mistakes annoy you most? Share in comments!