The goal of any marketing campaign is to guide the audience through the buyer’s journey so that they eventually make a purchase.
Strong call-to-action copy is a crucial element of your digital efforts. It can shift prospects from one end of the marketing funnel to the other and can mean the difference between a bounce and a conversion.
Let’s explore some CTA copywriting best practices and examine 20 of the most inspiring examples that boost conversions.
A call to action, or CTA, is a part of a webpage, piece of content, or advertisement that nudges the audience to take some desired action.
A CTA can be a button, image, or text line that helps encourage users to move further down the marketing funnel. This typically includes action verbs such as “Get a Demo,” “Start a Free Trial,” “Reserve your seat,” “Sign Up for Free,” or “Download whitepaper.”
While the design of your call to action is certainly important for drawing the attention of visitors, having a rich CTA copy is what will compel them to click and, hopefully, convert.
To effectively turn prospects into customers, your first step should be ensuring that your CTA copy is specific, to the point, and action-oriented.
In addition, keep in mind that the most effective CTAs work because they offer prospects a clear value proposition. So, rather than writing a CTA copy that simply asks visitors to perform a certain action, consider giving them a reason to do so.
When it comes to writing compelling CTA copy, clarity can go a long way. In the copy, think about adopting some of the UX writing guidelines to better tell users exactly what they can expect on the other side of the link.
When it comes to developing an effective digital marketing strategy, many of us take cues from industry leaders. This is why we have compiled a list of 20 real-life examples to inspire you to come up with effective CTA copy that will encourage your audience to take the next step.Let’s dive in.
Learning how to create fantastic landing pages that convince prospects you can solve their problems is important. That said, it’s also good to note that consumers often trust other people more than they trust brands.
Using reviews, testimonials, and other types of social proof is one of the most effective ways to build trust and convey your core benefit. After all, your happy customers are your most convincing brand ambassadors.
In the example below, ClickUp (a collaboration and project management tool) is leveraging the power of social proof in the form of star reviews. This is often a viable tactic to stimulate trustworthiness.
Even more, by keeping the copy simple, the company is minimizing the number of distracting elements that can pull prospects out of the sales funnel.
Paddle is a revenue delivery platform. What makes their CTA copywriting stand out is their use of trust symbols. These easily grab the visitor’s attention and showcase the platform as reliable and award-winning.
It’s no secret that most internet users tend to skim through content rather than read it. Lumen5 has found a way to capture the attention by bringing forward the number of companies that are already using the platform and inviting visitors’ to join their community.
Whether you are selling something directly or encouraging a download, consider adding an extra “no strings attached” line to your CTA copy. This way you are addressing objections beforehand, clearing confusion, and reducing possible tension among visitors.
Anyword is a great example of how to anticipate and address prospects’ concerns in your call to action copy. By highlighting the duration of the demo, the AI copywriting company is setting clear expectations upfront.In addition, by including extra wording (i.e. no credit card requirements), Anyword is effectively solving customer objections while also encouraging trust in their brand.
Leadpages, a dynamic software company with a powerful landing page builder tool, is a good example of addressing customer concerns head-on by offering a no-obligation free trial.
Source: Leadpages
Using data and numbers is another way to demonstrate a clear, straightforward message. Including digits in your microcopy can set the right expectations and provide prospects with information that can help them click through.Making use of data is a great tactic not only for CTA copy, but also for newsletter headlines, email subject lines, and blog post titles.
Basecamp is a business that offers project management and team communication solutions. Their call to action copy strives to create a sense of urgency by displaying the number of companies that have signed up in the previous week.
As a leader in video communication, Zoom is a good example of how to craft a CTA that uses data points and eliminates vague statements.
The company is leaning on external authorities’ data to position itself as an industry leader. Right away, visitors are given the option to see pricing or – if they need more information – read the full report.
Free offer messaging in CTA copy is widely utilized by SaaS brands – and for good reason.
Offering something for free is arguably the easiest way to convince prospects to get to know your product. While this tactic may cost you some money and time, it’s worth remembering that if your product is great, customers will see that and will be more open to upgrading to the paid version.
The following example comes from Audiense – an advanced audience intelligence solution company. Their CTA copy is concise, to-the-point, and offers visitors to sign-up for free with no credit card requirements.
In the example below, Hotjar, a behavior analytics tool, is leveraging a limited-capability free offer model. They are offering a restricted amount of features and functionality for free, in the hopes that what they offer will get customers hooked and willing to upgrade.
Airtable, a platform for building collaborative apps, is offering free features for teams of all sizes. In their CTA copy, they have also highlighted the benefits of their paid plans, making it easier for prospects to choose the right option for their business.
While this tactic might not fit every business, incorporating discount messaging into your CTA copy can be very persuasive. Done right, lower-price messaging can attract new customers and encourage visitors to buy right away.
Consider the following example from Freedom, an anti-distraction app. In their campaign, they are offering a discount code while simultaneously creating a sense of urgency (i.e. “Get Freedom today”).
JustCall has implemented a tactic that highlights its best features and immediately offers 70% off for the first month. More to that, they are creating a sense of instant gratification by showing users just how quickly they can access the product.
Internet users are becoming increasingly wary of what brands say in their marketing and sales promotions.
To make prospects feel more at ease – and negate their worries – you can use guarantees to reinforce your call to action copy.A guarantee is among the strongest sales tools because it shows prospects that you believe and stand behind your product. In general, you could guarantee your service, your product, and the results by leveraging money-back, “try before you buy”, or free trial guarantees.
Pipedrive is in the business of helping companies plan their sales activities through their sales CRM and pipeline management solutions. While simple, their CTA copy is extremely compelling because it showcases what Pipedrive’s users have been able to achieve after one year of using the tool.
Xero, an online accounting software, is leveraging the guarantee tactic by allowing customers a fair time period to try the product and decide which plan works best for them. Additionally, in their CTA copy, Xero has put a focus on safety, security, cancellation possibilities, and 24/7 online support.
Being clear about what readers can expect when they click through is crucial for reducing bounce rates.
Remember: the more steps users need to take between clicking on the CTA and actually getting what they want, the more likely they are to lose their attention.
In this example, Bench (an all-in-one financial toolkit) is telling visitors exactly what they can expect if they sign up for a free trial. By doing so, the company is successfully building a layer of transparency and trust with its prospective customers.
Roadmunk is a highly rated roadmap application tool for product management and marketing teams. In its call to action copy, the brand is briefly explaining what users can expect after clicking on the CTA button – start a free trial in minutes without the need of a credit card.
To help prospects take action, you’ve got to remove any possible obstacles.
Naturally, when looking to buy, people have a lot of questions and are looking to you to provide the solution. In your CTA copy, highlight your value proposition and address the pain points of your audience.
FigPii is a conversion optimization platform. Instead of overwhelming readers with a list of provided benefits, FigPii is using its copy to highlight the quality that sets them apart from the competition in the headline and uses the rest of the space to support it.
Mailchimp – an all-In-one marketing platform for small businesses – is reinforcing its value proposition by providing a simple, yet clear description that enables visitors to quickly understand what the brand’s specialty is.
SemRush is a wonderful example of how to utilize your CTA copy to enhance what makes your customers choose you over all other competitors. By making the value proposition clear in the messaging, visitors are able to quickly figure out what to expect from the tool.
Whether it’s in the copy or in the form of an icon or badge, incorporating privacy and security cues in your CTA copy can increase your credibility and trustworthiness.
Naturally, because Dropbox is a file-sharing tool, many people have concerns regarding the privacy and security of their data. In this example, Dropbox is effectively addressing these concerns by letting readers know their information is safe and their files are password-protected.
Once you’ve successfully figured out how to craft powerful CTA copy, you should then learn the best practices for creating captivating landing pages.
Head to our blog and find out how to write action-oriented landing page copy that speaks to your prospects.
I am a digital storyteller helping brands enhance their online presence through content marketing.
