A call to action (CTA) prompts the user to take a specific action that leads to a conversion—a purchase, a newsletter subscription, or the completion of a contact form. The effectiveness of a CTA depends not only on the wording but also on its layout, colors, and the emotions it evokes.
Why User Experience (UX) Matters for CTA Effectiveness
The user journey plays an important role in the effectiveness of a call to action. Regardless of the product or service you offer, the funnel usually ends with the click of a button.
As a UX/UI designer, your goal is to design a path that makes it easy for users to complete the desired action. For example, landing pages use storytelling and structured content to gradually lead visitors to a call to action, while e-commerce sites use well-organized navigation and product pages (PDP) to help users add items to their shopping carts and complete purchases smoothly.
Partnering with a conversion rate optimisation company (CRO) can help you integrate these elements better and ensure that your calls to action are engaging and easy to use.
Why CTA Placement Affects Conversions
The placement of the call-to-action button affects whether the user notices and uses it. The aim is to make the button easy to notice and access, especially on mobile devices where thumb navigation is common.
Best practices for CTA button placement:
Place at the top of the page: Placing CTA buttons at the top of the page ensures they are visible without scrolling.
Place at the center of the page: The best approach is to position the CTAs in the center of the page so that they are scrolled.
Static bottom bar: Adding CTA buttons to the static bar at the bottom of the screen makes them easily accessible even when scrolling.
Location is critical on mobile devices, especially as large screens can make it difficult for users to access certain areas. Having the CTA in an easily accessible location can improve usability and conversion rates. Here’s a great example from the Promodo site:
How to Make CTAs Stand Out
Calls to action must attract attention while fitting in with the page design. Here’s how to increase attractiveness without being disruptive:
- Phrases: Your CTA wording is essential in converting website visitors into buyers. Use clear, action-oriented, and specific, using concise language that creates urgency or highlights a benefit.
- Color contrast: Use a button color that is eye-catching but also blends in with the overall design.
- Size and shape: Buttons should be large enough to stand out, but not so large as to steal the show.
- Logical flow: Calls to action should be placed in a way that naturally echoes the content, encouraging users to continue with the action and avoiding confusion.
CTA wording, position, and design significantly impact users’ interactions with the website. If you pay attention to user-friendly design, thoughtful layout, and clear wording, you can increase conversion rates without having to make major changes.
Types of Call-To-Actions
Whether you’re in B2B or B2C, the type of CTA you deploy should align with the buyer’s intent, the stage of the funnel, and the emotional or rational drivers behind their decision-making.
While B2B CTAs often focus on nurturing long sales cycles with trust-building and informational resources, B2C CTAs are more likely to emphasize speed, convenience, and emotional appeal to drive immediate action. Both must be clear, compelling, and contextually relevant to the experience on the page.
The following categorized lists outline the distinct types of CTAs used in B2B and B2C marketing. Each category includes a brief overview of its purpose, followed by practical examples you can adapt to your own campaigns to increase engagement and conversions.
B2B Call-To-Actions
Lead Generation CTAs
In B2B, LeadGen CTAs are critical for building a pipeline of qualified prospects. These CTAs typically exchange something of value (like insight or access) for contact information. They are essential at the top and middle of the funnel (TOFU, MOFU), where trust and education drive the user’s interest.
- Download a Whitepaper: Offers an in-depth, data-backed document that addresses a specific business challenge or trend, capturing leads who seek educational content.
- Request a Demo: Invites a prospective customer to see the product in action, often leading to a discovery call or sales meeting.
- Sign Up for a Webinar: Encourages participation in a live or on-demand educational event, which helps establish authority and gather high-intent leads.
- Access the Research Report: Provides proprietary insights or industry benchmarks, building thought leadership while capturing lead details.
- Join Our Email List: Subtly introduces a lead-nurture path by offering subscribers useful updates or exclusive content.
Conversion-Oriented CTAs
These CTAs aim to push leads already considering a solution toward conversion. In B2B, conversions often involve initiating a sales conversation, trial, or proposal—rather than an instant purchase.
- Start a Free Trial: This offers limited-time access to a product or platform, reducing the buyer’s risk and enabling hands-on evaluation.
- Get a Custom Quote: Encourages visitors to provide details in exchange for personalized pricing or a proposal, often leading to direct sales outreach.
- Talk to Sales: This directs a lead into the sales funnel by offering a 1:1 conversation, which is typically appropriate when the product is complex or high-cost.
- Request a Proposal (RFP): This service serves enterprise-level leads looking for formal procurement discussions, often aligned with vendor selection processes.
Trust-Building CTAs
Trust is paramount in B2B sales cycles. These CTAs offer social proof or clarity about your solution’s value to reduce friction and build confidence.
- Read Case Studies: Showcases successful client implementations, often sorted by industry or challenge, to illustrate real-world outcomes.
- View Customer Testimonials: Presents qualitative endorsements from satisfied users, helping prospects visualize themselves in the success story.
- Compare Plans: This tool breaks down feature sets and pricing tiers, helping decision-makers find the right fit and justify investment.
- Audit My Site / Get a Free Assessment: This option provides a sample of the vendor’s capabilities while offering useful analysis that builds goodwill and authority.
Engagement CTAs
Engagement-focused CTAs keep the prospect in your ecosystem even if they’re not yet ready to convert. They offer ways to interact with content or tools that further educate and nurture interest.
- Watch the Product Tour: A video walkthrough or interactive demo allows users to evaluate the product on their terms.
- Explore Use Cases: This strategy encourages prospects to explore scenarios that align with their business pain points, mapping product capabilities to real-world applications.
- Download the Data Sheet: Provides specs and technical details in a digestible format, often used by evaluators and IT stakeholders.
- Bookmark This Guide: It suggests the value of keeping a resource close, reinforcing the idea that your company is an authoritative source.
Post-Sale CTAs
After conversion, B2B CTAs shift to onboarding, retention, and upselling. These CTAs help ensure adoption and deepen the relationship with existing customers.
- Log In to Your Dashboard: Directs users to the product or analytics portal, signaling ongoing value delivery.
- Add More Users: Promotes account expansion, especially useful in land-and-expand strategies.
- Upgrade Your Plan: This option suggests moving to a higher tier based on usage, a need for more features, or company growth.
- Refer a Colleague: Encourages word-of-mouth within professional networks, often incentivized with account credits or discounts.
B2C Call-to-Actions
Purchase-Driven CTAs
In B2C, purchase CTAs aim for a more immediate conversion. These prompts are often emotionally driven and designed to create urgency, desire, or convenience.
- Buy Now: A classic direct-sales CTA that guides consumers to make an immediate purchase decision.
- Add to Cart: Allows shoppers to continue browsing while queuing up items, creating a low-friction buying process.
- Checkout Now: Pushes shoppers to complete the purchase, often accompanied by urgency elements like stock limits or shipping deadlines.
- Claim Your Discount: Appeals to bargain-seekers and drives faster decisions by emphasizing savings.
- Start Your Subscription: Used for products with recurring revenue models, making enrolling in monthly or annual plans easy.
Discovery and Engagement CTAs
These CTAs entice users to explore more, engage with content, or interact with the brand. They’re instrumental in lifestyle, fashion, entertainment, and media contexts.
- View Collection: This link leads visitors to a curated set of products, often centered on a theme, trend, or season.
- See What’s New: Highlights recent arrivals, generating excitement and return visits from regular customers.
- Watch the Video: Enhances emotional storytelling through video content, ideal for product reveals or behind-the-scenes moments.
- Join the Conversation: Promotes engagement on social platforms or branded communities, amplifying reach and loyalty.
Lead Capture CTAs
While more subtle than in B2B, lead capture in B2C is often tied to promotions, events, or content updates. These CTAs help marketers build lists for retargeting and personalized campaigns.
- Sign Up and Save 10%: Combines a financial incentive with email capture to build the marketing list and drive first-time purchases.
- Join Our Mailing List: Encourages email subscriptions for updates, promotions, or early access announcements.
- Enter the Giveaway: Uses contests to grow email or SMS subscribers while adding brand excitement quickly.
- Get Early Access builds exclusivity and urgency for product launches, and it is often used in fashion, tech, and luxury retail.
Post-Purchase CTAs
Post-sale CTAs in B2C aim to create loyalty, referrals, and repeat purchases. They support the customer experience and maximize lifetime value.
- Track Your Order: Offers real-time updates to increase transparency and reduce buyer anxiety.
- Leave a Review: Encourages social proof while helping brands with user-generated content.
- Reorder Now: Supports convenience in replenishable goods like groceries, skincare, or supplements.
- Refer a Friend: Turns happy customers into advocates by offering referral bonuses or discounts.
Support and Assurance CTAs
These CTAs help overcome objections and build trust in a brand, especially in higher-ticket or competitive markets.
- Chat with a Specialist: Opens access to real-time support to answer questions or offer recommendations.
- See Size Guide / Fit Help: Assists buyers with uncertainty before purchase, reducing returns and increasing confidence.
- Read Customer Reviews: Invites shoppers to learn from real users, offering transparency and validation.
- Start a Return: Clearly communicates ease of returns, making the risk of purchase feel lower.
How to Measure CTA Effectiveness
Measuring and testing the effectiveness of CTA buttons requires A/B testing and event tracking to determine which variations drive the most conversions (CRO). A/B testing involves creating multiple versions of a CTA with different wording, colors, or placements and analyzing which performs best. Event tracking, using tools like Google Analytics, helps monitor user interactions and engagement. Key factors to track include:
- Click-through rate (CTR): Measures how many users click the CTA compared to total impressions.
- Conversion rate (CR): Tracks how many users complete the intended action after clicking.
- Engagement metrics: Analyzes user behavior after clicking, such as time spent on the page.
- Heatmaps and scroll tracking: Helps identify CTA visibility and placement effectiveness.
- Statistical significance: Ensures A/B test results are reliable and not due to random chance.
Regular testing and optimization based on data-driven insights help improve CTA performance and maximize conversions. If you want to fine-tune these details, working with a professional can help you get the most out of your website.
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