Smart Marketing: Call to Action Ideas

One of the most annoying things about surfing the internet these days is the over-use of flashy, in your face advertisements.  You go to YouTube to watch a video and it forces you to sit through a 30 second advertisement that isn’t even related to the video you want to watch.  The problem here is the outbound approach to marketing that many businesses around the world are currently using.  But statistics prove that this movement is slowly causing the US population to tune out advertising of all kinds, including commercials on radio and TV, billboards, and internet pop-ups.

With the inbound approach to marketing, customers are seeking out your business.  This allows the small business to save money in the long run because they are not paying high advertisement fees.  If you want your small business to effectively use smart marketing, you need to add Calls to Action to your web page.

A Call to Action, or C2A, is a link on one page of your website that takes users to a new landing page with information that they are interested in.  Here are some tips on creating compelling C2As:

If you wouldn’t click on it, other users probably won’t click on it either.  Take this concept and apply it when you are designing your C2As.  Also, make the entire C2A button clickable.  Users are not going to click five places before finding the right place to click on a larger button.  They will simply move on a lose interest, exactly the opposite of what you want them to do.  So, make the whole button clickable, not just certain parts that say “Click Here!”

Everyone loves free things, so offering a free service with a C2A is a perfect opportunity to implement smart marketing techniques.  If your small business doesn’t offer free services, this would be a good time to think of simple things to offer potential clients.  Free services range from consultations, tips, e-books and white papers – all of which will increase traffic, which in turn will increase conversion rates.

Ask yourself this: why are customers coming to your site?  If they are trying to solve a problem, then make sure your C2A leads them to a solution.  It should be obvious what you are trying to promote with your C2A.  But in the same respect, don’t go with the obvious “Click here!” gimmick.  Make it interesting, creative and pleasing to the eye.