Design Great CTA or Call To Action

If you're marketing anything online with the hope of selling it, then you need to have a great Call to Action, or CTA, which it's usually called.

What makes a good CTA?

One that is not click here-do something for me.

You know, that's the one we unfortunately end up putting in our newsletters, websites, and blog posts because we're in a hurry or tired or not very imaginative.

How to Make a Good CTA

Put the focus on what you want to give the person reading your newsletter or blog post...what you want to share with the reader.

You want to give them some information that might be useful or helpful in some way to them. You want to share something interesting, something they might want to know...something that will excite them.

If the reader is already a newsletter subscriber or blog follower, then you want to reward them in some way.

Bad CTA: "Buy my book that was released today!"

Good CTA: "Want a free sample of my latest book? Here's how you can get it." (Embed the link to your NL or blog or webpage where the sample is contained in the last sentence.)

Good CTA: "My latest book contains my family recipe for Chicken Enchiladas. If you want that  recipe now, here's how you can get it for free." (Embed link etc. Of course, with the recipe you can have the book's cover art, buy link, a short compelling blurb, and where in the book the recipe occurs.)

In other words, make your CTA organic and compelling as well as giving to the reader. 

Worst CTA ever: (I get these all the time!) Someone follows me on Twitter so I follow them back. Immediately I get a direct message saying: "Buy TITLE OF BOOK by AUTHOR NAME now for a riveting reading experience." OR "Buy TITLE OF BOOK by AUTHOR NAME and leave a review!"

Nope. Won't buy, and definitely won't take the time to read and review.

Takeaway Truth

Don't be guilty of Bad CTA Behavior. Give to readers. Share with readers. Let them get to know you.