Call to Action or CTA

What does call to action mean? 

Call to Action or CTA as it’s called in the marketing world is the next step a marketer wants their audience to take after perusing their webpage, ad, social media post or event. CTAs can be dem=noted by buttons or plain text links prompting the audience to take some desired action. CTAs can be broadly categorized as direct or soft, depending on the marketing goal and customer journey stage where the CTA is used: 

• Direct CTAs like talk to sales, buy now or subscribe now that prompt immediate action 
• Soft CTAs like Read more, download now, learn more designed to deepen customer engagement 

Calls to action also differ by the medium they are used on. For example, a TV advertisement may end with a CTA to call a 1-800 number whereas a brochure for a non-profit carries a CTA to “donate now.” 

With the definition of CTA sorted, let’s move to the best practices to design effective CTAs. 

How to design effective CTAs 

CTAs that drive action typically show some common characteristics, including: 

• Eye-catching design: Bold colors and typography on CTA buttons grab eyeballs and attract more clicks than plain, boring ones. 
• High visibility: CTAs should be placed prominently and carry larger, bolder font than body content to stand out on cluttered platforms. 
• Clear benefit: CTA caption should denote clear benefit from clicking the button. “Grab 50% discount” is more effective than “Save money.” 
• Creates urgency: Using catch phrases like “Exclusive Offer” and “Limited seats available” create FOMO in readers and drive immediate action.