A call-to-action, or CTA, can transform any email campaign when done right. It’s important to have a CTA that grabs your subscriber and inspires them to take the next step. CTAs come in many different forms — they can be buttons, links, HTML, or images.They can also cover a variety of topics. You may want one email campaign’s CTA to say “Explore our new collection” and drive your subscriber to the shopping section of your site. Or, you may want a CTA to say “Ready for checkout?” to drive a subscriber to their shopping cart.
In this guide, we will explore the different types of CTAs you can use for super effective email campaigns.
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When and where should you use a CTA?
First, let’s go over the basics of CTAs. Your CTA will motivate your subscribers to take action, but if you include too many, it may drive your customer away. It can come off as too pushy or “sales-y,” and less personalized and genuine. Start off with using only one CTA per email.
Be strategic with where you place your CTA. If the content of your email is short and clear, it may be best to place your CTA toward the top of your email to grab your subscriber’s attention. If, however, your CTA needs an explanation, move it toward the bottom of your email, so that by the time your subscribers reach the CTA, they completely understand its value and why they should click it.
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What should your CTA look like?
When designing your CTA, you first need to determine what its purpose is, and work on the copy. Make sure your CTA uses action-focused words, is short, and gets its value across. You want to make sure every subscriber identifies with your CTA and is encouraged to learn more.
Once you’ve written a motivational copy, choose what you want the CTA to look like. Let’s discuss using a button versus using a link. Buttons are great for when you want the reader to take an important action like “Reset Password”. They grab people’s attention easily and are hard to miss.
Buttons can be created either by HTML or images. If you use an HTML button, every recipient will see it since HTML appears regardless of anyone’s email settings. Images, however, may not always appear if a subscriber has images disabled. HTML also loads faster than images, but has some downfalls when it comes to design. If you use an image-based button, you can be more creative with your design and use different styles.
You may decide to use links instead of buttons altogether. Links are perfect for when you want a reader to take a less crucial action and include within a written copy. To make sure your links don’t get overlooked or forgotten, make sure they contain a long sentence or many words within your email copy. Links also work great for personal emails. After all, when your friend shares a video of kittens playing the piano, normally there won’t be a “watch video” button at the end.
Whatever you end up choosing, test its effectiveness.
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How to test and measure your CTA
You can use A/B/C/D tests to figure out which CTA performs the best across different campaigns. Once you’ve identified the right CTA, you can send the emails out to your segmented lists.
When measuring performance, take a look at the usual suspects, click rates, conversion rates and even open rates to see how the CTA influences subscribers’ actions and expectations. Test how the placing (and even color) affects these metrics, and whether HTML or an image based button works best for you.
What different types of CTAs can you use?
CTAs cover a large variety of topics. From crucial actions, to holidays or events, you can customize your CTA to fit your needs. Here are some examples below of CTAs you can use for different occasions.
CTAs for shopping
Shop our collection
Shop now
Save today
Buy it today
Use coupon
Free gift with purchase
Find a store near you
Accessories starting at $9.90
Get Yours
Check ‘em out
CTAs for events
Register now
Register today
Book your tickets
I’ll be there!
Enroll now
I’ll see you there
Save me a spot
CTAs for video content
Watch now
Hear from our CEO
Watch what happened
See for yourself
CTAs for articles
Read more
Learn more
Download now
Download report
Read how
Get inspired
Wrap up
CTAs are an important part to any successful campaign. When done right, CTAs can yield better click rates, which leads to better engagement and in turn, better deliverability and conversion rate. Follow this guide and begin creating the best CTAs for your subscribers.
To end this guide, here’s another example for a CTA 🙂
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