call to action essay examples

7 Call to Action Examples You Have Never Seen Before

At great risk to my sanity, I went online with the intention of finding as much advertising as I could.

The goal: to find call to action examples (CTAs) that were fresh, original, unique, and compelling.

My discovery: Almost everyone is using generic CTAs. Safe, boring, and forgettable. The 7 innovative call to action examples I found made those brands stand out immediately.

Your opportunity: By changing 2-3 words of a call to action, brands can stand out in a small way from the hopelessly ordinary competition.

Less than 0.00001% of CTAs Are Unique

This is not a scientific number. I came up with it out of spite after an exhausting search.

Refresh the examples in a listicle about calls to action, my editor said. 

I thought this was going to be easy.

It was a nightmare. 

Websites for brands large and small were universally boring in terms of calls to action. The most tantalizing offer I could find was usually “Free Trial”, which brought me to a page with miles of fine print. 

I thought maybe the aggressive pay-per-click advertisers would put together some compelling calls to action. Nope. The name of the game there is using every conversion hack at once. 

Here’s a typically boring call to action example that most people are using :

I think this offer hits every cliche tactic: the ticking clock, a warning emoji about sell-out risk, money-back guarantee, a steep discount, etc.

Then I tried social media, which was even worse. Facebook gave me nothing in the way of an inventive CTA. Absolutely nothing.

I checked Reddit–as always, a wonderful place, just not for buying things.

On X (fka: Twitter), I was hoping to find some good scammy infoproducts, maybe some clever hardsells. But I was disappointed. I could have made a full quilt that spelled out “unoriginal” with all the thread emojis inviting me to click and read a tweet-storm. Here’s why that trend is played out: 🧵/23

My wife told me that TikTok has been ruined by advertisers and influencers–so I was really excited about that. This is where the real ingenuity must be. 

Nope. It’s a simple SHOP button that overlays influencer videos. That’s it.

But in the end, I prevailed. I found 7 examples of brands actually trying something new with their call to action. They used this small detail to support their brand image or speak to their audience.

7 Truly Unique Call to Action Examples

1. cloudflare.

“Under attack?”

That is a viable button you can click on Cloudflare’s site. 

I love it. 

Cloudflare has positioned themselves as a cybersecurity version of calling 911 when there’s an intruder in your house. And they did it using two words, a question mark, and a construction-zone orange button in the navbar.

I assume the majority of people who click that button are like me: not currently under attack, but curious about what the next steps would be if they were.

I wanted to learn more because of the clever call to action. If the button had said Learn More, I never would have clicked it.

2. Backcountry

The online outdoor retailer Backcountry hires the people who stay up around the fire fighting about which hiking stove weighs less. You know the type: Gearheads.

This is a huge selling point for Backcountry. When people buy kayaks, avalanche beacons, and so on, they really want to know that this gear works.

Call a Gearhead. Text a Gearhead. These are creative, on-brand calls to action nested in a familiar dropdown menu.

You have a question about climbing rope? Now you are talking with a woman who climbs 3 times a week. 

3. LINGs CARS.com

This is actually a fairly tame example of the calls to action on LINGsCARS.com , one of the most successful car leasing services in the UK. 

Ling broke every rule of web design to bring us this masterpiece. I know neons are in right now, but most people aren’t using all of the neons, at once, with a paisley background. 

CrazyEgg will lock me out of WordPress if I actually recommend a call to action that includes three Order Now buttons that blink at random intervals. So I am not going to do that.

I will say with 100% certainty, however, that I have never seen call to action examples quite like this ever before. 

4. Niki Whittle

Niki Whittle is an online personal stylist who has helped thousands of clients find joy instead of anxiety at the prospect of getting dressed and going out into the world.

The text of her CTA button speaks directly to that goal: Help me enjoy getting dressed!

If you swapped out Niki’s personalized text for a basic “Find Out More” button, I think the call to action would suffer. 

Her choice of text is intimate. No adult is going to ask for help getting dressed unless they fully trust the other party to understand where they are coming from. The way that Niki has framed the call to action shows that she understands. 

Due to California regulations, the beverage brand Ceria couldn’t exactly say what their new product was. With the help of the marketing agency Mother, Ceria found a clever way to get their audience to connect.

The call to action they used was a Spotify playlist people could download by scanning a barcode styled like the familiar Spotify audio waveform.

There’s a cool story behind this ad campaign, which appeared online and in-print in California. 

I’m not going to rehash it here because you should go visit the site of the people who did the work , not hear about it third-hand, looking at screenshots I took while I was way behind schedule writing this post.

6. AllTrails

Have you ever seen a limited time offer that isn’t pushy?

AllTrails nails it with this email they sent me. If I go outside, this weekend only , they’ll plant a tree on my behalf.

It’s a positive push, encouraging me to do something for my health, and it won’t cost me a dime. Until AllTrails called me to action, I just had weekend plans. Now I am saving the forest. 

The invitation to “Join In” isn’t super original, I know, even with those cute little tree icons.

But the call to action is social. It’s not “Register” or “Find out more”, it’s about connecting with other people. AllTrails has 50 million users. This is a real community, and AllTrails is smart to frame it that way. 

7. Avocado Green Mattress

Avocado Green Mattress has upcycled bedroom furniture people can buy to complement their organic mattresses.

The call to action is “Shop Zero Waste” is a clear call to the type of buyer who is willing to pay a premium to minimize their impact on the environment. “Shop” would work, but it doesn’t highlight the key selling point of their furniture.

It’s a small detail, but most people buying online have 5-7 tabs open. I know I do. With buyers scanning all these different sites, I think it makes sense to foreground your unique features in the button text.

More Call To Action Examples

Here are some twists on classic calls to action. I can’t say I’d never seen these types of tactics before, but the following examples are well done.

The call to action text speaks to the audience, aligns with the brand image, or is simply more inviting than a generic “Try Now” button.

Kati Curtis Design

Kati Curtis Design opted for a slight variation on the Get In Touch call to action by including her name. 

I’m not going to belabor the point about what’s going on here, but this slight personalization will absolutely stand out.

I think this is a good idea if you are the face of your business as opposed to a brand. “Get In Touch With The Owner” could work, too.

Havenly is an online interior design service company. I liked the invitation for customers to “Find Their Style.” 

They could have stuck with “Learn More” or “Book a Consultation,” but those aren’t personal at all. Those are also fairly passive calls to action, versus “Find Your Style,” which is much more active.

Birchbox , the popular cosmetics subscription box opted to use an invitation style call to action:

“Build Your Box”

It’s intuitive, on-brand, and crisp. 

One issue people have with subscription services is that they get products they don’t want. With this short call to action, Birchbox is countering that objection by offering their customers an active role in building their own box. 

Art & Logic

Art & Logic is a software development company with an approachable call to action.

Yes, they decided to go with “Let’s talk about your project” instead of something sterile or gimmicky.

Building custom business software is insanely complex, but Art & Logic makes the next steps as easy as possible.

Make your website better. Instantly.

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The secret to writing a call to action in a persuasive speech

Nancy Duarte

A well-constructed and delivered presentation changes minds and ignites action.

Yet, there’s a key part of a presentation that doesn’t get mentioned enough — the call to action or CTA — and, a clear CTA creates a  critical turning point in your presentation (or any other form of persuasive communication, too).

What is a call to action in writing?

The call to action in writing persuasive speeches comes right before the end of a persuasive speech where you clearly tell the audience a role they can play after they leave your talk. The CTA gives audience members concrete tasks to tackle, and these tasks must be completed in order to bring your ideas to fruition. And, it’s a key part of what makes your speech, persuasive.

An audience might be thoroughly gripped by your narrative and convinced to believe what you do — but if they leave not knowing what they are supposed to do with your ideas, your presentation will have been — essentially fruitless.

Because CTAs are such an important part of a presentation, it’s essential to make sure that the one you deliver lands with the people hearing it. The way to ensure that you write a call to action that persuades is to keep in mind that one size does NOT fit all — and you’ve got to tailor your CTAs.

People respond to different types of calls to action based on their:

• Temperaments
• Daily activities

So it’s important to get to know who is in your audience before you decide how you’re going to deliver their post-talk “to-dos.” Once you do, you can ensure your persuasive call to action actually gets a response.

Understanding your audience involves empathy. To get started easily, download our free Audience Needs Map ™. It’ll help you figure out and analyze the best persuasive calls to action for your presentation so that it concludes with success.

Start with your audience for your call to action speech

Before writing your calls to action in your persuasive speech, you need to think about your audience. What is their make-up? What makes them tick? In most presentations, there are four distinct skills your audience has. Remember these as you write your calls to action:

• Influencers
• And Innovators

To get your audience to act, your CTAs have to strike a chord and make sense with the skills they bring to the table. Taking action will seem natural for them when they can respond with an action that resonates with them. Audiences have a mix of all these skills, and you should appeal to each of them in your presentations . Let’s break this down.

4 call to action examples in persuasive writing

1. getting doers to do something.

Doers are the worker bees of an organization. They are the ones that hear what needs to get done — and then do it. Doers don’t shy away from physical tasks, and have the ability to round up the troops to inspire action in others, as well. Doers make an organization run day in and day out.

If you’re speaking to doers, you’ll want to craft your CTA so that it includes action words that clearly explain what the doers should do. Some examples of call to action language for them involve asking them to:

2. Motivating suppliers to share

Suppliers are usually not as action-oriented as doers. However, they have a lot of resources at their disposal — like money, manpower, materials, etc. Because of the amount of resources they have, suppliers have the means to help people move forward. They can get you the resources you don’t have yourself.

Suppliers in your audience may be execs who could give you staff — or, investors who are trying to decide whether they want to put their money into a venture — or not.

To appeal to suppliers, you need to use different words than you would with the doers, since they’re not the ones that are going to be hitting the ground running to complete tasks. Instead, you’ll want to ask them to share their resources.

You may want to use words like:

These can help to appeal to the fact that they have something to give in order to make a change happen.

3. Influencing on your behalf

Influencers have the  power to sway . They can change the minds of individuals and groups — large or small. Influencers are the people who mobilize others. They also evangelize ideas, and they know how to get people to change their beliefs and behavior.

Many influencers are leaders and others look up to them and follow their advice. Influencers can also be people in the spotlight, who people tend to model after — like celebrities or public figures.

When you craft a call to action for an audience of influencers, you want to appeal to their ability to inspire other people. Great call-to-action phrases for influencers include:

Many have social channels where they can share with others what you need for your idea to become reality.

4. Inviting others to innovate

The last type of audience member is the innovator. Innovators are people who can think outside-of-the-box when they hear an idea, and then think of ways to modify that idea. Innovators have outstanding brains in their heads. They can dream up strategies, clarify perspectives, and invent products. These people can generate something new where nothing existed before.

Anybody can be an innovator. But, often, innovators are founders of companies or creators of new products. They can be engineers, artists, or entrepreneurs, and they typically handle fewer of the day-to-day tasks and more of the conceptual work.

To get support from an innovator, appeal to their ability to create things. The best call-to-action phrases for innovators include:

• Offers to invent

You want to spur an audience of innovators to leave, ready to make something new.

Don’t end with your call to action

Appealing to what motivates various audience members is important to inspire action. However, to make sure your well-tailored CTAs land, you shouldn’t end with your call to action. Nobody ever wants to simply be saddled with a lengthy to-do list.

Instead, after you deliver your CTA,  paint a picture of what is going to happen for audience members once they complete the requested action. I call this the new bliss in my Resonate® workshop. Throwing out a CTA creates curiosity for listeners; they want that curiosity satisfied by understanding what will happen after the action is over. This satisfaction — and a picture of what the future could look like — will inspire people to act.

Alfred Chuang, founder and CEO of Magnet Systems, recently delivered a  UC Davis Commencement speech  that contained an example of a powerful CTA that described what would happen if listeners chose to act. Chuang encouraged the audience of engineering graduates to keep working on innovative projects.

He ended: “A new world is on the horizon. And it will be more incredible than any of us can possibly imagine. Our greatest innovations are ahead of us, not behind. But we need great engineers to build that world for us. And that’s you. We need you to not give up. Ever. We need you to finish your projects. Done, done, done … And we need you all to be a little insane.”

If you deliver a presentation that is gripping and empathetic, you’ve almost delivered the perfect presentation . All that’s left is including a CTA that clearly explains what listeners could do to help push your idea forward — and an ending that paints a picture of what the world will look like if they help. Then, you can leave your presentation knowing that you’ve delivered a talk that’s going to move people to act.

To learn more about crafting and delivering persuasive presentations, take our Resonate® workshop . And to have us build a persuasive presentation for you with a strong and clear call to action, inquire about our Agency services today.

This article was originally published on August 2, 2017. It has been updated in August 2024 for relevancy. 

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Facebook Advertising Optimization Tool

• 17 Call To Action Examples (+ How to Write the Perfect Social CTA)

October 21, 2022 46 Comments Mark Quadros

A call to action can make or break the success of your social media campaign. If you use the right words, your CTA will inspire your audience to take action — click on your ad, download your ebook, add an item to cart… you name it. On the other hand, if your CTA isn’t catchy and persuasive, your audience will simply scroll past without noticing it.

Keep reading to learn everything you need to know about social media calls to action : what they are, what makes a CTA successful, and how to craft a persuasive CTA for your next campaign. We’ve also included 17 call to action examples (from social media and beyond) to get you inspired. That’s right: we’ve also included great examples from email campaigns and landing pages — because a good CTA is a good CTA, regardless of where it’s placed.

Let’s jump in!

What is a call to action (CTA)?

A call to action (or CTA) is a text prompt designed to inspire the target audience of a marketing campaign to take a desired action. For example, a call to action can encourage people to click on a link, leave a social media comment, visit an online store, make a purchase, etc.

A call to action can take up different forms:

• Plain text with no link

“Buy Now” or “Download Now” are typical examples of simple calls to action.

But a CTA can run longer, too, such as “Subscribe today so you’ll never miss a post.” The possibilities are endless.

Call to action examples from AdEspresso

A good CTA can help with decision fatigue and give meaning to your content. Even if it’s just a two-word phrase, users need some direction to know what to do next.

CTAs that create a sense of urgency will also help increase conversions .

As long as it encourages potential customers to stay engaged on your site, then your call to action has done its job.

Note that having one CTA highlighted is the most common way. At the same time, some marketers use both primary and secondary call to actions in their marketing. We’ll review some best practices of this later on.

How to write an effective CTA for social media (and beyond)

Social media is all about getting users to click on your posts and ads and engage. However, it’s no longer as easy as it sounds. 22.3% of people using ad blockers say there are “too many ads.”

It’s tough out there.

To combat this, increase your conversions and engagement with a compelling call to action on your ads and elsewhere on the web. Let’s see how you can achieve this.

Use strong action words

Writing short and strong CTAs is not only more persuasive, but it’s also necessary due to the character limits on ads. Start with a verb (“buy”) and follow with an adverb (“now”) or a subject (“ebook”) or both.

Here are two call to action examples to the above statement: “Buy Now” or “Download this ebook now.”

Below are some of the most common call to action verbs broken down by intention. Simply pair them with the offering of your business.

Tip: check your call to action against the LIFT Model (see below).

If we took our example from above, it would look something like this:

Download = relevance

this ebook = clarity

now = urgency

Download this ebook = value proposition

Use the text surrounding your call to action to:

• Reduce distractions (i.e., remove unnecessary links, images, etc.)
• Ease anxiety (e.g., add the disclaimer “no credit card required”)

Provoke emotion or enthusiasm

If you want to evoke an emotional response in your users, opt for a longer CTA. You’ll need to incorporate more modifiers in this case to get the desired effect.

Here are some examples:

• Add numbers: “Buy now and get 50% off!”
• Add adjectives: “Find your dream home with us!”
• Make a promise: “Lose weight in just 6 weeks!”
• Influence their FOMO: “Limited time offer. Get free shipping!”
• Play up your USP: “Order a hand-made soap now!”

Think up your own

You don’t need to stick to the good old examples, though. Get creative and make up your own call to actions.

First, verbalize to yourself what your company does for its customers (or simply look at your mission statement). For example, I run a spa where people get facial treatments.

Next, transform the verbs and modifiers into a 2-5 word call to action. Add relevant information where necessary → “ Get a free mud mask” or “ Treat yourself today!”

“Period better” – Thinx opted for the unique use of the word “period” as a verb in their CTA.

Tip: nobody gets their CTAs right the first time. Run at least one A/B test (but preferably more) on your ad to evaluate the strength of your call to action.

13 of the Best Call to Action Examples for 2022

In the following section, you’ll see what the techniques mentioned above look like in practice. Steal and customize the best CTA examples for your campaigns!

Facebook Ad CTAs

We’ll examine some Facebook ads with classic call to action examples. They may seem simple at first, but there’s more to uncover than what you see on the surface.

This ad from ClickUp is likely part of a retargeting campaign . Even if you don’t watch the video, the ad copy offers plenty of calls to action on its own.

Why it works

• Same CTA in the headline and the first sentence of the ad = the offer is clear (“Get 15% off”)
• The CTA is supported by objection-handling statements, such as “save 1 day a week”, “guaranteed,” and a list of features
• The “Learn More” call to action button assures the audience that they’ll get more info before committing

2. Shaw Academy

Can you spot all the call to actions in this Facebook ad? Hint: there are at least seven. Every element is coordinated here to instill a sense of urgency in the audience. Take note of the exploding colors, the alarm emoji, the many exclamation marks, and the multiple CTAs.

• Beautiful, contrasting colors with a CTA that stands out
• Multiple call to actions
• Sense of urgency to take action

Babbel is a language learning app that comes at you strong with various CTAs for their Facebook offer. It works because even if you don’t know this app, it quickly establishes a trust factor (“over 500,000 5-star reviews”). The post then draws you in with an attractive offer.

• The primary call to action is clear and direct: “Get up to 60% off!”
• They use the “Get Offer” CTA button to instill a sense of gratification in the audience
• Including the action word “join” + the number of reviews in the same sentence is a way to evoke the feeling of belonging to a community

4. Hootsuite

Hootsuite keeps it brief and concise with a few very targeted CTAs.

• All the call to actions are focused at the bottom while benefits are at the top of the post
• The “Learn More” CTA button leaves any extra info for the landing page

Instagram Ad CTAs

Sure, “swipe up” is available on Instagram ads, but you can get more clever than that. Below are some creative call to action examples for your Insta campaigns.

5. Headspace

Headspace’s Instagram ad is the perfect example of a custom-made call to action. “Snuggle up to Headspace” evokes a cozy feeling in users and personalizes the brand. Words like “snuggle” fit into the category of sensory words .

• They (smartly) opt to draw attention to the custom-made CTA and leave the “Get 30% off” as a secondary CTA
• They use the CTA button “Subscribe” after that to make it clear how that snuggling up will happen
• Coupled with a sweet, serene image, the whole CTA experience feels more like a gentle nudge for meditation and less like an ad

6. Elementor

As an event-type ad, Elementor gets it right. It displays all the key information regarding the event (name, speakers, date, and time).

Why it works:

• The two most eye-catching elements on the ad are the headline and the call to action button. They both have the same contrasting colors that stand out against the dark background.
• Both call to action buttons (‘Save Your Seat’ and ‘Book now’) are very concise and direct
• The old-school flair of the ‘save’ icon next to the CTA button works well with the target audience (likely consisting of more technical people)

7. Nøie Skincare

You have probably seen call to action examples like this in the advertising strategy of ecommerce brands. The main goal is to sell. At the same time, the ad focuses on the experience instead of rushing to take the user to a web page. In this case, “Shop Now” is the type of CTA that is direct, yet, the ad copy does most of the selling.

• The emphasis is on the product experience, which makes having just one call to action sufficient
• “Shop Now” is direct and to the point. The prospective customers know where they will be taken from the post

8. VAI Course

Esther Inman’s VAI Course ad keeps it fresh with the colors and a simple call to action button.

• The CTA text on the ad itself boasts about its main USP: the user gets a remote job pack every Friday
• The “See More” call to action button leaves the audience at ease knowing that they can still learn more about the product before signing up

Email conversion rates can soar as high as 15% . Take a look at the following email call to action examples from some brands who are doing it right.

9. Black Illustrations

Design agency, Black Illustrations prefers to use multiple CTAs in their email marketing. You can run your own test on this strategy, but it makes sense to include a few secondary call to action buttons if you have a relatively long email. Black Illustrations also adds a hyperlinked CTA to further help guide users to take action.

• Multiple CTA buttons (and hyperlinks) in a long email can increase your conversion rates.
• “Free with a subscription” stands out and keeps the main message clear for the user
• The color choice for the button works well with the brand yet still stands out

10. Audiense

The audience analysis tool, Audiense, prefers the long CTA route in their email marketing. Phrases like “show me…” or “take me to…” create a clear value proposition and helps the user feel in control.

• Using multiple words and first-person phrasing in your call to action could increase your relatability and CTR
• Users get a better sense of the type of page that awaits them after clicking
• When using a long-form CTA, you get to test a wider variety of versions

Landing page CTAs

Landing pages are great subjects to run a CTA test or two on. Below are some great call to action examples for your next campaign.

11. Tim Ferriss

Tim Ferriss’s email sign-up landing page is as minimalistic as it gets. No top menu, no links, or other distracting web components.

• The distraction-free page keeps the focus on the main CTA: to sign up for the newsletter
• The black headline and black CTA button provide a striking contrast to the white background
• “Get access” is a great call to action to use if you want to establish the feeling of receiving exclusive content in the user

Joy is a Canadian company that offers a razor subscription service for women. Their landing page is concise and fits all information to the visible area. The CTA button stands out as it’s the darkest element on the page.

• The contrasting color of the button helps users easily navigate to the next step
• The CTA copy itself follows ecommerce best practices: “add to cart” is an easy-to-recognize button in the industry
• The small-cap lettering (which fits the brand) lends a unique look to an otherwise highly used CTA

13. Leadfeeder

Leadfeeder’s own lead-generation landing page is simple with a clear value proposition. On the left, you get a summary of the ebook. On the right, you will need to provide some basic info and then click “Get the Guide” to submit your request.

• The CTA button is the only green item on the page
• “Get the Guide” engages the users with a clear offer

Website CTAs

Your landing pages may be the focus of your ad strategy. Still, it’s necessary to create a homepage with just as much converting power. Meet a few thought-out CTA examples below for your website!

14. Touchland

Touchland is here to sanitize your hands without making a mess. The “checklist” on the left (keys, wallet, phone, touchland) is cheeky. It’s a clever storytelling technique to place visitors into a familiar scenario while introducing the product.

• “Get yours” implies that a lot of people already have one – you will only fit in if you get yours
• The transparent call to action button gives the website an airy feel to it, which is on track for a business that sells a mist

With COVID-19 restrictions coming and going, travel sites like Airbnb have to develop ways to stay top of mind. They achieve this by featuring a wishlist of outdoor spaces and a dreamy illustration on their website.

• “Get inspired” is a soft CTA that invites the user to explore ideas for future travel (and remarketing)
• The call to action button itself stands out against the pastel-colored background

16. Smartlook

Smartlook is a user behavior analysis tool. They closely follow website best practices by placing a “hero” section above the fold (tagline+description+CTA). The main goal of the site is to prompt visitors to sign up for a free trial.

• The colorful call to action button provides a stark contrast against the grey and blue background – an immediate eye-catcher
• Using red and yellow colors on the button evokes a mixture of excitement and optimism in hesitant visitors
• The copy on the button says “Create free account” and the supporting text underneath is “No credit card required.” Both copies aim to overcome the subconscious objections of prospective users (Will it cost me anything? Will they charge my credit card?)

17. Ecom World

Ecom World is the website for “The World’s Largest Ecommerce Event.” They placed all of the most important info above the fold: what+when+where+the CTA.

• The call to action button coordinates well with the rest of the design elements. Throughout the site, the most crucial info tends to be highlighted in black.
• Multiple CTAs could increase conversions . Here, the “Buy Tickets” CTA appears three times above the fold alone (main navigation, in the hero, and in the sticky nanobar)

CTA buttons: Why they matter & how to use them

You can — and should — use CTAs on all types of marketing materials and on every platform you’re marketing on. This includes PPC ads of course, but it also includes landing pages, websites, blogs, newsletters, emails, and more. Sometimes, this means that you just need to stick to a plain-text CTA that’s possibly hyperlinked.

In plenty of cases, though, there’s a good chance that you would benefit significantly from clickable CTA buttons.

That’s why even Facebook has short, clickable CTA buttons that you can add to every ad campaign, and why you’ll see so many landing pages with bright “Sign Up Now!” text in a big yellow button. Clickable CTA buttons specifically have been proven many times over to increase conversion rates significantly. One study found that adding a CTA button to their article templates increased conversions by 83%, and it boosted ecommerce conversions by 22%.  Copyblogger found something similar; when their CTAs looked like buttons instead of plain text, they saw a conversion rate increase of 45% .

Let’s take a look at a few best practices for CTA buttons and how to use them in ads and on your site (including site pages, landing pages, and even your blog.

Facebook Ads

You know we had to start with Facebook Ads!

For a few years now, Facebook has had clickable CTA buttons built into the native interface. Button options include “Shop Now,” “Learn More,” “Download,” “Send Message,” and more. The idea is that you can use these CTA buttons to reinforce your ads, increasing the likelihood of conversion.

You should absolutely always include a CTA button on your ad campaigns in addition to using a CTA in the headline and/or description copy, too. Users intuitively are more likely to click when they see that button prompting them to take action without even realizing it.

Remember to tailor your CTA based on the ad that you’re running and the stage of the funnel that you’re targeting. Opting for “learn more” for users earlier in the funnel can feel lower-risk and less pressure than starting with a “Shop Now,” but this depends on the ad and the audience.

And if you’re wondering if these CTAs matter, know that they most definitely do. AdEspresso recently ran a $1000 experiment testing different types of CTA buttons on Facebook Ads to see what was most successful – and the result was astounding.

Overall, the top performer (Download) gained 49 conversions for $5.10 each, while the worst performing CTA (no button at all) achieved only 20 conversions at $12.50.

This means that you can end up paying more than twice as much for a conversion depending on the CTA you choose – something we would have never figured out without split testing.

We recommend testing out your CTA buttons using our internal split test engine to see which your audience responds to. This will allow you to test every possible combination of CTAs, and allow you to easily determine which is giving you the most conversions for the cheapest price.

 AdEspresso can even automatically pause your underperforming combinations using our Automatic Optimization feature , taking the guesswork out of campaign management altogether.

Your Website & Landing Pages

It’s always a good idea to use clickable CTA buttons to help users navigate through your site and to take certain actions. This is important both for your general website and your landing pages, too.

You can use these buttons to prioritize certain actions or to take users through typical paths that users follow when they’re most likely to convert. (On my site, for example, Google Analytics has shown that people who visit my portfolio page first are 6x more likely to get in touch with me than those who just view my contact page first.)

On landing pages and the home page of your website, you’ll want to make sure that the CTA button meets the following criteria:

• It uses contrasting colors to jump out at the user.
• It’s clearly a clickable button designed to improve navigation.
• It utilizes brief copy on the button itself but is often surrounded by copy that adds context and makes it more persuasive (like the example above).
• It should appear above the fold on the page, meaning that users can see at least one CTA button before they’d need to scroll down to see more information on the page. Make sure you take this into account on both desktop and mobile sites.

When you’re creating landing pages and site pages, remember to test them. Most people don’t realize that you can test site pages just like you would PPC campaigns when you’re using tools like Unbounce . Test different types of CTA copy, different placements, or even different colored buttons. Look for what works best, and optimize your pages accordingly. You can learn more about how to do this by checking out our $1000 case study here .

Save Save Save Save

You may also like reading:

• Social Commerce 101: How to Make Money Selling on Social
• 63 Instagram Caption Examples for 2023 (And How to Write Your Own)
• 15 Fresh Facebook Ad Examples to Inspire Your Next Campaign [2022]
• How to Create a Facebook Business Page (The Easy Way)

February 21, 2018 at 9:03 pm

March 14, 2018 at 1:14 am

What a list! Huge! Thanks for sharing such an incredible list. Either way, keep doing good work!

July 10, 2018 at 2:14 pm

My name is Kevin and I am a Senior Project Manager at IdeaPros, a company that turns ideas into real life businesses – similar to an incubator. Our team consists of experienced professionals, which have the capacity to turn any idea into a successful business. There is one aspect that we are lacking, which is the copywriting and compelling call to actions for landing pages/websites. We need someone that has experience in creating compelling call to actions and copywriting in order to intrigue customers/visitors to purchase a product.

Our company has over 120 clients, which is growing everyday. We are a high-caliber company with constantly growing client list.

We are looking for a marketing professional to refine the copy and call to actions on the websites that we make. From describing the product to creating simple sentences, we need someone to produce this content. There will be numerous projects a week and the work will never end, hence we will negotiate a price that is fair for the long run. Please let me know.

Warm Regards, Kevin Nguyen IdeaPros | Senior Project Manager [email protected]

July 11, 2018 at 11:18 am

Hey Kevin, I think this FREE webinar can be very helpful More Than Words: How To Write the Perfect Facebook Ads Copy It will go live on Tuesday, July 17th, at 10 am (PST). Mark it on your calendar and reserve your spot now by clicking here !

August 9, 2018 at 9:38 pm

Great!! nice to read!! thanks for sharing it Dth Button Bits Exporters

September 15, 2018 at 4:01 am

The information you’ve got shared is extremely attention-grabbing. this may extremely useful for users. Thanks for sharing such a meaty weblog

November 15, 2018 at 9:33 am

Very informative article with good reference. Very useful and informative for front end designers. Keep up the good work.

October 10, 2021 at 2:53 am

Can we have updated version of this article. Web has changed a lot since this was published first. Thanks

November 29, 2018 at 10:44 am

Thanks much, practical suggestions.

December 15, 2018 at 10:28 am

Thanks for the nice article, Ana. Just wondering whether the rules are sort of persisting or a fashion thing. If everyone is doing it the same way, won’t readers get fed up with it and resist the CTA? By the way, Happy New Year!

December 29, 2018 at 3:42 pm

Excellent article! Thanks for sharing exceptional value-added content.

January 8, 2019 at 1:33 am

thanks to sharing this very good article about call to action good examples ..good job

January 8, 2019 at 1:35 am

the wonderful information call to action thank you so much great job thank you

January 16, 2019 at 8:01 am

Thanks for sharing!

January 17, 2019 at 7:29 am

Hi Buddy, thanks for the nice and informational post… Loved it!

February 3, 2019 at 7:29 am

Thank you for sharing this valuable information which is easy to implement.

March 2, 2019 at 4:17 am

Excellent information

April 9, 2019 at 11:45 pm

great post on CTA

April 11, 2019 at 11:53 pm

These CTA examples are very useful.

April 15, 2019 at 10:45 am

Very informative & keep sharing, You are a student and don’t know how to earn? So don’t worry Now, you can Make Money As A Student easily.

April 17, 2019 at 10:09 am

Loved your article!!! Very detail explanation, thanks for sharing the information! I need to try it now 🙂

April 20, 2019 at 4:31 am

I am continually browsing online for ideas that can help me. Thank you! http://rahuldigital.org

April 21, 2019 at 10:48 pm

Nice information. Thanks

April 30, 2019 at 4:41 am

Amazing article – it is good to know, that other websites also name small details as the most crucial ones. We can see, that every step requires personalization, that is the reason why we created unique CTA phrases generator – http://www.ctagenerator.com

July 4, 2019 at 1:36 am

Hey Ana, I want to thank you for shariing your knowledge with us. I really appreciate you for such a great post. You have provided lots of information in an easy and understandable way.

September 20, 2019 at 10:33 am

Thanks for sharing such awesome call to action examples just loved it. definitely going to try these example in our next campagin.

November 9, 2019 at 4:10 am

A call to action is an invitation for a user to take some desired action. You often see call to action examples in persuasive writing. Once a brand has made its case in a blog post or video, for instance, they’ll often include a call to action at the end.

November 30, 2019 at 6:53 am

One of the best uses of FOMO in your CTA is to mention a sale or promotion that your company is holding, and which won’t last forever. You probably get emails with this sort of messaging all the time, I know I sure do. I’m talking about messaging like “Shop today! Sale ends on Monday,” perhaps during a three-day weekend. Or even “buy now while supplies last!” during the holiday season. It’s tough to ignore a prompt like that, especially during a time-sensitive, under-the-gun type of situation (e.g. the Christmas season). Similar to provoking enthusiasm as we discussed earlier, provoking fear of missing out in your CTA is sure to get you some additional clicks.

December 21, 2019 at 2:00 am

Getting the balance of ‘you’ and ‘us’ is important everywhere else in your website (and emails!). (Re #37 above)

January 24, 2020 at 3:14 am

Great post always testing different CTA on both Facebook and Adwords to see what can improve CTR and Conversions. The examples above are highly useful to get me thinking more creatively.

March 7, 2020 at 12:53 pm

Do you have a preferred call-to-action, or perhaps one that surprised you with how well it did? What about one that you were hoping would perform well but ended up bombing? I’d love to hear about it, so feel free to sound off below!

May 20, 2020 at 6:02 pm

I used CRO based CTR label variations with button colors and it helped me to improve leads.

June 7, 2020 at 11:31 am

informative article, thanks for sharing this article.

June 11, 2020 at 10:02 pm

Nice post I learned a lot here thanks.

June 19, 2020 at 2:20 am

Thanks for sharing such awesome call to action examples. you have explained it very will. i have also written on same you can visit my website: Hestabit

July 24, 2020 at 9:01 pm

This list is just what I was looking for. I was in need of a CTA for my ad I was doing so this was timely. Thanks!

January 26, 2021 at 10:38 pm

Absolutely useful article, I’m crafting my first landing page and I so need it.

February 13, 2021 at 2:42 am

You have a very good list of CTA examples here. Thank for working hard to provide these example with great explanations.

May 16, 2021 at 12:51 am

Very much useful article, I have been using this, But in different industries it’s very much useful.

Thanks again.

May 18, 2021 at 6:36 am

Having the right CTA can make all the difference to your business’s bottom line.

May 18, 2021 at 8:23 am

CTAs have always been a weak spot, but this is super helpful. Thanks!

[…] Almost all of your marketing content should have a well-crafted call to actions meant to encourage action. https://adespresso.com/blog/call-to-action-examples/ […]

[…] Call to Action […]

[…] to https://adespresso.com/blog/call-to-action-examples/  you cant just have any call to action, it must be strong enough so people will be convinced enough […]

[…] put a cap on this, without a call to action on your visual content, you risk drawing zero leads to your brand. Your CTA must not be less than three words. Even more […]

[…] 31 Call To Action Examples (And How to Write the Perfect One) https://adespresso.com/blog/call-to-action-examples/ […]

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Call To Action In Writing: 7 Powerful Examples

Careful attention to CTA (call to action) copywriting is the difference between brands that drive conversions and those that only drive traffic.

Brands that slap a “Buy Now” button on a page and call it a day wonder why their campaigns fail to convert. Companies that engage in strategic CTA testing continue to drive success metrics like CTR (click-through rate) up and to the right.

CTA testing is paramount because it’s not always obvious what needs to happen for your business. Landing page platform Unbounce boosted conversion rates by 90% by changing their CTA copy from “Start your 30-day trial” to “Start my free 30-day trial.” 

In this article, we’ll explore seven powerful CTA examples from high-performing companies. You’ll learn what makes them so convincing so that you can apply these lessons in your own CTA writing.

Table of contents

• CTAs drive the buying journey 
• Use Voice of Customer research to understand buyer goals 

Start with an imperative (command verb)

• Leverage power words to build excitement 
• 1. Pipedrive removes barriers to conversion 

2. ActiveCampaign makes it clear what customers are signing up for

3. wordable talks results.

• 4. Jasper speaks directly to a common pain point 

5. Emma builds intrigue by keeping it concise

6. betterhelp solves three objections in just three words.

• 7. ClickUp backs up its claim with a compelling guarantee 

What is a call to action in writing? 

Your call to action is the prompt you give readers or users to take a desired action.

That action might be to:

• Download an ebook or guide;
• Sign up for a free trial;
• Register for an upcoming webinar;
• Browse products in your online store;
• Book a sales demonstration.

CTAs are a critical component of marketing material. It’s the point where you tell your reader to do something.

CXL use them on landing pages to invite customers to trial top marketing courses:

SEO tool Clearscope invites users to join their Director of SEO in a webinar.

And revenue intelligence platform Gong uses CTAs at the end of blog posts to guide readers to additional content they may find valuable:

At the most basic level, these CTAs exist to give customers their next step in the buying journey.

CTAs drive the buying journey 

A CTA in a brand awareness campaign will look entirely different from a CTA meant to drive sales at the bottom of the funnel.

Take this post from Mailchimp on email marketing benchmarks. Most readers will land on this page after searching for “email marketing benchmarks” on Google.

Mailchimp knows, then, that the user’s search intent is to learn more about the subject of email marketing, not about Mailchimp and its features.

So, the CTA at the bottom of this blog post directs readers to related concepts, several of which are more prescriptive and action-focused than email marketing benchmarks (a powerful way to build value for the customer and to establish your brand as an authority).

Strong CTAs go beyond “buy now”  

The traditional answer as to why CTAs are important is that “customers don’t take action unless they’re told what to do.” 

While this is true, it’s not the whole story. A strong call to action doesn’t just provide a path forward but removes any barriers or objections.

Consider the CTA “Sign up now” on a SaaS product landing page. This raises several buyer objections:

• Do I have to pay?
• How much does it cost?
• Am I locked into a contract?
• How long is the contract?
• What payment methods are available?

Effective CTA writing can overcome these objections simply by altering the wording.

Copper uses the copy “Try Free” to preempt and solve these objections.

The word “Free” eliminates any concerns about cost, and the addition of the term “Try” implies a trial period, so there is no risk of signing up for a lengthy contract.

How to write a call to action that converts 

CTA writing is a form of persuasive writing . Your goal is to convince readers to take a given action in as few words as possible.

A strong understanding of buyer psychology and buyer intelligence will be helpful here. You can also fast-track results with these CTA writing techniques. 

Use Voice of Customer research to understand buyer goals 

Voice of Customer research uses qualitative and quantitative research to uncover the wants and needs of buyers in their own words.

Then, you’ll use these insights verbatim (or close to) in your marketing material to resonate with customer desires.

This is how Copyhackers wrote Beachway Therapy Center’s landing page to drive 400% more click-throughs on the CTA. 

The group mined Amazon addiction book reviews to learn about wants and pains and note memorable phrases.

Within those reviews, they caught recurring themes and identified the messaging that resonates with their customer base. The group then applied that copy to the landing page.

Messaging strategy agency Make Mention learned that the CTA for their client, “Start with the first hour free,” was asking for too much too soon.

The group conducted online and email surveys and learned that users struggled to understand the course’s value and encountered friction because objections weren’t addressed.

Make Mention redid the page, injecting several phrases from the customers’ vocabulary, including: 

• “practical exercises”;
• “getting your first developer job.”

They also directed the CTA button to lead to an alternative page where customers can learn more about the course.

Make Mention helped customers get more information before asking for the sale, and critically, they used the language customers use. This tweak boosted conversions on the CTA button by over 66%, leading to more check-outs from the Curriculum page than the Pricing page.

A good general rule to follow in CTA writing is to always start with an imperative. Imperatives are action words; they tell the reader to do something.

Powerful examples of action phrases include:

• Learn; 

SparkToro demonstrates two examples of imperatives in action with their buttons: “Try SparkToro for free” and “See Pricing.”

Preempt and eliminate objections 

Effective call to action writing preempts objections and eliminates them early.

Take Buzzsumo , which clarifies that new users don’t have to pay a cent for 30 days, obliterating worries about forgetting they’ve started the trial and purchasing accidentally.

The most common objections you’ll face are:

• Cost (Is there one? And if so, how much?);
• Time (How long is this going to take?);
• Commitment (Am I locked into anything?).

For cost objections, use terms like “free” and “no credit card required” to clarify that there is no cost involved.

For time objections, phrases like “instantly,” “in 2 minutes,” and “now” communicate that the action will take place quickly.

Solve commitment objections by clearly outlining the trial length (“Try free for 14 days”) or with terms like “free forever” and “no credit card.”

Leverage power words to build excitement 

Command words tell readers what to do. Power words make them feel excited about doing it. Combining the two is what motivates users to take action.

Examples of convincing power words to use in your CTA writing include:

• Classified;
• Minimalist;
• Irresistible;
• Effortless.

For example, GAP uses the term “unique” to encourage users to sign up for their mailing list (in exchange for a 25% discount).

Create a sense of urgency to inspire immediate action 

Great call to action writing inspires readers to take action now . When done well, they create buyer FOMO (fear of missing out), motivating website visitors to act immediately.

Words like “now,” “instantly,” “limited time,” and “today” are a good starting point but are best supplemented with urgent imperatives like “seize,” “gain,” and “access.”

Youprenuer combines the imperative “Get” with the urgency-building power word “Instant” to build a compelling CTA for their email list.

Use mystery to generate curiosity 

In certain cases, you’ll want to avoid mystery altogether. For instance, when crafting a CTA designed to motivate readers to sign up for a free trial, we want to clarify what customers are getting into.

But curiosity can work in our favor for downloadable content like ebooks and guides.

Terms like “discover,” “see what’s inside,” and “get the secrets” are powerful curiosity-builders that can help motivate readers to hand over their email addresses in exchange for the promised value.

“Explore” is a great example of a curiosity-building word to include in your CTAs, as demonstrated by premium vodka brand Grey Goose .

Back up your claims with social proof 

CTA copy doesn’t need to sit on its own.

Great CTA writers supplement copy with social proof (testimonials, reviews, logos) to give more gravity to their message and build trust with skeptical buyers.

Juro , for example, supplements their “book a demo” CTA with review ratings from Capterra and G2.

7 impressive calls to action (and why they work so well) 

Ultimately, A/B testing and experimentation will help you uncover your purpose’s perfect call to action.

Use these examples as a jumping-off point, and tweak and test as appropriate.

1. Pipedrive removes barriers to conversion 

One of the biggest factors preventing readers from converting is the unknown. When faced with a CTA like “Start now,” customers wonder internally:

• What’s involved in starting?
• Do I need to get my credit card out?
• What exactly am I committing to?

You can solve these objections before they arise with careful copywriting.

Pipedrive’s homepage CTA section is a powerful example of this. 

The green “Start free” call to action button immediately tells readers there’s no cost involved. The supplementary “No credit card required” copy below also helps users overcome this objection.

The addition of the simple “Full access” answers the question, “But am I just signing up to a limited version, and will I need to pay to access more sophisticated features?”

Lastly, Pipedrive does a great job of communicating why readers should click that CTA button (because Pipedrive users close 28% more deals after their first year using the CRM).

Takeaways from Pipedrive’s CTA example:

• Incorporate terms like “free” and “no credit card” to solve cost objections;
• Make it clear to users what they’re signing up for (e.g., full platform access);
• Use compelling social proof to communicate the why (answer the question, “What’s in it for me?”.

Average CTA writing leaves readers guessing:

• What am I signing up for exactly?
• What happens next?
• What if I don’t like what I see?
• Am I going to get hounded by a sales rep?

Strong CTA writing makes a reader’s next steps abundantly clear.

Take ActiveCampaign .

The exit popup on their email marketing product page aims to capture a reader’s interest (and email address) before they leave ActiveCampaign’s site.

A simple “Download our guide” wouldn’t be sufficient. Those who leave a landing page without clicking an in-page CTA are clearly unconvinced, so any copy in an exit popup must be especially persuasive.

ActiveCampaign nails this in their header copy.

“Use these 6 emails for your welcome series” tells readers precisely what they’ll receive. 

The use of the term “free” in the body copy eliminates cost objections, and the addition of the bracketed “to get more sales w/o more work” puts the offer in the context of the result, answering the reader’s question, “What’s in it for me?”

“Send me the free guide” (the copy in the CTA itself) is reader-focused (written in first person) and reiterates that there’s nothing to lose as the guide is free.

Lastly, the copy below the CTA button (“We do not sell or share your information with anyone”) works to convince even the most skeptical reader that they’re signing up for a safe offer.

Takeaways from ActiveCampaign’s CTA example:

• Make it abundantly clear what readers are going to receive;
• Solves the cost objection by doubling down on terms like “free”;
• Put your offer in the context of results (answer “What’s in it for me?”);
• Assure readers that their personal information will remain anonymous and won’t be sold or shared.

Vague, convoluted statements (“Helping ambitious creators design better futures”) don’t convert.

Concise, solution-focused calls to action that speak directly to outcomes (in your customers’ language) do.

Take Wordable , a platform that connects Google Docs with WordPress, HubSpot, and Medium, allowing high-volume content producers to publish to their blog in seconds.

Wordable doesn’t waste time telling readers how they’ll “Streamline and transform their content operations processes.” Instead, they jump straight to results:

• Publish in just one click;
• Export in seconds rather than hours;
• Cut back on VA or employee costs;
• Save as much as 100 hours per week in publishing time.

Then, Wordable delivers a persuasive offer, five free exports (notice the imperative “Get” kicking off the CTA copy), and eliminates any commitment objections by including the phrase “No credit card required.”

Prospects who read this CTA (and accompanying copy) aren’t left wondering what Wordable can do for them. They know exactly what problem it will solve and the results they can expect from hitting that CTA button.

Takeaways from Wordable’s CTA example:

• Speak your customers’ language (and avoid convoluted, vague, jargon-filled copy);
• Get straight to the results (What outcomes can your customer expect?);
• Back up “free” usage claims and solve commitment objectives by not requiring a credit card.

4. Jasper speaks directly to a common pain point 

Though actual figures are hard to come by, marketers estimate that the average consumer sees between 4,000 and 10,000 ads per day . 

Unsurprisingly, users see a large chunk of these ads ( 33% ) on social media platforms.

If you’re going to stand out from the other 3000+ ads your audience sees on these sites, you need to connect directly with their most critical challenges.

Take Jasper , an AI copywriting assistant.

Jasper’s Facebook ad speaks directly to a target audience pain point: content marketing is a time-consuming, labor-intensive process.

The video used in this digital ad is effective in and of itself (it shows the product in action, overlaid with a simple message “Write 10x faster”), but the copy below is what makes this a good CTA example:

“Create high-quality articles in seconds.”

First, Jasper begins with the action verb “create” before describing the desired outcome (high-quality articles) and the compelling benefit of their product (in seconds).

In just six words, Jasper communicates how its platform solves a common challenge for ecommerce site owners, social media managers, and digital marketing professionals. 

Takeaways from Jasper’s CTA example:

• Identify a pain point that resonates with potential customers;
• Communicate how you’ll solve that pain point (i.e., your value proposition);
• Describe this benefit concisely, putting the reader as the subject.

Often, the best call-to-action examples are those that are concise. This is an especially powerful technique when writing CTAs designed to promote downloadable content such as guides, ebooks, and checklists, as it can double as an intrigue-builder.

Take email marketing platform Emma , whose simple CTA “See How” is a compelling example of how much you can achieve with just two words.

Of course, this CTA is only effective in the context of what you’ve said before:

• Your email marketing campaigns can be better (probably);
• We’re going to give you a framework for improving them.

This is an intriguing proposition (readers are asking, “Can I get more from my existing email list?”).

The call to action “See How” builds on this intrigue, inviting readers to click through and answer the question themselves.

Takeaways from Emma’s CTA example:

• Introduce a common problem;
• Imply that you’ll help readers solve it;
• Keep your CTA copy short and sweet to leverage that curiosity.

Skilled CTA writers understand how readers will respond to an offer and what objections or roadblocks will appear to prevent conversion.

Then, they address these objections directly in their copy.

Take BetterHelp , an online therapy platform that uses social media advertising in its demand generation strategy .

The intention of the above ad isn’t to convert readers into paid subscribers. It’s simply to convince ad viewers to click through to BetterHelp’s website and learn more about their product.

But, BetterHelp knows that while this is a low-commitment ask, prospective customers will have many concerns:

• What will others think if they find out I’m using online therapy?
• I’m busy. I don’t think it will fit around my schedule.
• Isn’t therapy usually super expensive?

BetterHelp solves all three objections using just three words: 

• Discreet (Nobody will even know I’m using BetterHelp).
• Convenient (Therapy appointments are flexible).
• Affordable (BetterHelp is more cost-effective than traditional therapy solutions).

In this example, these three words supplement the actual call to action copy, “Online Therapy on Your Schedule,” reiterating that BetterHelp’s therapists are flexible about appointment times.

Takeaways from BetterHelp’s CTA example:

• Put yourself in the reader’s shoes: What concerns might they have that could prevent them from converting?
• Ask: What can we communicate that would quell these concerns?
• Test: What’s the best word (or phrase) to communicate that with as few words as possible?

7. ClickUp backs up its claim with a compelling guarantee 

Convincing calls to action often make impressive claims.

But today’s consumers aren’t easily convinced, so if you make bold claims, be prepared to back them up.

Take ClickUp , which guarantees new users will save one day every week.

That’s a big promise, but ClickUp backs it up by providing context to their claim (we analyzed over 4,000 teams) and supplementing the popup ad with several impressive logos (Samsung, Netflix, IBM.)

But the real winner here is ClickUp’s CTA copy.

“Get More Time” is all about the result. It’s not about what ClickUp wants (“Sign up today”). It’s about what the customer needs .

Takeaways from ClickUp’s CTA example:

• If you’re going to make a bold claim, be prepared to back it up;
• Use customer logos as social proof to back up such statements;
• Frame your CTA copy from the customer’s perspective, not yours.

These call-to-action examples are a solid starting point for designing high-performing CTAs that resonate with your own audience. What works for these brands may not work for yours, so it’s always better to hypothesize and test.

CTAs that convert at high rates come from strategic experimentation. This is the only way to determine whether the word “Get” performs better than “Sign up” or “Access” for a given call to action. And it’s one of the best ways to see real business growth . Check out our A/B testing tutorial today, and become a CTA testing pro.

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Josh is a Content Specialist at Grizzle, a content marketing & SEO agency, and a freelance content writer for B2B clients in the SaaS space.

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5 Steps To Writing an Effective Call to Action (With Examples)

Table of contents

Laura Jane Bradbury

An effective call to action (CTA) encourages content engagement, converts visitors into leads, and helps people discover your business. It should offer value to the reader and explain what to expect from taking action. 

If a CTA doesn't have a clear message, feels too generic, or isn’t aligned with your audience’s concerns, readers won't act. This could cost you potential customers and income. 

As a professional copywriter with six years of experience, I’ve helped many small businesses reach their goals through calls to action. Here, I'll share the best practices for writing persuasive CTAs.

Key Takeaways

•  A call to action encourages readers to engage with your content, purchase a product, and learn more about your brand.
• It should be short, direct, and enticing. Use action verbs to motivate people to act.
• Ensure you clearly explain the value your audience will get from following your CTA.

Examples of great CTAs and why they work

Below are five CTA examples from high-profile businesses. We'll look at why they work, and what techniques you can apply.

Semrush: Use persuasive language

Cta: “get a free trial” .

Blog posts are a great place to put a CTA, as readers are already interested in the topic and more likely to respond to your suggested action. Engaging and relevant content can also lead to higher clickthrough rates, helping more readers learn about and interact with your business.

Semrush provides a great example of how to write a good call to action in a blog post. After sharing a detailed guide on search engine optimization (SEO) for blogs, they suggest readers sign up for a free trial to begin implementing SEO. Putting the CTA at the end of the post lets readers consume valuable information before discovering how to apply it.

The CTA works because:

• It includes the action verb “Get” — grabbing the reader's attention.
• The CTA is clear and eye-catching: The yellow box separates it from the post's content, while the purple highlights the specific action to take.
• The CTA text highlights the value for the reader immediately : The trial is "free" and Semrush conveniently provides "everything" in "one" place, so busy entrepreneurs and marketers don't need to jump from tool to tool.

Here are some action words and phrases (in bold) to consider for your own CTA. Play around with them and see what works best: 

LOOKFANTASTIC: Create urgency

Cta: “hurry, this offer is for today only”.

There are many CTAs you can use on social media . If you want to increase engagement, for example, you can ask people to comment on, like, or share a post. In this case, LOOKFANTASTIC wants to encourage its followers to shop a specific brand on its site.

• It offers an incentive — 25% off. 
• The use of "Hurry" and “TODAY only” creates urgency : This motivates customers to take advantage of the offer before it's too late.
• LookFantastic addresses the concerns of its customers : The text highlights that the products are "skin-loving."

Career Contessa: Offer an incentive 

Cta: “i’m so in”.

Email newsletters can build customer relationships, drive sales, and be an effective digital marketing channel. However, people are increasingly less willing to share their email addresses.

To encourage people to subscribe, Career Contessa has created a signup form in the middle of its homepage. This gives readers a chance to see what the newsletter is about and what type of content they can expect.

Notice how the CTA banner is clear and concise, explaining what people will receive by signing up.

• It uses language that's relatable to its audience: The site’s young, female readers will identify "Level up" as advancing their careers.
• It makes people feel included : "I'm so in" creates the feeling of joining an exclusive group or club.
• There’s an incentive to join : The text offers readers "a shortcut to success." 

Uniqlo: Consider the buying stages

Cta: “learn more” .

Customers want to know what they’re signing up for before downloading an app. Uniqlo knows this and tells their customers exactly what to expect from their new app. So, rather than telling people to “Download now,” the CTA suggests readers “LEARN MORE.” 

• It’s short and direct , making it easy to understand and follow.
• Customers understand the value — the accompanying illustrations and copy convey the benefits of the app.
• There’s lots of action verbs — “Get”, “Download”, “Sign up”, “Scan + Shop”.

Tip: Before adding a CTA, consider where your customers are in the buying stages. While a regular buyer may instantly click to “shop now,” a new customer may need more information. New products might also require additional context in order to help customers understand their value.

New York Magazine: Use bold visuals

Cta: “subscribe now” .

Most consumers prefer a brand to contact them via email . New York Magazine is a great example of how to write a call to action for email,. You’re immediately drawn in by the newsletter’s image emphasizing that it’s the “LAST CHANCE” to take advantage of its offer. 

This encourages readers to take action by triggering the fear of missing out. The publication then describes all the benefits of joining — including its free tote bag — to entice users to click the “SUBSCRIBE NOW” button.

• It creates urgency: “SUBSCRIBE NOW” emphasizes that you should take action immediately.
• The accompanying text is descriptive: “award-winning,” “exciting,” “fresh,” “sharp.” These adjectives suggest the content is unique and high quality, helping convince readers that the magazine is worth investing in. ‍
• The CTA is visually bold: The black button stands out against the white background and contrasts with the colorful main image.

5 key elements to include in your CTA:

Based on the above examples, here are five critical aspects of a great CTA to include in your own:

1. Use simple and direct language

‍ This ensures people understand the desired action. For example, “Subscribe now” is easier to follow than “You can subscribe now by clicking this link.” Make sure the accompanying text promoting your CTA is clear and easy to read .

2. Provide value to your readers

‍ Who is your target audience and how can your CTA solve their concerns? Will a discount code save them money, or can you offer useful expertise and advice? Demonstrate exactly what your CTA will deliver and how.

3. Create a sense of urgency

‍ Include phrases like “limited time offer” and “for today only” to motivate users to act. Pair these with action-oriented words like “subscribe” and “download” to encourage a particular action.

4. Consider your target audience

‍ While “Visit this link” may suit a formal, professional audience, “Check out this link” works for a younger demographic. Be sure to use language and a tone of voice that your customers will understand and relate to.

5. Make your CTA stand out

‍ Your CTA should be eye-catching and easily noticeable so your audience doesn't scroll past it. Use contrasting colors, emojis, bold fonts, and buttons to draw people in.

How AI can help you write better CTAs

Now you know how to write a great call to action, let’s look at how Wordtune’s AI tools  can speed up the process.

Shorten text without losing the meaning

A call to action needs to be short and direct, succinctly telling the reader what action to take. Many CTAs are also written on a button, meaning you can only use a few words.

Using the Shorten button in Wordtune Editor can help you create a punchy CTA.

Get Wordtune for Free > Get Wordtune for Free >

Click on the sentence you would like to edit, and press Shorten . The Editor instantly generates alternatives. Notice how Wordtune’s suggestions are more direct, making them easier to understand. 

Find alternative words

Whether you’re stuck on which action verb to use or you want to make your CTA’s benefits more descriptive, Wordtune can provide suggestions. 

To find alternative synonyms, highlight a particular word and click Rewrite , Casual , or Formal . In this example, I wanted a casual tone for social media, so clicked Casual to generate a list of alternative, informal words.

Use prompts to generate text

Wordtune's Create tool can help you brainstorm and plan your CTA copy.

To generate text, click Create and type in your prompt — no more than 1,000 characters.

AI Prompt: Create persuasive copy to entice customers to download our app to receive 10% off, with a direct call to action.

Using this prompt, Wordtune quickly created an enticing paragraph for me: 

Wordtune can generate a specific CTA — “Download our app now” — which can be made into a CTA button. It can also create accompanying text to entice readers. Using the AI-generated copy, you can choose individual sentences to include such as, “With just a few clicks, you can browse our wide selection of products.”

Adjust tone of voice

In addition to suggesting synonyms, Wordtune’s Casual and Formal buttons can alter sentences to match your desired tone.

Here, I clicked the Formal button. In response, Wordtune removed the contraction “you’ll” and made its suggestions more direct, precise, and easy for readers to consume. 

Conclusion:

A powerful call to action encourages readers to act, whether that’s by engaging with your content, buying your products, or learning more about your services. This can increase website views, sales, and bookings.

Keep your CTA short and direct, explaining in simple language how it will provide value. Ensure the tone aligns with your target audience, and create a sense of urgency to motivate readers to act quickly. Help your CTA stand out against your text by using contrasting colors, emojis, and bold fonts. Follow these simple steps and you’ll be writing eye-catching CTAs in no time.  

Want to learn more? Check out our guides on how to create an effective tone of voice to reach your target audience and how to boost readability to write clear, succinct CTAs.  

What type of content should include a call to action?

Any content can be an ideal opportunity for a CTA. From social media and blog posts to landing pages, ads, emails and videos. 

Where should you place a call to action?

Calls to action are typically placed at the top, bottom, or side of a webpage. Take into account what your readers need to know before acting to find the best placement. For example, place a discount code at the top of your homepage. Or, if you want readers to share your content, it’s best at the end of the page. 

Can you use multiple calls to action on a webpage?

With care, multiple calls to action can be used on the same webpage. For example, ask people to subscribe to your email list via a button while also adding a link to download an ebook. The key is to ensure your calls to action are spread out and organized in a way that doesn't overload the reader. 

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How to Write a Call to Action (with Examples)

• By  Bethan McGloin
• Aug 13, 2023

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If you’re pursuing a career as a content writer or looking to land more freelance clients, you’ll need to understand how to write a call to action.

In this post, we’ll be sharing:

• What a call to action is
• Five tips on writing a call to action
• Three examples of effective calls to action at work

Let’s get started!

What Is a Call to Action?

In content marketing and copywriting, a call to action (often abbreviated to CTA) refers to a short line or phrase that prompts the audience to perform an action.

A call to action might encourage readers to:

• Purchase a product or service
• Visit a web page
• Download an ebook
• Subscribe to a mailing list or newsletter
• Make a lifestyle change

Calls to action can appear anywhere within a piece of content, though they’re usually placed toward the end and often take the form of a button, an image, or a link embedded in the text.

But in order for a call to action to succeed in converting readers , it needs to attract attention and give them a reason for following through.

Read on to discover how you can craft an effective call to action.

How to Write a Call to Action

1. keep context in mind.

First and foremost, keep in mind that the length and style of a call to action will depend on its context.

A call to action within a blog post, for example, will tend to be a sentence or two that follows naturally from the rest of the piece.

On the other hand, emails, product descriptions, or social media ads will rely on a single word or phrase, often presented as a button to click.

So, when writing your call to action, make sure you tailor it to the content it’s part of.

2. Make Use of FOMO

In order to encourage your audience to respond to a call to action, you need to appeal to their emotions.

One of the strongest emotions is fear – specifically, fear of missing out (FOMO) . FOMO can be a powerful tool for converting readers into customers or clients.

You can make use of FOMO by providing a call to action that:

• Emphasizes exclusivity

Sign up now to receive your unique members-only discount.

Click that subscription button for access to top-secret recipes!

• Suggests urgency

Seats are selling out fast – secure yours now!

For the next 24 hours only, receive a free ebook when you sign up.

By appealing to your audience’s emotions, you give them more of a reason to act on your call to action.

3. Propose a Solution to a Problem

Another way to hook an audience with a powerful call to action is by promising solutions and concrete results.

Start by identifying a problem, then make it clear how following through with the call to action will solve that problem.

And don’t forget to include numbers, figures, and other statistics to back up what you’re promising!

Sick of pesky pests and annoying insects? Order the new sound-based repellent and enjoy a bug-free home in just one week!

4. Pick Strong Verbs

The power of a call to action lies in the verbs you choose to use. This is especially true for a shorter call to action, such as a button in an email, where you don’t have as much space to rely on appeals to your audience’s emotions.

Strong, imperative verbs often found in calls to action include:

Pair these verbs with a relevant subject or embellish them with an expressive adverb, and you’ve got a snappy call to action for your audience to follow through on.

5. Provide a Clear Course of Action

In order for your audience to follow through on the action you want them to take, they need to know exactly what that action is and how to do it.

You could write a masterful piece of copy explaining exactly why your readers should subscribe to your newsletter, but that won’t do much good if you don’t tell them how to!

This is where instructions, links, pop-ups, and buttons that allow your readers to easily take the next step are essential.

Three Great Call-to-Action Examples

Now that we’ve discussed how to write an effective call to action, here are three real-world examples to help inspire your own.

1. Converse

This call to action on the Converse store’s landing page attracts attention with its bold headline, then targets readers’ FOMO with the phrase “be the first to hear.”

If that wasn’t enough, it adds an extra incentive for customers to sign up (with a 15% off deal) and a handy button that opens a pop-up window where you can enter your email address.

Cinema chain ODEON promotes its myLIMITLESS cinema pass with a call to action listing the many benefits customers can expect for signing up.

Complete with facts and figures, this call to action also highlights “exclusive invites” to appeal to readers’ FOMO.

Proofreading and editing provider Proofed demonstrates this call to action on their page for authors .

The targeted headline and copy show they know their audience, while the button takes you directly to their document submission page. The use of the imperative “try” and the promise of a free trial is certain to pique some interest, too!

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How to Write Incredible Calls to Action (with Examples)

What if I say, “Subscribe to our email newsletter at the end of the article?” Probably, you’ll skip it and forget when reaching the subscription button. Why? Because a compelling call to action is not only about using action words. CTAs should appear at the right place and contain the right words to lead to conversion.

A CTA is a suggestion to people to perform a certain action: subscribe, download an ebook, schedule a call, etc. Website owners place them in various parts of the page, depending on the goals, such as:

• above the fold;
• in the middle of an article;
• next to the lead form;
• in the right rail and many other places. 

How should you arrange CTAs to encourage the audience to do what’s expected? This post will enumerate some helpful tips for successful call-to-action writing and show real-world examples from various spheres.

Image credit: Freepik

7 Proven Tips for Crafting Effective CTAs

Choose the right action verb.

CTAs usually appear precisely at the end of the message. It’s the last opportunity to reach out to consumers and point them in the right direction on their purchase journey. Where can you see them? On buttons, ads, banners, pop-ups, slide-ins, or at the end of videos. In any case, you have limited space for them. That’s why the CTA should be short, concise, and punchy.

Use a command verb at the beginning of the CTA copy. Compare the following variants and think of what will be more effective:

• Start your 14-day free trial period now.
• A 14-day trial period is available.

The first option is the clear winner because it tells the audience what to do. Remember that a strong call to action eliminates as much thought as possible. Choose the needed verb to match your situation and purpose, such as:

• sign up, subscribe, register now/get access
• download, start free trial;
• learn more, click here;
• buy/purchase, shop, order.

Use Power Words and Emotional Triggers

Another crucial component of call-to-action writing is power words . These are words that appeal to emotions and trigger the desire to click. While action verbs tell readers what to do and what will happen after clicking a link, power words subtly nudge people to the desired page. They rely on people’s emotions as a motivation to proceed, such as:

• fear : mistake, nightmare, painful, crisis, danger;
• encouragement : amazing, astonishing, life-changing, astounding, effortless;
• lust : thrilling, pleasurable, mouthwatering, compelling, engaging;
• anger : misleading, diminish, infuriating, annoying;
• greed : double, profit, explode, quadruple, extra, reduced;
• safety : proven, risk-free, moneyback, secure, refund;
• curiosity : lost, never seen before, unconventional, invitation only, confidential.

A strong CTA is the one people feel , not just comprehend. For example, “Secure your spot for the concert of a lifetime now,” will elicit a different response from viewers than, “Get your tickets for the concert now!” due to phrases like “lifetime” and “secure”. Another way to evoke enthusiasm is to leverage punctuation like an ellipsis or an exclamation mark.

Create Urgency and Scarcity

As most purchases are emotional rather than rational, another motivator can be a fear of missing out (FOMO). It’s one of the most widely-used tactics in e-commerce, where sellers show the number of remaining goods or the time left until the discount expires. So you can do it in the CTA.

The more people think, the less likely they will buy, remember? A sense of urgency/scarcity encourages people to act without much consideration. You can also find FOMO in social proof. If someone uses this product or service, others will be interested in joining the crowd. You can employ this idea in the CTA. Find a problem that your audience is experiencing. Emphasize it, show people they are not alone, and provide a solution.

Highlight the Benefits and Value Proposition

There is hardly anything more persuasive than a benefit . It works as simply as suggesting some perks for clicking the button. In other words, what are consumers going to gain from it? Will it enable people to perform their jobs more effectively, get in shape, or save money? You can add a tangible benefit like a discount or promotion. To show readers the value of clicking, start the CTA with words like “save” or “redeem” like “Save 15% by calling today!”

Or you can combine a USP and CTA in a single statement to persuade potential customers to take action. By highlighting what makes your product or service unique and motivating the user to take a specific action in line with that USP, you can increase the chances of converting them into leads or customers. Here’s an example of a USP/CTA mash-up:

“Get the best deals on luxury vacations - Book now and save 50%!”

Here you mention the action you expect users to perform (“ book now” ) and bring up a reason to do it ( “save 50%” ).

Personalize the CTA for the Target Audience

Personalization is one of the easiest ways to elicit emotions. It shows users that you value them and take a genuine interest in guiding them through the purchase journey smoothly. That’s why personalized CTAs can be so effective. According to Hubspot, tailored CTAs outperform standard CTAs by 202% .

Suppose a new website visitor, John, adds some products to the cart but leaves without buying them. You can show an exit-intent pop-up before he closes the tab with a personalized advertising call to action, such as: “John, get 10% off your first purchase! Plus, free shipping on orders over $50. Shop now and start saving!”

But if it was your existing customer, Rebecca, you could show her another pop-up, such as: “Welcome back, Rebecca! As a valued customer, we’d like to offer you 15% off your next purchase. Take advantage of this exclusive offer by making your purchase right away!”

Consider your audience when crafting your message, and address them specifically. You can segment people by age, gender, profession, level of proficiency in using your software, and other traits to offer the most relevant products and services.

Apart from writing a tailored message in your CTA, personalization can also be achieved by using new tools for sales documents creation. If you go with an interactive sales deck or proposal, you can add an impactful CTA by embedding your own calendar in the message, so that your potential customer can book their next meeting simply by reading your proposal.

Include Numbers If Relevant

Numbers catch the readers’ attention because they stand out on the page with text. So it’s another way to persuade people to click. Numbers also provide information that audiences want, like phone numbers, pricing, or advantages. For example, “Learn a new language in just 30 days with our intensive course.” It’s easy to spot the numbers, so viewers will immediately grasp the possible advantages of responding to your CTA.

You can also include a price in the ad copy and CTA. Why should you do it? On the one hand, you may scare away users from clicking the button and reading more about the product. On the other, if people deliberately respond to the ad knowing about your pricing, it shows their interest in the offer. It reduces the chances of bouncing from the landing page, increasing the return on ad spend.

Test and Optimize the CTA

Calls to action are tricky since you won’t know how effective they are until you put them to the test in real life. An idea that seems terrific on paper may not work well in practice. Thus, you need to understand why the CTA performs poorly and what doesn’t appeal to viewers. But how do you determine the need to change something? Through A/B testing.

A CTA is one of the most accessible and suitable page elements for the A/B test. A small change in word choice can have a significant impact. A/B testing lets you find the best option not only in terms of wording but also in placement, colors, size, etc.

Examples of Incredible CTAs

Now that we know the best practices for organizing CTAs, let’s examine how different companies do it. We’ll analyze call-to-action examples of online stores, SaaS companies, and nonprofit organizations.

E-commerce CTAs

Screenshot taken on the official Converse website

The first example under consideration is from Converse, a renowned lifestyle brand. The company uses several tips mentioned above:

• the language is simple to comprehend;
• numbers are showing the benefits of performing a particular action, such as 15% off the next order for signing up;
• the CTAs stand out from the rest of the content because they are bold or contrasting.

Ulster Weavers

Screenshot taken on Ulster Weavers

In this example from Ulster Weavers, we see the emphasis on FOMO. The bag is at a lower price, but only one item is available, so the retailer leaves us less time to think but to click the “Add to Cart” or “Buy it now” button.

Screenshot taken on the official Kusmi Tea website

Kusmi Tea decided to play with words and use the CTA “Enjoy now” instead of a basic “Click here” or “Shop now”. Don’t be afraid to get creative, as Kusmi Tea does in this screenshot. You can also notice that there is a lot of space around the button. This trick and the contrasting black color on the orange background make the CTA more visible.

Service-Based Call-to-Action Examples

Screenshot taken on the official Salesforce website

Here we can see several CTAs. Salesforce directs the viewer’s attention to them in the following ways:

• “Start free trial” is in the hero section of the website and is filled with color. So we understand it’s more important than the “Watch demo” button next to it.
• “Try for free” is filled with a contrasting green color for more emphasis. It also denotes no obligation to pay at the moment of clicking.
• The “Let’s chat” button is also noticeable. The photo on it aims to create a personal connection with the visitors and increase the likelihood of them engaging in a chat.

Time Doctor 

Screenshot taken on the official Time Doctor website

When adding creativity to your CTA, be careful with misleading users. For example, the screenshot from Time Doctor illustrates two CTAs on the exit-intent pop-up: 

• “Yes, help me increase my team’s productivity.”
• “No, I don’t need insight on what my team is doing.”

Unfortunately, they lack information about what will happen after choosing each. While you may guess the second button will close the pop-up, the first one may be confusing. Will I schedule a call, download the app, or get to the checkout page? No idea.

Screenshot taken on the official Exabytes website

This screenshot from Exabytes demonstrates a personalized approach. The CTA contains a personal pronoun, “My”, creating a sense of ownership and exclusivity in the customer’s mind.

Nonprofit CTAs

Elevation church.

Screenshot taken from the newsletter from the official Elevation Church website

It’s an email from Elevation Church. We can see that the organization displayed creativity in its “READY. SET. SHOP” advertising call to action. What may be the reason for that? It can be a powerful way to reach younger generations and differentiate an email from other generic promotions.

African Wildlife Foundation

Screenshot taken on the official African Wildlife Foundation website

Another nonprofit with impactful calls to action is African Wildlife Foundation. They are one of the first things you notice on the page. CTAs are concise and inspire supporters to learn more about the organization or donate immediately.

Over to You

Calls to action are indispensable elements of web forms , ad campaigns, emails, and social media content. What are the tips for designing them? We’ve looked at the top seven strategies, including:

• beginning with a powerful verb;
• appealing to emotions;
• leveraging numbers;
• offering benefits;
• instilling a sense of urgency;
• personalizing CTAs according to user preferences, behavior, and types;
• testing various aspects of CTAs thoroughly.

These tips will help you amplify your conversion rates and find the key to your audience.

Kate Parish

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Call to Action Examples and Best Practices

By David Alex

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You’ve got a great website, brand, and offering, but are you getting the results you want? Is your audience signing up for your newsletter, booking appointments, or buying your products? 

A simple tweak to your call to action (CTA) could make a world of difference. For someone navigating an email, website, or social media post, CTAs are points of interest—usually buttons or standout text—to continue their journey. 

Here’s what makes an effective call to action, how to write yours, and a complete list of 37 examples to spark your imagination. 

What is a call to action?

As the name suggests, a call to action is a way to signal to a user to take some sort of action on a page, such as:

Sign up for a newsletter

Buy a product

Read a blog post

Get a quote

Start a free trial

Book a session

Take a survey

Sign up for something

Book a consultation

Get in touch

Start using a product

In other words, what do you hope they’ll do next from that page, email, or post?

A call to action actively encourages users to engage with your brand or content. It guides them to take the next step, whether that’s learning more about you or becoming a customer.

Without a clear call to action, users might feel confused or unsure how to proceed. That causes people to navigate away, and can be a missed opportunity for building a connection or converting a potential supporter.

How to write a call to action

These simple steps will help you write a great call to action, every time.

Define your goal. For example, “I want to sell more planners.”

Write down what you want your users to do when they land on your page. “I want users to buy the planners we sell.”

Create a simple statement telling your user what to do. “Explore our planners and pick the one you think might work for you. Shop Now.”

Check that this statement aligns with your goal in Step 1 and the desired action in Step 2.

Revise your statement to make it short, clear, direct, and appealing. “Explore our planners. Shop Now.”

A powerful CTA can transform your website into a tool for achieving your business or audience-building goals. With a little practice, you can master the art of writing CTAs that get results.

Here are a few examples of how this applies to different website goals.

Online store: If they’re exploring your products, nudge them to purchase.

Portfolio: If they’re impressed with your portfolio, invite them to fill out an interest form.

Restaurant: If they’re exploring your menu, entice them to make a reservation.

Therapist/Coach: If they’re considering your online session, invite them to book now.

Nonprofit: If they’re moved by your mission, invite them to donate or volunteer.

Local business : If they’re browsing your services, suggest scheduling a consultation.

No matter your business, a strong call to action benefits both you and your customer. The CTA solves their problem, and you gain their business.

Need help writing your calls to action? Try using Squarespace AI to draft a few ideas.

Understand primary and secondary calls to action

Your website should have a clear primary goal. But what if a visitor isn't ready to commit yet? That's where secondary calls to action come in. These are smaller steps that lead toward your primary goal.

For instance, if your primary call to action is "Book a Consultation," secondary CTAs could be:

Watch Video (leads to overview or demo video)

Learn More (leads to description of services)

Contact Us (leads to contact form)

37 call to action examples

Writing an effective call to action isn’t complicated, but it does take some thought. The best approach is to be direct, clear, and concise about what you want users to do. 

And yes, a well-structured call to action can go beyond just a button. You can combine a headline, body text, and a button as your call to action. A strong headline grabs the attention of the user, while the description emphasizes the benefits they’ll gain by taking action. Finally, the button is a clear, immediate action to proceed, guiding them toward their desired goal.

37 CTA ideas

Book your free consultation

Get instant access

Book online

Let’s get to work

Work with me

Chat with us

View our gallery

Book reservation

Watch video

Reserve your spot

Browse listings

Join waitlist

Share your story

Install app

See if you qualify

Start today

Download now

Schedule an appointment

Get weekly inspiration

Join our newsletter

Order today 

Sign up & save

Donate today

Register now

Discover more

Become a member

Best practices for CTAs

There are a few things to keep in mind to get the best results from your calls to action.

Build trust. Always deliver on the promises you make in your CTAs. Bait-and-switch tactics erode trust and put people off of clicking in the future.

Support your goal with every page and section. Subtly guide users toward your primary CTA, even in unexpected places like your "About" section. Think of it like creating a breadcrumb trail with each section.

Use action verbs. Replace passive language with strong verbs like "Shop," "Vote," "Explore," "Contact," or "Schedule."

Include power words. Use words that evoke emotion: "Exclusive," "Instant," "Free," "New," "Save," and "Enjoy."

Simplicity wins. Avoid CTAs that are overly wordy and complex. Short, direct CTAs are the most effective.  Don't make users work to figure out what you want them to do.

Create urgency. Limited-time offers or phrases like "Act Now" can encourage immediate action.

Focus on value. Every CTA should provide something valuable—a solution, information, or an exclusive offer. 

Make it irresistible . Does your CTA evoke your visitor’s curiosity? Are they dying to see your latest line or learn the newest trends? Whatever the case, make your call to action irresistible.

Remember to add CTAs anywhere you interact with your audience. Include your call to action on your website , social accounts , and email marketing .

CTA design tips

A strong call to action isn't just about the words, how you use it matters. Follow these key principles to maximize your CTAs' impact.

Be consistent across your site. Use the same primary CTA (and similar button design) throughout your website.  Alternative phrasing for the same action is okay, but keep the next step consistent.

Clarity is key. Keep your language concise and easy to grasp. Confusing CTAs lead to inaction. 

Design for impact. Use visually distinct buttons, banners, and occasional pop-ups to draw attention to your CTAs without overwhelming users.

Placement matters. Position your primary CTA near the top of the page and make it easy to find throughout your site.

Think mobile-first. More people browse websites on mobile devices than desktops. Make sure your CTAs are large enough to easily tap and that your site functions flawlessly on smaller screens.

By following these guidelines, you'll craft CTAs that effectively guide users towards the actions that help both you and your customers succeed. 

Test and optimize with Squarespace Analytics

Analytics can be a goldmine of information for optimizing your CTAs. Just like email analytics can help you learn whether your subject lines are convincing subscribers to open, CTA metrics give you opportunities to improve. Here are some specific ways to use Squarespace Analytics data to make your CTAs more effective.

Track CTA clickthrough rates. See how many users actually click on your CTAs. This is a key metric for gauging their effectiveness. Low clickthrough rates might indicate the need to refine your CTA wording, placement, or design.

Analyze traffic sources. See where your users are coming from— organic search , social media, or paid advertising. This helps you tailor your CTAs to the specific audience you're attracting. For example, if your data shows that most of your users find you through organic searches, go through your site pages to add more CTAs that use your preferred target keywords.

Measure engagement. Track how long users stay on the page after clicking a CTA. This can indicate if your post-click content is engaging and supports the action you want users to take.

Getting users to take action is the key to turning your website into a success.  

No two businesses are alike, so don't be afraid to get creative. Experiment with different CTA wording, placements, and designs. Then, track the results to discover which CTAs resonate best with your audience.  

With a little effort and analysis, you'll master the art of calls to action and transform your website into a powerful tool for growth.

Ready to try CTAs for your audience?

Posted on 09 May 2024

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15 Great Call to Action Examples That Simply Work

May 18, 2021

• Why create a call to action?

Best practices for creating CTAs that work

• 15 call-to-action examples to draw inspiration from

Your ability to write ads, landing pages, or emails that make readers take action – whether it’s to buy something, download an eBook, join your email list, or something else – is one of the keys to becoming a successful marketer. 

While it’s one thing to write headlines or introductions that hook a reader, it’s an entirely different ball game to make these readers take action after reading your copy. To make your audience or readers take action, you need to pay more than the usual attention to creating a compelling call to action (CTA) . 

We’re going to share real-life examples of CTAs you can use to improve your conversions and grow your business. You’ll also learn why you need a strong call to action and how to write CTAs that work.

A call to action is used to prompt an audience to take a specific action. 

When you think about the last time you downloaded an eBook, enrolled for an email course, or signed up for a software’s free trial, you will discover that a CTA was the final nudge that made you take action. 

Common examples of CTAs you can find on websites, landing pages, emails, and ads are “Buy now,” “Subscribe,” “Sign Up,” and “Learn More”. These CTAs serve as a bridge between your audience and conversion.

Why should you create a strong call to action?

Many marketers make the mistake of thinking that CTAs are not necessary, especially since a call to action only takes up a small part of their website, email, or landing page. They also imagine that slapping common CTA examples like “Buy Now” or “Subscribe” on their copy would convert well for them. 

But the truth is that your conversions would tank if you don’t create strong CTAs. Why? The average daily time spent on social media in 2020 was 145 minutes compared to only 111 minutes in 2015 – meaning people now consume more content than ever before. As a marketer, this means you’re literally in direct competition for people’s attention against Zoom calls, TikTok, Netflix, Instagram, and other social platforms. 

In a world where attention spans are lower because of the many content and information channels available today, you’d be doing a disservice to your readers if you don’t use strong CTAs. A good CTA should grab people’s attention , make them notice what they stand to gain, and prompt them to take action. 

So how can you create a strong call to action? First, you need to set the right foundation.

Before you write a CTA

No builder sets out to build a house without having a plan or laying the foundation. Similarly, you need to set the foundation for your CTAs before you begin writing.

Here are two questions that can help you lay the groundwork: 

• What is your goal? 
• Who is your audience? 

What is your goal?

When writing CTAs, start with an end goal in mind. What action do you want your audience to take? Do you want them to sign up for your newsletter? Book a demo? Buy your products?

Whatever the goal is, it should be specific and straightforward. Don’t bombard your audience with too many options at once. Offering several choices confuses the audience and hurts your conversion rate opportunity. 

Who is your audience?

Knowing your audience goes deeper than creating a random “Marketing Mary” persona. You need to understand your audience’s fears and desires well. Once you’ve identified who your audience is and what you want them to do, it’s time to start writing your CTA.

While there are no set or rigid rules when creating CTAs, a few principles can help you write strong CTAs. These principles work whether you’re writing a call to action for your websites, ads, social media captions, or emails. 

Keep your CTA above the fold

A fold is the part of your website that visitors see before they start scrolling. 

It’d be a waste of website real estate to hide your call to action in a place other than the first part of your website that visitors see. You can still use images, logos, and other graphics along with your CTA above the fold.

Don’t just tell people to do something

In 1978, Harvard professor Ellen Langer carried out a study that showed the power of using the word “because” . The study was conducted in front of a busy copy machine on the Harvard College campus. 

Participants were asked to try to skip the queue using three different pitches: 

• “Excuse me. I have five pages. May I use the xerox machine?”
• “Excuse me. I have five pages. May I use the xerox machine because I’m in a rush?”
• “Excuse me. I have five pages. May I use the xerox machine because I have to make copies?”

The results?

The first statement without “because” got a 60% favorable response. But that response was dwarfed by the 94% and 93% favorable responses from the other two pitches that used “because”.

Instead of just telling people to do something, tell them why they should do it. 

Use a call to value instead of a call to action

Like telling your audience why they should do something, a call to value helps hammer on the benefits your audience can get from taking a particular action. Don’t say “Shop now” when you could say “Shop now and get 30% off of your order.”

Create a sense of urgency

Remember how you always rushed your assignment the night before you had to submit it? Without a submission deadline, you probably wouldn’t have completed as many assignments as you did in high school. The same thing happens with your marketing messages.

Without a sense of urgency, your audience would most likely not take any form of action. To create a sense of urgency, you can use phrases like “limited offer,” “now,” “XXX seats left” in your CTAs.

Your CTA should also make your audience fear that they’ll miss out on something if they don’t act quickly.

Strike a balance between creativity and simplicity 

Don’t try to be too smart or witty by using phrases or words your audience doesn’t know. Nobody is going to hand you a medal for lacing your call to action and messaging with big words. Instead, use words, phrases, and terms that your audience uses in their daily conversations.

Use power words and phrases 

A compelling call to action uses powerful words and phrases. Here’s a list of powerful words and phrases you can use in your CTA: 

• Deadline 
• Freebie 
• On-demand 
• Seize 
• Try for free
• Start your free trial

Adjust CTAs to different devices

The way your call to action appears on a mobile phone differs from how it appears on a desktop. Make sure you optimize your CTA buttons to match the different devices your audience uses.

Employ social proof

Social proof, no matter how small, goes a long way into making your CTAs work. In a world where everyone claims to be the best, social proof helps your audience see that you’re not the one tooting your horn.

Social proof could be in the form of big company or client logos, star ratings from review sites, testimonials from customers, or some stats like the number of email subscribers you have.

Consider your CTA length

No rule book says that your CTA needs to be a specific length. The length of your call to action often depends on your offer and understanding of your audience. So don’t sweat it. Besides, you can always test which length works best for you. 

Always keep testing

One exciting thing about CTAs is that you can test almost everything about them to see what works. You can test your call to action’s copy, button, button size, placement, and even the colors using an effective CTA conversion strategy . 

15 call-to-action examples to draw inspiration from 

You don’t always have to start from scratch or reinvent the wheel when creating a call to action. Here are some CTA examples that can inspire you, spanning across website, email, landing page, and ad CTA examples. 

1. Get a free savings assessment

Even though G2’s homepage has a couple of good CTAs, the one on the header navigation bar stands out for many reasons. 

First, it catches the eye immediately because its color scheme contrasts with the background and the rest of the page. It also contains the word “Free,” a word everyone loves to hear. 

The use of figures and a clear benefit in the “Reduce your software costs by 18% overnight” line also makes clicking the CTA a no-brainer. 

2. Start a 7-day trial for $7

Customers want to know what they’ll be getting before they click anything on your site. Ahrefs could have conveniently made their CTA read “Start a 7-day trial” without mentioning the $7 part. 

While this can cause more visitors to click on the CTA, only a small percentage of them would proceed after hitting a paywall. If your audience has to pay before using your tool, clarify it in the call to action.

3. Learn more

“Learn more” is one of the most common CTAs on websites. While it may not work for everyone, it works well for Apple...well, because they’re Apple. Since they’re already on top of their audiences’ minds, Apple doesn’t need to say much to move people to action. 

You’d also notice that although the call to action isn’t a button, it’s still easily identifiable because its color differs from the rest of the text.

4. Plant now

Click A Tree’s website design looks clean and on-brand. The image choice clearly shows what the organization is all about. The use of brown (earth) and green (leaves) as their colors also points to the organization’s mission to plant more trees. 

All these elements combine to make the “Plant now” CTA work. “Now” also creates a sense of urgency.

5. Get started – it’s free

Many company websites, especially SaaS companies, use the “Get started” CTA. However, Webflow takes it a step further by adding “ it’s free” at the end of their CTA. 

This little addition helps resolve some objections around pricing that may come up in a visitor’s mind.

6. See how addictive email can be

Over the years, Tarzan Kay has built a successful business through email marketing. And with her website headline, she shows visitors what they would get when they click the CTA button. 

Yes, that giant CTA button. Although the button is hard to miss, it’s not pushy or salesy. Instead, it gives visitors the feeling that they would be gaining front seat rows to see how email marketing can work for them.

7. Get 30 days free

Want to know what’s better than getting a week-long free trial? Getting 30 days free. 

Peloton uses the “Get 30 days free” CTA to attract and convert visitors who want to get fit. This CTA is excellent because 30 days is more than enough time for a person to tell whether Peleton’s program is working for them or not. 

8. Start winning more

It’s not only in your homepage headline that you can highlight your products or services’ most significant benefits. You can and should use these benefits in your call-to-action copy too. Winning is something anyone who plays games wants to achieve. And Metafy here brilliantly highlights this with their “Start winning more” CTA. 

9. Schedule your free strategy session

Like we mentioned earlier, knowing your audience is vital to writing strong CTAs. Here, Pedro clearly defines that he serves SaaS companies that have trouble converting visitors into customers. 

SaaS business owners know that a small percentage change (say 5% uptick) in their conversions can blow their revenue out of the water. Pedro knows this too, and that’s why his CTA offering a free strategy session (emphasis on free) looks like a steal.

10. Subscribe to our newsletter

Let’s start with the classic “Subscribe to our newsletter”.

Although many companies have email sign-up boxes that use this CTA, these companies often offer zero motivation to make their audience actually subscribe. Really Good Emails gives their visitors compelling reasons why they should subscribe to their email list. 

11. Start saving

Black Friday deals come and go every year, and almost everyone with an email gets bombarded by deals from different companies. 

To help their customers make the most of these deals, Bluehost uses a simple “Start saving” CTA. This call to action works because it offers a clear benefit. Thanks to the button’s deep blue color on a lighter background, it’s also hard to miss. 

12. Go pro yearly and save 45%

Many customers would rather pay $10 monthly instead of $100 per year, even though the yearly subscription cost less in the long run. 

In this email CTA example, Bannersnack not only highlights that customers would be saving 45% if they move to a yearly subscription. But they also mention other benefits like “No more missed payment” and “no more worries”. 

13. Start streaming

HBOmax is a video streaming platform . And it’s only right that they use a “Start streaming” CTA in their emails. 

While the CTA is not super creative, they did make it stand out by using different colors for the CTA button and the background.

14. Get more time

ClickUp is a time and project management tool for big and small businesses. 

Their email pop-up box decided to ditch the traditional “join our newsletter” and use “Get more time” instead.

Why does this work? Anyone interested in gaining back more time would be interested in the “Get more time” CTA. Besides bringing their value upfront, ClickUp also uses social proof (by displaying company logos) and a cheeky “No, I want to waste one day per week” line beside their call to action. 

15. Start creating

In this email, Vimeo announces its new features that allow users to create and showcase videos online. 

Instead of focusing on themselves, Vimeo used a CTA that focuses on the reason why people use Vimeo in the first place: to create.

It’s time to get to work, now that you’ve seen CTA examples that can inspire you to create a call to action that converts more of your audience into leads and customers. 

Before you write, keep in mind to know your audience well and the specific action you want them to take. Your CTAs should be above the fold, start with powerful words, create a sense of urgency, have some form of social proof, and tell people why they need to take action.

Nathan is a B2B SaaS content writer . When he’s not helping software brands build more authority, generate better traffic, or convert more leads, you’ll find him binging on Marvel’s latest movies.

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14 Tips for Writing the Best Call to Action (With Examples)

You could write the most effective, emotional, efficient copy for your printed marketing media, and it wouldn’t amount to anything if a call to action wasn’t clearly defined.

In written advertising, a call to action (by definition) is an imperative sentence that instructs the reader to perform a task. They’re absolutely crucial because once you’ve hooked your audience on your brand, they need to know what steps to take in order to obtain your product or service. Good call to action phrases act like a trail of breadcrumbs leading potential customers directly to your business.

Know your audience’s needs

Before you can begin writing your call to action, you have to understand what you can offer your audience and more importantly, why they need it in the first place. The best practices for accomplishing this are to identify a problem your audience can relate to and position your brand as a solution to that problem. This makes the call to action more enticing to the audience because it gives them a reason to follow your instructions.

This flyer begins by offering a benefit (a happy reaction from your mother) and follows up with a call to action: “Send us her photo.” Photo Credit: LeighAnn Loftus

Use actionable verbs and phrases

Almost every call to action includes a verb–but some verbs are stronger than others. Action words and phrases compel the reader to perform a task, which is the entire point of a call to action to begin with. Actionable verbs are ones that can actually be carried out by a person in a literal sense.

For example:

Good: “Call us today for a free sample” – this is actionable because “call” is a verb that can be carried out by a person.

Bad: “Give us a call for a free sample” – although “give” would normally be actionable, in this case what you’re giving is not a tangible object. You can’t literally hand someone a phone call.

Clarity is crucial

A call to action is only effective if it’s clearly understood by the audience. For starters, the font should be bold and easy to read, so avoid small or overly fancy fonts.

More importantly, the message itself should be easily understood. A clear message spells out exactly what the audience should do and how it will benefit them. Write your call to action using simple language-avoid jargon or confusing terms.

Here’s an example:

Good: “Visit our website! “

Bad: “Point your web browser towards our home page.”

The call to action here is quick and to the point: “ENTER NOW” and a corresponding URL. Photo Credit: Jennie Myers

Make the action as easy as possible

The reader should be able to go directly from the call to action to performing the task itself, so make sure he has everything he need to follow up. For example, if you want them to call, provide a phone number.

However, you also have to consider what kind of phone number you use and if it presents any other problems to your customer. For example, a customer is more willing to call a local number or a toll-free number than a long-distance number.

If you want your customer to visit your website, provide an address. However, if you also provide a QR code, then customers with smart phones or tablet devices can immediately visit your site without having to type an address.

If your goal is for your audience to visit your website, make sure to include a clear and noticeable URL, such as the one on this flyer. Photo Credit: Veronica Varetsa

Writing a call to action is more effective when the audience is only being asked to complete one task. Multiple phrases asking the audience to perform different tasks can be confusing and audiences can loose interest when they think there is a lot of work involved.

However, if you have to have multiple calls to action, make sure one is clearly dominant while the others are just there to work towards the main goal.

This flyer has multiple examples of calls to action, but one dominates the others: “Buy at Fine Retail Stores.” Photo Credit: Fran Linden

For example, the end goal may be to have customers sign up for a free consultation, but they might have multiple options for doing so. By using both “Call us to sign up for a free consultation” and “Visit our website and sign up for a free consultation” in your copy it makes it clear to the audience that signing up is the most important action.

A better way to achieve this would be to eliminate the other calls to action altogether. “Sign up for a free consultation by phone or on our website” is much clearer.

Create a sense of urgency

A time limitation makes your calls to action a bit stronger because it adds a sense of urgency. However this doesn’t have to be a strict measurement of time, just a general feeling of importance.

Good: “Call us today” – This call to action gives the audience a firm measurement of time to work with and creates a sense of importance.

Good: “Call now” – This is even more urgent and implies the offer may not last forever (even if that’s not the case.) The audience understands the importance of calling soon.

Bad: “Call anytime” – This implies that the offer is always available and that there’s no need to call immediately, which makes it more likely that the audience will forget to call completely.

A sense of urgency helps to make your call to action (such as the one on this flyer) more persuasive. Photo Credit: Darren @ Mass Appeal Designs

Answer the reader’s questions

Customers want to know what will happen if they follow your call to action and how doing so will benefit them. Many people in your audience will be skeptical to follow your instructions unless they’re given more information on what happens after doing so.

Quell your reader’s fears

Call to action phrases can be used to help your audience get over any opposition they may have. Identify and demolish any misgivings your audience may feel towards your brand and add statements that provide reassurance.

For example, a reader may not want to call because they’re afraid of being sucked into a long sales pitch. Therefore, you might say something like “Call now and in less than five minutes you can get a great deal on your insurance.”

Make an offer they can’t refuse

Sometimes a special offer can go a long way towards convincing skeptical audience members to follow your call to action. This might be a free gift, guarantee , special discount or other incentives to sweeten the deal.

“Order today and get half-off the cost of shipping.” “Call now and ask about our buy-one, get one offer.” “Sign up for our mailing list to receive special member coupons.”

Be upfront in your call to action if there are any limitations to your offer, such as a time limit or per-customer limit.

The fact that buyers can ‘save over $700’ makes the call to action on this flyer especially persuasive. Photo Credit: Mike Greenwald

Use repetition

Just like any message you want to drive home, repetition makes your call to action more effective. Repeat your call to action several different ways and in different areas to make sure the message is clear.

Take a look at these examples:

“Visit us at the corner of Main and Maple to receive a free quote” “Come to our downtown location for your free quote” “Ask for your free quote at our Main and Maple location.” “Drive downtown today for your free quote.”

Use colors and graphics

A call to action is more effective when it stands out from the rest of your design. Try using a contrasting font color to make the call to action pop. Red is an effective call to action color because it’s bright and creates a sense of urgency, but you can use any distinctive color that matches your design.

The bright red color helps this mailer’s call to action really stand out. Photo Credit: Burton Creative

Leave white space

Size matters.

A call to action should usually be sightly larger than the surrounding paragraph text so that readers recognize it as something separate. This also makes it easier to scan and read. People don’t always take action right away; a large call to action ensures that they will find it easily if they look at the ad later.

Follow through

When the customer actually does follow through on your call to action, what happens next? It’s your responsibility to make sure that when they follow your instructions, it’s easy for them to follow the next step towards a sale or conversion.

And the next step.

For example, if you ask them to call your office, make sure someone is on the other end waiting to take their call and to explain the next step of the process. If the office is closed, there should be an automated message that explains the process and gives the customer instructions on when to call back.

Practice makes perfect, and your best call to action ideas will likely come to you after you’ve become more familiar with the process. Take the time to perform writing exercises, coming up with different ways to instruct your audience and drive them towards your brand’s end goal.

What sort of calls to action do you find to be effective in your printed material? What calls to action have you yourself acted upon in the past? Here’s a call to action for you: share your responses, tips and examples in the comments!

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5 Responses to “14 Tips for Writing the Best Call to Action (With Examples)”

I found your examples and suggestion to be very helpful , I intend to apply this information as I work on my call to action. I truly thank you.

Thank you for taking the time to share this information, I plan on applying it today in marketing my new sculpture, “Turn Two – Double Play

Some good tips there. I think however that a few of these flyers are even still a little too busy in design. I am forever trying to encourage my clients to create simple punchy ads so that the message is to the point. Product – Call to action – URL and finished.

Great call to action content

The single most important thing for any writer of copy is to understand its purpose. Knowing your end goal from the outset helps you craft the perfect piece of content and an ideal call-to-action statement.

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5 Examples of Concluding Words for Essays

4-minute read

• 19th September 2022

If you’re a student writing an essay or research paper, it’s important to make sure your points flow together well. You’ll want to use connecting words (known formally as transition signals) to do this. Transition signals like thus , also , and furthermore link different ideas, and when you get to the end of your work, you need to use these to mark your conclusion. Read on to learn more about transition signals and how to use them to conclude your essays.

Transition Signals

Transition signals link sentences together cohesively, enabling easy reading and comprehension. They are usually placed at the beginning of a sentence and separated from the remaining words with a comma. There are several types of transition signals, including those to:

●  show the order of a sequence of events (e.g., first, then, next)

●  introduce an example (e.g., specifically, for instance)

●  indicate a contrasting idea (e.g., but, however, although)

●  present an additional idea (e.g., also, in addition, plus)

●  indicate time (e.g., beforehand, meanwhile, later)

●  compare (e.g., likewise, similarly)

●  show cause and effect (e.g., thus, as a result)

●  mark the conclusion – which we’ll focus on in this guide.

When you reach the end of an essay, you should start the concluding paragraph with a transition signal that acts as a bridge to the summary of your key points. Check out some concluding transition signals below and learn how you can use them in your writing.

To Conclude…

This is a particularly versatile closing statement that can be used for almost any kind of essay, including both formal and informal academic writing. It signals to the reader that you will briefly restate the main idea. As an alternative, you can begin the summary with “to close” or “in conclusion.” In an argumentative piece, you can use this phrase to indicate a call to action or opinion:

To conclude, Abraham Lincoln was the best president because he abolished slavery.

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As Has Been Demonstrated…

To describe how the evidence presented in your essay supports your argument or main idea, begin the concluding paragraph with “as has been demonstrated.” This phrase is best used for research papers or articles with heavy empirical or statistical evidence.

As has been demonstrated by the study presented above, human activities are negatively altering the climate system.

The Above Points Illustrate…

As another transitional phrase for formal or academic work, “the above points illustrate” indicates that you are reiterating your argument and that the conclusion will include an assessment of the evidence you’ve presented.

The above points illustrate that children prefer chocolate over broccoli.

In a Nutshell…

A simple and informal metaphor to begin a conclusion, “in a nutshell” prepares the reader for a summary of your paper. It can work in narratives and speeches but should be avoided in formal situations.

In a nutshell, the Beatles had an impact on musicians for generations to come.

Overall, It Can Be Said…

To recap an idea at the end of a critical or descriptive essay, you can use this phrase at the beginning of the concluding paragraph. “Overall” means “taking everything into account,” and it sums up your essay in a formal way. You can use “overall” on its own as a transition signal, or you can use it as part of a phrase.

Overall, it can be said that art has had a positive impact on humanity.

Proofreading and Editing

Transition signals are crucial to crafting a well-written and cohesive essay. For your next writing assignment, make sure you include plenty of transition signals, and check out this post for more tips on how to improve your writing. And before you turn in your paper, don’t forget to have someone proofread your work. Our expert editors will make sure your essay includes all the transition signals necessary for your writing to flow seamlessly. Send in a free 500-word sample today!

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41 call to action examples: How to write compelling CTAs

Here at Teachable, we’ve seen a lot of call-to-action examples, so we know a good one when we see one. You can have the most well-thought-out course content and a beautiful presentation, but without compelling calls to action (CTAs) consistent across your marketing campaigns and channels, all your effort runs the risk of not gaining any traction. To support your small business, we’ve created some helpful copywriting tips, plus rounded up some of the most effective CTAs, to keep your audience engaged and your click-through rates high.

What is a call to action (CTA)?

According to Bryan Eisenberg and Jeffrey Eisenberg, authors of Call to Action: Secret Formulas to Improve Online Results (2006), the call to action definition is “a hyperlink that moves your visitor through your sales process.”

This word or phrase tells your target audience what you want them to do (or, if you’re really strategic, what they want or need) and inspires them to act—perhaps by buying digital products , scheduling an appointment, or signing up for a course.

Often, this kind of call for action is represented on a CTA button, which adds a visual emphasis to the hyperlinked text, draws attention, and makes it more clickable.

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How to write effective CTAs to increase conversion rates

It’s important to know where you want to go—or rather, where you want your audience to go—so you can show them how to get there. What is the desired action you would like your audience to take when they encounter your:

• Social media post?
• Newsletter?
• Pop-up box?
• Website homepage?
• Specific landing page?
• Product page?
• Blog posts?

It might seem pretty basic, but start from where you’d like them to go and work your way backwards. To do this, it’s important to consider your marketing funnel . Rather than pointing them in many different directions, what is the ultimate action you want them to take? From there, you can start to funnel them in. Consider this general marketing funnel example: social media > lead magnet > newsletter > website or landing page

Calls to action can be found on each of these digital assets. While some CTAs might be the same or very similar, more often than not CTAs will differ depending on where they live in your marketing funnel. For instance, with this funnel example, your social media CTA would direct your audience to your lead magnet, perhaps a newsletter sign-up or pop-up, while your newsletter CTAs would direct your audience to your website to sign up for a course or purchase digital products.

Meanwhile, there can be many different CTAs throughout your website, pointing site visitors to different sections and pages. You can also monetize a blog by embedding different CTAs throughout your posts. On a sales landing page design , on the other hand, it’s a good strategy to have the same CTA repeating to close the deal, or reinforce the action you want the visitor to take.

The three essential ingredients for an effective CTA are: value proposition, urgency, and clarity. Another way to look at these three elements is what, when, and how:

• (WHAT) Value proposition: what are you offering, and does your audience care about it?
• (WHEN) Urgency: why should they click on it now (rather than later, when they are likely to forget about it)?
• (HOW) Clarity: how is this offer delivered? What exactly will they get when they click on CTA?

Tips for writing compelling CTAs

Tip #1: Keep it simple

Be short and sweet. You don’t have to have all of the elements mentioned above in your CTA. In fact, the more concise you can keep your copy, the better. A lot of the information can be inferred from your supporting text, for instance in your header and descriptions. The more you can say in fewer words, the better.

Tip #2: Be (pro)active

Active verbs are ideal because the action they’re prompting is very clear. If it’s not clear where a CTA button or link is taking you, visitors are less likely to click on it. Meanwhile, a good CTA will anticipate your audience’s wants or needs. For this reason, many marketers suggest writing in the first person (“Sign me up” rather than “Sign up”). To take it even further, try to weave in power words that elicit an emotional or psychological response whenever possible.

Tip #3: Create a sense of urgency

An obvious way to do this is adding “now” to the end of a CTA (i.e. “Sign up now”). Depending on where your CTA will live, however, you might also add in an expiration date or limited availability verbiage. For instance: “Use code XXXX for 50% off thru Thursday,” “Claim your rewards before they expire,” etc.

Tip #4: Add a personal touch

When copywriting your CTAs, keep your personal branding in mind. Consider what your typical tone of voice is. How do you talk to your audience? How do you want them to feel when they engage with your brand? Maybe you’re big on puns or word play, maybe you like to highlight your values and customer service, and maybe you’re somewhere in between. Whatever your brand voice is, CTAs are an extension of it and an opportunity to write creatively (and persuasively) .

Tip #5: Give a choice

Two is better than one: having two CTAs can keep your audience engaged longer by offering two different experiences. A common example of this is with a subscription service or app. Visitors can choose to pay for enhanced features or use the free version. If you have the tech resources, you might also consider testing out different CTAs via A/B testing to see which resonate with your target audience more.

Tip #6: Make a list

As a creative writing exercise, list out as many potential CTAs as you can. You can even time yourself (to add urgency!). Research shows that your first headline is never the best option, but if you make a list of potential headlines, you’re bound to generate more compelling ones. The same can be true with CTAs. We’ve gotten you started with 41 tried-and-true call to action examples. See how many more you can come up with.

Social  media call to action examples

If you are creating a paid ad on Facebook or Instagram, CTAs are pre-selected. If your goal is to direct users to your website, the CTAs you can choose from are: Learn more, Shop now, Watch more, Contact us, Book now, and Sign up.

However, if you are simply posting to direct followers to your website or lead magnet, you can get creative and weave CTAs into your caption. For instance, if you mention at the end of your caption, you might say something link:

• Click the link in bio to claim your free <lead magnet, such as offer, resource guide, etc.> by Wednesday!
• Check out the link in my bio to…
• Click the link below to…
• Check out the link below for…

Website and landing page call to action examples

Generally, a website will have many different CTAs because different sections of your website will highlight different information. This is especially true on different landing pages. Website CTAs might include:

• Shop [now] >
• Learn more >
• Discover more >
• Explore [now] >
• Browse [now] >
• Get started [now] >
• Get gifting >
• Save my [alt: your] spot >
• Add to cart >
• Get my quote >
• Start free trial >
• Schedule a complimentary call >
• Download [now] >
• Continue >
• Meet the founder >
• Book now >

Pop-up call to action examples

Your pop-up is generally where you offer lead magnets , free resources or pieces of content you offer in exchange for website visitors’ email addresses. Or, it might simply be a place for list building . Here are some examples:

• Subscribe [now] >
• Submit [now] >
• Register [now] >
• Sign up [now] >
• Sign me up >
• Add me to the list >
• Get on the waitlist >
• Get my [alt: your] results >
• Be the first to know >
• I want in >
• I’m in >
• Join the club >
• Claim my [alt: your] offer >
• Reserve my [alt: your] spot >

Email CTA examples

Depending on the content of your newsletter, many of the above CTAs can be used in newsletters as well. That said, if you have a regular newsletter schedule (and you should!), you won’t always need your CTAs to be part of a funnel or sales strategy. Instead, you’ll want to come up with creative ways to keep your audience engaged.

“Even when you’re not writing to sell or promoting anything, give your readers something to do,” explains Laura Belgray , copywriter and founder of Talking Shrimp. “People love to be helpful, and they love to engage. The more they interact with you and your emails, the stronger a connection they’ll feel.” She suggests CTAs such as:  

• Check out this podcast I’m loving.
• Are we connected on Instagram? Come find me there.
• Hit reply and tell me ____.
• What’s your biggest struggle when it comes to ____?
• Whenever you’re ready, here are 3 ways I can help you.
• Got questions about this? It’s our specialty. Hit reply and ask away.

What is an example of call to action?

The CTA meaning is call to action, and it’s “a hyperlink that moves your visitor through your sales process,” according to Bryan Eisenberg and Jeffrey Eisenberg, authors of Call to Action: Secret Formulas to Improve Online Results (2006). A CTA is generally a button or link that motivates someone to take action during a marketing campaign. Call to action buttons can be found on websites or landing pages, newsletters or email marketing, social media posts, and more. Some of the most common call to actions include “shop now,” “add to cart,” “learn more,” “sign up,” etc.

What 3 elements should be in CTA?

Katie Davidson , Katie is a freelance writer, copy coach, and certified yoga teacher currently based in California. Her work has been published on ELLE.com, InStyle.com, StyleCaster.com, and more. She has also been featured as a yoga expert on POPSUGAR Fitness. When she's not writing (or practicing her handstands), you can find her somewhere on a beach, cacao-chai latte in hand, with her beloved pup Toby.

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Digital Marketing 17 min read

50 Call To Action Examples You’ll Want to Copy

Kevin Ho December 4, 2023

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Looking to increase your conversion rate?

There are a number of things that can be optimized, from your headline text, hero images, videos. The list goes on and on.

But no matter what you change, at the end of the day there’s one thing standing between a user and conversion, and that’s your call-to-action .

If you’re curious about how to optimize this conversion gatekeeper, then look no further. We’ve scoured the web for 50 of the best call-to-action examples to date.

I hope you enjoy!

What is a Call to Action (CTA)?

• How to Write an Amazing Call to Action 

Newsletter Call to Action Examples

Product call to action examples, free trial call to action examples, content upgrade call to action examples, webinar call to action examples, charity call to action examples, demo call to action examples.

A Call To Action (CTA) is a prompt that you use in marketing campaigns to get your website visitor to take an action. CTA’s can include buttons, text hyperlinks, or plain text asking the user to take the action.

CTAs are typically found on website pages, at the end of marketing emails, and on social media, when you want the user to perform the action your campaign is trying to achieve. Think about buttons like “Shop Now” or “Subscribe” – these are CTAs.

The aim of a CTA is to make it easier for the user o take an action. You want to create a sense of urgency and make the user feel like they need to take the next step.

It doesn’t matter how much traffic you get to your web page, or how many emails you send out, if you don’t have a compelling CTA you won’t get many conversions.

How to Write an Amazing Call to Action

Whether it’s a landing page or a social media post, the whole point of your marketing campaign is to get people to engage and take an action. This is why a strong CTA is so important.

Writing an amazing CTA requires so much more than just saying “Buy”, there are various factors you need to take into consideration.

If you want your CTA to be as compelling as possible, consider these four things when you create it:

• Use strong action words: You want your CTA to be persuasive, inspiring people to take action straight away. Adding in words like “Now”, “Take Advantage Of”, or “Find Out More” all hold a lot of power. Make sure your CTA is actionable and demanding.
• Add value: Why should a person click on your CTA? They want to know what they’re getting out of it. This is why you should make your value proposition clear. Saying “Access Exclusive Free Guide” is far more compelling than “Download” because it highlights the benefits of downloading the guide (it’s free and exclusive).
• Provoke emotion: It’s always a good idea to try to provoke an emotional response in users. These CTAs are generally longer because you need to explain more in them. This could include a CTA like “Make your dream a reality” or “Feel healthier today”.
• Get creative: Whether we pay attention to them or not, we’re faced with many different CTAs all day. Traditional examples like “Buy Now” are so overused that they’ve lost their effect. Coming up with totally unique CTAs, like “Yes, I want in!” grabs attention and can be incredibly effective.

Top Tip: A/B test your CTAs. Most people won’t get their CTA perfect straight away, and experimenting with different options will help you find what CTA is most effective.

Here are some of the best call-to-action examples to help you increase conversions on your marketing emails.

Call-to-Action Example #1: Klientboost

When it comes to call-to-action tips and tricks, there’s almost nothing that works as well as making your call-to-action state exactly what a user is doing.

For instance, you could say:

• Get My Offer
• Redeem My Prize
• Book My Demo

Notice how these are all based around the exact action that is happening once a user clicks on a CTA?

Klientboost does a great job of encouraging users to subscribe to their newsletter by not only providing a popup that’s designed well, but also by making their CTA clear, bold, and straight to the point.

Call-to-Action Example #2: Backlinko

A big mistake rookie marketers can make when designing their call-to-actions is failing to add enough contrast between the CTA and the page background.

As a basic rule of conversion rate optimization, your CTA should always have a significant amount of contrast between itself and everything around it.

Notice how this example uses red, a color not seen anywhere else on the page as the CTA? Because of this, the CTA stands out boldly and commands a user’s attention.

Regardless of whether they have a directional cue or not, your focus will eventually go to that red “Sign Up” button.

Call-to-Action Example #3: ConversionXL

ConversionXL uses a bold red CTA that stands out from the rest of the page.

What’s interesting about this example is also how they managed to slip in a benefit-oriented statement into the CTA text.

Rather than choosing a simple CTA like “subscribe”, ConversionXL chose to go with “BECOME A CONVERSION MASTER”.

Because of this, when thinking about signing up for their newsletter, users are already primed for the value that they’ll be receiving and may be more likely to convert as a result.

Call-to-Action Example #4: Groove

Groove places this call-to-action below their different blog posts in order to prompt users to sign up for their newsletter.

What stands out about this call-to-action is how clicking on it directly benefits the user: by sending them lessons on growth.

The entire form works to make users feel invested in the entire Groove experience by showing them a small chart of Groove’s progress, while also allowing them to signup to get updates in real time.

Call-to-Action Example #5: Blog Growth

Looking for a new a fresh way to position your content?

Try phrasing free access to your content upgrades as “free lifetime access”.

This is one way to increase the perceived value of your products, while also making the contents of the content upgrade more exciting.

Call-to-Action Example #6: Product Hunt

Product Hunt has a CTA banner that appears above their website prompting users to subscribe to the Product Hunt newsletter.

What’s great about this type of CTA is that it’s very non intrusive, allows users to close it if they want to (on the far right), and provides a clear value proposition of delivering new products to your inbox on a daily basis.

The CTA itself uses a high contrasting colour, and a simple subscribe button to convert users.

Call-to-Action Example #7: Nerd Fitness

Nerd Fitness showcases a banner on their website that prompts users to sign up for their fitness newsletter.

What’s interesting about this banner, is that it frames joining their newsletter as a way of “unlocking” a number of different resources.

They also do a great job in using social credibility to encourage users to join by stating that you’ll be joining a growing community of over 299,000 like-minded people.

The CTA in this example is also simple and straight to the point with “I’m In!”

This is an action-oriented and easy way to get people excited about signing up.

Call-to-Action Example #8: Problogger

There are a number of factors that go into the psychology of conversion . In the case of this example from Problogger, we see the use of language within the call-to-action in order to emphasize a first-person action.

Rather than stating “Get Your Blog Post Prompts”, they rephrased it to say “Get My Blog Post Prompts”.

This subtle change can help increase the perceived ownership of the gated content by simply changing “Your” with “My”.

Call-to-Action Example #9: Smart Passive Income

At Wishpond, we know the power of click popups and their ability to increase conversions.

Well the Smart Passive Income blog does a great job of showcasing a great-looking banner, while reducing friction by making the CTA as simple as possible.

The CTA on this page works for two reasons, first it reduces the ask of each user by simply asking them to click in order to convert, and secondly, it specifies exactly what a user should do in order to continue, “Click Here to Subscribe”.

Follow these product call-to-action examples to get more people clicking on your product offers.

Call-to-Action Examples #10: Shopify

This call to action could not get any more simple, and it’s genius!

There’s only one single button the user can click on, which is “Yes” – the answer to a very straightforward question. The CTA reveals exactly what you can do with Shopify, and it makes the process seem easy with how simple the popup is. A very to-the-point and effective CTA.

Call-to-Action Example #11: Square

This example comes from Squares homepage where they succinctly describe the core value proposition in just a few words: Start selling in Canada today.

Using this simple messaging, Square is able to quickly communicate how their app can benefit users, and their CTA below gives immediate steps in order to get started.

While “Signup with Square” might seem like a very simple CTA, it does follow CTA best practices in terms of stating exactly what the CTA button will do, while also keeping it directly tied to the other content on the page.

Call-to-Action Example #12: Stripe

Now landing page best practices generally recommend sticking to one dedicated specific call-to-action per page.

That being said, anyone seasoned in conversion rate optimization knows that best practices are one thing, and testing is everything.

Well this example from Stripe might be an example of the latter.

The above example shows not one, but two CTA’s on Stripes homepage allowing users to either explore their app, or create an account and get setup.

In the case of a homepage where you have a lot of different inbound traffic, some of which are more acquainted with your product than another, it may make sense to use two CTA’s offering users to “learn more” while also giving more seasoned users the opportunity to “get started”.

That being said it’s all about testing and data, so make sure to not blindly apply anything you see online. Remember to test it for yourself to determine what’s best.

Call-to-Action Example #13: Ancestry

Joanna Wiebe once suggested to test headline and CTA copy together.

Well this landing page from Ancestry is a great example of that.

By changing the CTA to “Save Now” in order to correspond with the special promotion Ancestry was running at the time, they were able to reinforce the discount that the page was offering, and in turn potentially increase the total number of conversions.

Remember that next time you have a promotion or sale running!

Call-to-Action Example #14: Spotify

One of the best ways to keep your users engaged on your pages is to provide a clear action oriented call-to-action that tells them exactly how to get started.

Well this example from Spoty is a great example of that. On this page we see a very simple headline that breaks down the core offering: “3 months of Premium for .99 CAD”.

Then rather than making the page more complicated than it needs to be, the CTA below simply says “Get Premium”,

Especially since the price is so low, this is a quick an easy way for users to quickly take advantage of the offering their seeing on this page.

Call-to-Action Example #15: Feedly

One of the most unique things about his CTA from Feedly is that they combine the action of upgrading with the benefit of saving.

By combining the two, they’re able to double the incentive for users to convert, while also keeping the CTA hyper-relevant the pages offer.

Call-to-Action Example #16: BMO Mastercard

This is a great example from BMO of how to create a call-to-action that action oriented, contrasting, and focused on the specific product at hand.

Notice how underneath the CTA they also put the disclaimer “get a response in under 60 seconds” in order to combat any objections users might have about how long the application process might take.

As a tip, when optimizing your CTA’s, always remember to take into consideration the immediate area around the CTA.

Often these areas can have a high impact on the overall effectiveness of your CTA. Things you might want to add could include guarantees, company phone numbers, testimonials, or expected turnaround times.

Call-to-Action Examples #17: VRBO

This call-to-action evokes an emotion in the user. By reading “discover your escape”, you start to imagine yourself on holiday. You are enticed by the word “escape” and you realize that you can “discover” yours by simply clicking on the button…

This is one of the best call-to-action examples that makes the user feel something to motivate an action from them. This is a lot more effective than saying something straightforward like “Discover our vacation homes”.

Call-to-Action Examples #18: Netflix

Netflix understands the power of straightforward simplicity with this call-to-action example. All of the important information you need to know is condensed into a very short, easy-to-read section. The CTA itself “Get Started” says exactly the thing the user wants to do.

All they ask for is an email address, and for you to hit the big red button. Simple, clever, and effective. 

Call-to-Action Example #19: Medium

Medium is an online publishing platform that’s very popular with bloggers from all spaces.

Since they touch on such a wide range of topics, it’s understandable why they would have a rather ambiguous headline to explain the different types of bloggers and content that’s on the platform.

They use a simple “Get started” CTA which is straight to the point and action-oriented.

They were also careful to choose contrasting colors to ensure that the CTA pops off the page.

Call-to-Action Example #20: RBC

RBC displays this banner underneath some of their different product pages related to investments and investment management.

This CTA is a great example of using a contrasting CTA color, along with how to incorporate immediacy into a CTA by adding the “today” portion of the CTA text.

Call-to-Action Example #21: Google Drive

Google uses a simple landing page to welcome users to their Google Drive app.

They use a clear benefit oriented headline which states “A safe place for all your files”, combined with an easy to follow CTA that says “Go to Google Drive”.

This landing page is an excellent example of how simple a headline can be, while still providing insights into the key benefits a product can provide.

Call-to-Action Examples #22: Huemor

How could you possibly resist a big launch button that says “do not press”? There’s no way you’d land on that page and not want to press it. 

This is one of the most creative call-to-action examples we’re showcasing. The genius behind this example comes from the graphic design of the button, and the fact that it actually says the opposite of what they want you to do. 

It’s so unique and eye-catching that it would be hard for anyone to scroll past.

Call-to-Action Example #23: Mailchimp

Compared with the previous Google Drive landing page, this product page from Mailchimp is night and day.

Mailchimp uses a very ambiguous headline, combined with very artistic imagery to express elements of their brand. The CTA however is clear and to the point. By choosing “Sign up Free” they are able to combat any objections users might have about price or commitment.

Call-to-Action Example #24: Neil Patel

This is an example of a banner that Neil Patel uses on his blog in order to prompt users to learn more about his courses and consulting services.

The CTA he decided to use “Learn More” is a low ask for any user, especially since they won’t need to “sign up”, or “subscribe”.

By positioning the CTA as simply an opportunity to find out more about how Neil helped a business to grow, he’s able to reduce friction and drive more users to his subsequent landing page.

Do you offer a free trial? Then get inspired by these call-to-action examples.

Call-to-Action Examples #25: Hootsuite

There are a few things that make this popup great – bright colors, a clever headline, and enticing text. However, we’re interested in the call-to-action. 

This is one of the best call-to-action examples in the way that it presents value with the word “free” and that it’s very specific and actionable. There’s also a countdown timer below the button, which creates a very real sense of urgency.

Call-to-Action Example #26: Qualaroo

This is an example from Qualaroo’s homepage where there’s a clear call-to-action to get users to sign up for their free trial.

Notice how in the formfield they ask for a user’s “work email address” since they know that’s the email they’ll likely check the most and feels less valuable than their personal one. Beside that is a simple CTA that states “Start Free Trial”, which is exactly the action that a user will take when they click.

Call-to-Action Example #27: Resumator

Resumator uses a clear and contrasting call-to-action on the bottom of their free trial form that reads “Get Started Now”.

The fact that the button pops off the page so much, combined with the immediacy added by the text “now” makes this a good example of a well-optimized CTA>

Call-to-Action Example #28: Pipedrive

Pipedrive displays a simple form at the bottom of their different product pages in order to prompt users to signup for a free trial.

What’s interesting to note about this form is that the password field comes with a default password already typed, but allows for a user to edit it if they’d like.

This reduces the total amount of effort that a user needs to invest in order to convert.

Pipedrive also uses a action-oriented CTA with “Get Started Free”, and a CTA color that helps distinguish it from the rest of the page.

Call-to-Action Example #29: SEM Rush

SEM Rush uses a one-line form that asks for a user’s domain in order to get started with a free trial.

The CTA text that they choose, “Try it” is a very simple CTA that succinctly describes the next step a user will take in the conversion process, trying it out.

Call-to-Action Example #30: AWeber

This is an interesting example from AWeber where they combine the question asked in the headline, with the subsequent answer in their CTA.

Notice how the CTA button is also massive, making it the biggest focal point on the page.

Call-to-Action Example #31: Intercom

Here is an example of a product CTA to sign up for Intercom 14-day free trial.

The CTA text “Get Started” is complemented by a couple bullet points underneath that speak to any objections users might have about signing up.

For instance, they mention that it’s easy to set up and that you can cancel at any time.

Check out these call-to-action examples to help you increase conversions on product upgrades.

Call-to-Action Example #32: Razor Social

Here’s an example of a content upgrade from Razor Social. On it they offer a free cheat sheet by filling out first name and email fields.

The call-to-action on this popup is clear and action-oriented, “Get My Free Cheatsheet Now”.

Try adding the small arrow on the right of your CTA text to see how that affects your CTA’s conversion rate!

Call-to-Action Example #33: Marie Forleo

Marie Forleo offers a free audio training course as a content upgrade for visitors to her blog.

Going against typical CTA best practices, Marie made her CTA black and subtle, and choose “Yes Please!” as the CTA text.

This content upgrade is a great example of how you should test everything to determine what resonates with your audience, while also using CTA text and copy that’s inline with your brand voice.

Call-to-Action Example #34: When I Work

This is an example of a full page landing page offering a free excel template as a content upgrade.

Notice how the hero shot of the female looks straight at the landing page headline, at which time a users attention is automatically drawn towards the yellow CTA that says “Download Template Now”.

The great thing about this CTA is how it’s specific to the content of the page (the template), and provides clear instructions on the exact next step that a user will take once they click on the button.

Call-to-Action Example #35: Wordstream

This is an example of a free tool that Wordstream offers allowing users to get a free performance report of their AdWords account.

What’s great about this CTA is how it’s clear and to the point, while also tied specifically to the action a use is taking; getting their grade.

Call-to-Action Example #36: Salesforce

Salesforce did a great job of creating an ebook landing page targeting a specific persona.

By providing an example of what type of content would be in the ebook, they are able to intrigue readers to convert on their form.

The CTA text “Get Started” has proven to be one of the highest converting CTA’s (especially spread across different industries).

If ever in doubt, give “Get Started” a try on your own landing pages today.

Call-to-Action Example #37: Happiness Blog

The Happiness Blog has a simple popup that appears prompting users to sign up for their email newsletter. For this approach, it’s highly recommended that you refer to interesting email automation examples and templates to send out emails easily and without mistakes.

They make good use of social credibility by adding “join 80,000+ people” within the subheadline of the popup, along with a number of bullet points that helps summarize the main benefits of subscribing to the blog.

The CTA itself however is a rather simple one with the CTA text being simply “Subscribe”.

Call-to-Action Example #38: Lemonstand

Lemonstand triggers a popup offering a growth guide to visitors of their blog.

Rather than choosing a CTA like “Get the Guide” or “Get Started”, they chose to use CTA text that succinctly explains the key pain point that a user would be trying to address by downloading the guide.

In this case, growing faster.

Call-to-Action Examples #39: Wishpond

Here’s one of our favorite call-to-action examples that we’ve created. This CTA is designed to increase newsletter signups by providing them with all of our marketing content – blog posts, webinars, ebooks, and more. 

The CTA text “Get ALL of our marketing stuff” is simple, straightforward, and easy to understand. It highlights the value for the user, and by writing ALL in caps, it really emphasizes that this offer is special. It’s also actionable (“Get”). This is a great way to make the user feel like they are a winner. 

Some of the most popular call-to-action examples come from webinars. If you want o get more people joining your webinar, here are some great CTA’s to draw inspiration from.

Call-to-Action Example #40: Masterclass Webinar

This webinar page uses good contrast between the CTA and the rest of the page.

Notice how in this example, they also underlined the CTA to indicate that it’s a link worth clicking.

Based on our research “Reserve My Seat” is one of the most popular CTA text for webinars, which would indicate that it likely performs well and might be worth testing on your own webinar page!

Call-to-Action Example #41: Wishpond

This is an example of a webinar CTA for one of Wishpond’s webinars.

In this example, the CTA color is highly contrasting from the rest of the page, and the CTA text of “Save My Free Spot” helps to reiterate that the webinar is free and that there’s a need to save a spot in case they might miss out.

Call-to-Action Example #42: Wistia

Wistia does a great job of incorporating best practices into this webinar landing page. Notice how they used the same color for the headline, CTA, and play button on the video?

This is to help emphasize the important points of the page and keep a user’s attention focused.

The CTA text “Register for the webinar” is simple, but works well to explain exactly what clicking the CTA will do.

Call-to-Action Example #43: Wishpond

At Wishpond we run a lot of Webinars, that’s why we’ve included another example of a webinar landing page for your reference.

Notice how the CTA button in this webinar landing page is large, contrasting, and matches the text above the form?

This is important in reiterating the purpose of the CTA, and give a reason behind why someone would want to convert.

The “my” in “save my spot” also speaks to a users in first person rather than using “save your spot”.

Based on our testing, we’ve found that this small change has positively impacted overall conversion rates.

Call-to-Action Example #44: World Vision

World Vision does a good job of making their CTA’s simple and straight to the point.

After giving some context about how donors can help by donating, their CTA “Give Now” does a great job of reinforcing the action that a user is about to take.

Call-to-Action Example #45: Charity water

Charity Water is a charity that helps provide clean water to those who don’t have access to it around the globe.

Since they spend a large portion of their time explaining how they program works, the CTA “Give Monthly” is a clear and straightforward call-to-action about what converting will entail.

Call-to-Action Example #46: Unicef

This above example is the homepage for Unicef, a charity that accepts donations to help children around the world.

What’s interesting about this example, is how they have two main CTA’s on the page, both with the same color, but with different CTA text.

The CTA on the top right is straightforward with the word “donate”, and the lower CTA is much more specific with “give a survival gift”.

This is a good example of how you can keep your CTA’s consistent on a page through things like color, but also prompt users with specific actions by changing the CTA text.

Looking to get more demos for your business? Try these call-to-action examples.

Call-to-Action Examples #47: Wishpond

Us again with another one of our favorite call-to-action examples on our site. This CTA says “tour the product” instead of “book a demo”. It sounds more casual and it’s easier to imagine what a product tour would look like. 

This helps the user feel more at ease clicking on it. It also helps them realize exactly what they will be able to find out during the product tour. It’s straightforward and to the point.

Call-to-Action Examples #48: Popupsmart

This is an excellent popup with one of the best call-to-action examples. Why? Because they give you two options that both help the company. 

You can either choose to “register now” or you can choose to “schedule a meeting”. Either way, the business is able to get you one step closer to becoming a customer. The CTA examples work well because they both present very different options and ideas, but they both essentially achieve the same thing.

This is an example of a Yes/Yes popup, as there is not a “No” option in the CTA.

Call-to-Action Example #49: Schedule a Demo

One of the primary things you want to ensure when coming up with your CTA’s is that your headline messaging and CTA text are aligned.

This is a great example of that as we see the same language “schedule demo” are used both in the headline, and in the CTA text as well.

This makes it clear exactly what a user is doing when they sign up, and can help reduce friction on a page.

Call-to-Action Example #50: Salesforce

We’ve talked a lot about creating CTA’s that are action-oriented. Well, Salesforce takes it to the next level by making their CTA text “watch it in action”.

Not only does this prompt a user to take action, it automatically implies that once a user converts on the form, something will happen.

This is a great example of a way to make converting on a demo exciting, and something worth doing.

Hopefully, you found hope you found these 50 call-to-action examples useful!

As for any conversion rate optimization tips, it’s important to A/B test them on your own site and see what works best for your audience.

What works in one industry might not work for another, and what works for one business might be completely different than another.

But hopefully, this list has given you a better understanding of what options there are out there, and some more ideas of new CTA strategies that you can implement today.

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Hook, Message, Call to Action: Advice on Journal Article Writing for Dummies—by a Dummy

Leyton Summerlin | 09.12.24

Like a personal journal , the Army’s journals are intended to capture insights, experiences, or ideas and then reflect on them, improving us collectively as a service.

However, contributing these experiences or insights can be intimidating for several reasons. Over the last year, I have learned much about writing by reading almost everything the Army’s journals have published— the good and the bad. I’ve also had the opportunity to meet and learn from some phenomenal writers and editors whose advice I have collected and want to share to help soldiers with great ideas who may simply need another perspective on writing to get started.

I recently spent three weeks traveling the Army , talking about professional discourse and the importance of the Army’s journals . At least once a day, someone would say, “Not all of us have a writing background or a degree like you do. It’s not that easy to just get started .” Well, let me enlighten you on my academic background. I barely passed high school, failed junior English twice, and lied or cheated my way out of any writing assignment I ever had in school because I hated its rigidity and subjectivity. My teachers only passed me because they didn’t want to deal with me for another year. Incoming cliché—if I can do it, anyone can. If you’re like me and struggle with conforming your ideas to what you were told all writing should look like, this different approach to formatting may help.

The traditional five-paragraph essay we all learned in school has a place, but the Army’s journals aren’t always it. Besides, the only person who has an incentive to read your stuffy academic essay is your teacher—they’re getting paid to do it. A journal article—especially an article for the Army’s professional journals—doesn’t necessarily have the same rules, requirements, or intent as other types of writing. You wouldn’t write a unit SOP or the way your high school English teacher taught you to write for class assignments. Why write a journal article that way? Form should follow function, and a journal article should aim to capture your idea, experience, lesson learned, or insight with a relatable feeling and the intent to drive action . Instead of an introduction, three-body, and conclusion format, I recommend we look at our journal articles as hook, message, and call to action.

By adopting this format, you can, as Dr. Trent Lythgoe once encouraged me, “start from a point of no constraints.” The first draft doesn’t need to be perfect; it just needs to have a structure that presents your ideas. The Harding Fellows and journal editors are there to help you polish your work.

The editor-in-chief at the Modern War Institute , John Amble, often reminds readers that your hook is your opportunity to grab readers by the lapels, shake them, and tell them they need to listen to you for the next ten minutes. The book Smart Brevity also tells us we have twenty-six seconds to capture our audience’s attention. If you live in modern society, this sentiment will be intuitive and you will have witnessed ever dwindling attention spans as content is served to information consumers in shorter and shorter bursts. If we take this claim as truth and apply it to our writing, your first twenty-six seconds (including the title) is your hook and must all but literally grab the reader. It has to compel the reader to want more and address why they are reading the article.

On a practical level, two considerations stand out when it comes to crafting an effective hook. First, the hook must answer one question: Why does the reader care? Remember, your audience is not getting paid to read your work. You must demonstrate to them that they should want to read it—quickly.

Second, similar to fishing, we can dress a hook to further appeal to a specific audience. Make it intriguing, start with a question or a puzzle to be solved (the Army has plenty), or paint an applicable picture that makes the article’s purpose even more enticing.

The following is an excellent example of a hook that lures the reader with a well-painted picture from. It is the opening two paragraphs of an article written by two junior officers, Iain Herring and Gavin Berke, exploring the requirement for a light, maneuverable platform to defend against unmanned aircraft systems. Consider the way these two paragraphs draw in the article’s audience with purpose.

Imagine you are an infantry platoon leader, moving with your soldiers in a tactical formation toward your objective. Suddenly, indirect fire is raining down on your position. You have a plan to react to indirect fire, and you order your formation to execute the plan. Your soldiers are well trained and well led by their capable squad leaders, and they start to move, immediately and rapidly, from the impact area. But as you move, you realize the indirect fire is walking with you—your soldiers can’t escape it. What you haven’t realized is that there is a small unmanned aircraft system (UAS) observing your movement, allowing the indirect fire to follow you and your soldiers through the woods. Now imagine the same scenario, except this time you have a mobile counter-UAS (C-UAS) system that can track and shoot UAS on the move. Once again, your platoon is engaged with indirect fire. And once again, your platoon has a plan and executes it on your order. Your light, maneuverable C-UAS vehicle can move with you, detect the UAS observing your platoon’s movement, and neutralize it. Within a matter of seconds, the indirect fire ceases. Your platoon can safely regroup and continue mission.

The Message

What are you telling the audience? Is it a concept you want to share, a lesson you learned, or a unique experience others can benefit from? The message is the pertinent details of your article and, like the hook, is not restricted to a particular framework or prescribed paragraph count. Here are some examples of journal articles that showcase different ways to convey a message:

Concept — Lieutenant Colonel Mitchell Payne’s article in Armor , “ Bullets or Weapons: Rethinking Army’s Approach to SUAS Integration ,” is an excellent example of sharing a conceptual idea on how the Army should reframe the way the Army views drones.

Lesson Learned — Major David Ellington’s article “ Division Sustainment at NTC Rotation 24-03 ” from Army Sustainment captures valuable lessons learned about deploying and sustaining a division.

Experience — “ The Fighting Platoon Sergeant Concept: Leveraging the Experience of a Platoon’s Senior NCO to Control the Assault Element ,” by Captain Curtis Garner in Infantry is a great example of capturing an experience others can benefit from.

(Pro tip from Major Ryan Van Wie: Select some of the most impactful domains from the DOTMLPF-P solutions to frame your article. Major Van Wie’s advice can help guide and shape your article and tees up the call to action very nicely. Sergeant Major Shane Short’s article “ Enabling Maneuver in Large Scale Combat Operations ,” from Army Communicator , demonstrates this very well.)

The Call to Action

The call to action is the biggest separator between a traditional essay and a journal article—and arguably the most important one. This section of the article must answer the question: Who do you want to do what ? Answering this question in an article truly drives change—especially the more well thought out and researched it is. The call to action can almost always be written directly and plainly if an article is shaped around the elements of the DOTMLPF-P framework. One blatant but good example is then-Master Sergeant Eric Tysinger’s “Force Management and Organizational Capability in Joint Base Religious Support” from the May 2024 issue of the Chaplain Journal .

For example, if you think a unit would benefit from integrating a particular piece of equipment, describing what it can do for the organization in the message and why it would be important can be easier than writing the call to action. It’s easy to say, “And in conclusion, my unit should have EUDs with ATAK software because it will provide operational advantages to adjacent forces and ultimately increase lethality.” The call to action needs to answer how the Army can implement this change and provide a course of action for the reader. Where is the money coming from, and how much will it cost? What changes to the MTOE need to be made? Is there a training plan required? How does this impact other parts of the organization? Is there a policy that needs to be changed to facilitate implementation?

Even if an article is written about a unique experience regarding something intellectual, there should still be a call to action. What do you want people to do with the information you just shared? Always make your journal article as actionable as possible. I recommend a brief conclusion to quickly summarize your points and lead to a solid and explicit call to action.

General Tips

Never write solely to say you were published. At best, it’s cringy, and people can read right through it. Write because you care about improving the organization or helping others.

There is no prescribed number of sentences per paragraph or paragraphs per subsection or article. Whatever rules are in the way of getting your ideas out there, either forget them or break them.

When I met Chago Zapata, the editor-in-chief of the NCO Journal , he gave me some great advice regarding the length and word count of our work: “A journal article should only be as long as it needs to be.” Say what you need to say and keep the reader engaged—no more, no less. To improve brevity, I recommend following Dr. Lythgoe, an instructor at the Command and General Staff College, on LinkedIn , where he provides a thankless public service to help writers be more concise in their work. Command Sergeant Major Vincent Simonetti’s article at MWI on achieving training proficiency with drones is also a good example of a straightforward and to-the-point article.

(Pro tip from Lieutenant Colonel Zachary Griffiths: You should be able to read the first sentence of each paragraph and generally understand what the article is about. This advice is great to remember before, during, and after writing to help structure your piece, ensure alignment as it evolves, and conduct final quality checks on coherency when you’re done.

I advise any author to ensure your work is adequately researched (this need not be a daunting task, most of all if you write on subjects you have deep experience with), appropriately rooted in doctrine, and written with your personality and passion. No one who actively reads the Army’s journals or similar publications gets paid to do so—make sure it has your voice and doesn’t read like a textbook. There is nothing more boring than reading an article that seems as if the author was clearly bored while writing it. Make it a goal to ensure your journal article is never read with the voice of Ben Stein from Ferris Bueller’s Day Off as a narrator—give it your personality.

Want To Win the Next War?

Writing is a learned skill, like throwing grenades, shooting tanks, or fixing those pesky S3 shop printers. Anyone can do it, and we all get better with repetition. This is why Army University Press and the Combined Arms Center of the Training and Doctrine Command have just published a special issue of Military Review , “ Professional Military Writing .” It is available online now, with eighteen thousand hard copies about to be sent out across the entire Army—approximately five per battalion.

This guide to professional writing is packed with practical advice and tools to help individuals improve their writing skills and get published. It also guides leaders in fostering professional discourse and generating military thought within their formations. The Harding Project guide to professional writing is a resource that provides practical advice and tools to help individuals improve their writing skills.

The Army’s journals, such as MWI , Military Review , MIPB , Field Artillery , Special Warfare , and others stimulate and disseminate military thought that facilitates rapid Army-wide adaptation of competition-winning ideas and insights.

So, grab a copy of the Harding Project guide and get started.

Sgt. 1st Class Leyton Summerlin is a special assistant to the chief of staff of the Army and a platoon sergeant in the 173rd Airborne Brigade. Summerlin has also served in the 2nd Infantry Division, where he deployed to the Zabul Province in Afghanistan with 3rd Brigade; at the Joint Multinational Readiness Center with 1st Battalion, 4th Infantry Regiment (OPFOR); and as a drill sergeant at the Maneuver Center of Excellence (MCoE), where, in 2021, he was named MCoE drill sergeant of the year.

The views expressed are those of the author and do not reflect the official position of the United States Military Academy, Department of the Army, or Department of Defense.

Excellent points. If there is a way to make something better, why not put that inspiring thought on paper? Better to get your idea out there than to settle for the status quo.

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The articles and other content which appear on the Modern War Institute website are unofficial expressions of opinion. The views expressed are those of the authors, and do not reflect the official position of the United States Military Academy, Department of the Army, or Department of Defense.

The Modern War Institute does not screen articles to fit a particular editorial agenda, nor endorse or advocate material that is published. Rather, the Modern War Institute provides a forum for professionals to share opinions and cultivate ideas. Comments will be moderated before posting to ensure logical, professional, and courteous application to article content.

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Argumentative Essay – Outline, Form, and Examples

What is an argumentative essay.

An argumentative essay requires the writer to investigate a specific topic by collecting and evaluating evidence to establish a position on the subject matter.

When preparing to compose a good argumentative essay, utilize the following steps:

Step 1: Select a topic.

Step 2: Identify a position.

Step 3: Locate appropriate resources.

Step 4: Identify evidence supporting the position. ( NOTE: If there is little evidence in support of the claim, consider re-examining the main argument.)

When gathering evidence, use credible sources . To determine the credibility of the source, consider authority, currency, accuracy, and objectivity:

Who is the author ? Are they an expert in the field? Has a reputable publisher published the work?

How current is the information in the source? Does the currency of the source matter? Does the age of the source impact the content? Is there newer information that disproves the source’s information?

Can other sources verify the accuracy of the information? Does the information contradict that found in other commonly accepted sources?

Is there any evidence of bias, or is the source objective ? Is the research sponsored by an organization that may skew the information?

The following are typically recognized as providing appropriate, credible research material:

Peer-reviewed journals/research papers

Government agencies

Professional organizations

Library databases

Reference books

Writers should avoid using the following sources:

Social media posts

Out-of-date materials

Step 5: Utilize the research to determine a thesis statement that identifies the topic, position, and support(s).

Step 6: Use the evidence to construct an outline, detailing the main supports and relevant evidence.

Argumentative essay outline

After gathering all of the necessary research, the next step in composing an argumentative essay focuses on organizing the information through the use of an outline:

Introduction

Attention Grabber/Hook

Background Information: Include any background information pertinent to the topic that the reader needs to know to understand the argument.

Thesis: State the position in connection to the main topic and identify the supports that will help prove the argument.

Topic sentence

Identify evidence in support of the claim in the topic sentence

Explain how the evidence supports the argument

Evidence 3 (Continue as needed)

Support 2 (Continue as needed)

Restate thesis

Review main supports

Concluding statement

Invite the audience to take a specific action.

Identify the overall importance of the topic and position.

How to write an argumentative essay

Regardless of the writer’s topic or point of view, an argumentative essay should include an introductory paragraph, body paragraphs, a conclusion, and works cited.

Background information

Body Paragraphs

Analysis of evidence

Rephrased thesis

Review of main ideas

Call to action

Works Cited

Argumentative essay introduction

The introduction sets the tone for the entire paper and introduces the argument. In general, the first paragraph(s) should attract the reader’s attention, provide relevant context, and conclude with a thesis statement.

To attract the reader's attention , start with an introductory device. There are several attention-grabbing techniques, the most common of which consist of the following:

The writer can emphasize the topic’s importance by explaining the current interest in the topic or indicating that the subject is influential.

Pertinent statistics give the paper an air of authority.

There are many reasons for a stimulating statement to surprise a reader. Sometimes it is joyful; sometimes it is shocking; sometimes it is surprising because of who said it.

An interesting incident or anecdote can act as a teaser to lure the reader into the remainder of the essay. Be sure that the device is appropriate for the subject and focus of what follows.

Provide the reader with relevant context and background information necessary to understand the topic.

Conclude with a thesis statement that identifies the overall purpose of the essay (topic and position). Writers can also include their support directly in the thesis, which outlines the structure of the essay for the reader.

Avoid the following when writing the introduction to argumentative writing:

Starting with dictionary definitions is too overdone and unappealing.

Do not make an announcement of the topic like “In this paper I will…” or “The purpose of this essay is to….”

Evidence supporting or developing the thesis should be in the body paragraphs, not the introduction.

Beginning the essay with general or absolute statements such as “throughout history...” or “as human beings we always...” or similar statements suggest the writer knows all of history or that all people behave or think in the same way.

Argumentative essay thesis

The thesis statement is the single, specific claim the writer sets out to prove and is typically positioned as the last sentence of the introduction . It is the controlling idea of the entire argument that identifies the topic, position, and reasoning.

When constructing a thesis for an argumentative paper, make sure it contains a side of the argument, not simply a topic. An argumentative thesis identifies the writer’s position on a given topic. If a position cannot be taken, then it is not argumentative thesis:

Topic: Capital punishment is practiced in many states.

Thesis: Capital punishment should be illegal.

While not always required, the thesis statement can include the supports the writer will use to prove the main claim. Therefore, a thesis statement can be structured as follows:

TOPIC + POSITION (+ SUPPORTS)

No Supports: College athletes (TOPIC) should be financially compensated (POSITION).

Supports: College athletes (TOPIC) should be financially compensated (POSITION) because they sacrifice their minds and bodies (SUPPORT 1), cannot hold

Argumentative essay body paragraphs

Body paragraphs can be of varying lengths, but they must present a coherent argument unified under a single topic. They are rarely ever longer than one page, double-spaced; usually they are much shorter.

Lengthy paragraphs indicate a lack of structure. Identify the main ideas of a lengthy paragraph to determine if they make more sense as separate topics in separate paragraphs.

Shorter paragraphs usually indicate a lack of substance; there is not enough evidence or analysis to prove the argument. Develop the ideas more or integrate the information into another paragraph.

The structure of an argumentative paragraph should include a topic sentence, evidence, and a transition.

The topic sentence is the thesis of the paragraph that identifies the arguable point in support of the main argument. The reader should know exactly what the writer is trying to prove within the paragraph by reading the first sentence.

The supporting evidence and analysis provide information to support the claim. There should be a balance between the evidence (facts, quotations, summary of events/plot, etc.) and analysis (interpretation of evidence). If the paragraph is evidence-heavy, there is not much of an argument; if it is analysis-heavy, there is not enough evidence in support of the claim.

The transition can be at the beginning or the end of a paragraph. However, it is much easier to combine the transition with the concluding observation to help the paragraphs flow into one another. Transitions in academic writing should tell the reader where you were, where you are going, and relate to the thesis.

Some essays may benefit from the inclusion of rebuttals to potential counterarguments of the writer’s position.

Argumentative essay conclusion

The conclusion should make readers glad they read the paper. It can suggest broader implications that will not only interest readers but also enrich their understanding in some way. There are three aspects to follow when constructing the conclusion: rephrase the thesis, synthesize information, and call the reader to action.

Rephrased the thesis in the first sentence of the conclusion. It must be in different words; do not simply write it verbatim.

Synthesize the argument by showing how the paper's main points support the argument.

Propose a course of action or a solution to an issue. This can redirect the reader's thought process to apply the ideas to their life or to see the broader implications of the topic.

Avoid the following when constructing the conclusion:

Beginning with an unnecessary, overused phrase such as "in conclusion," "in summary," or "in closing;" although these phrases can work in speeches, they come across as trite in writing

Introducing a new idea or subtopic in the conclusion

Making sentimental, emotional appeals that are out of character with the rest of the paper

Including evidence (quotations, statistics, etc.) that should be in the body of the paper

Argumentative essay examples

Examples of argumentative essays vary depending upon the type:

Academic essays differ based upon the topic and position. These essays follow a more traditional structure and are typically assigned in high school or college. Examples of academic argumentative essay topics include the following:

Advantages or disadvantages of social media

Animal testing

Art education

Benefit or detriment of homework

Capital punishment

Class warfare

Immigration

School uniforms

Universal healthcare

Violence in video games

Argumentative literary essays are typically more informal and do not follow the same structure as an academic essay. The following are popular examples of argumentative literary essays:

“Letter from Birmingham Jail” by Martin Luther King, Jr.

“Death of the Moth” by Virginia Woolf

“Shooting an Elephant” by George Orwell

“Thoughts for the Times on War and Death” by Sigmund Freud

“Does the Truth Matter? Science, Pseudoscience, and Civilization” by Carl Sagan

“Self-Reliance” by Ralph Waldo Emerson

Why a Call-to-Action Will Always Matter

• User Experience

In this article (3)

The End Goal in a Web of Words

Scrolling, scrolling… oh look a squirrel, science supports the cta, do not reinvent the wheel, crafting effective call-to-actions.

The internet has been around for a while, and during that time there have been many changes in website design. We’ve gone from dancing GIF files to flat design 2.0. We’ve lengthened content, minimized word counts, and added videos. One thing that is certain is that the online user experience planning is continually evolving; another is that the call-to-action is a fundamental element of website design.

A call-to-action, which is also sometimes abbreviated as “CTA” is an image or line of text that prompts its reader to take an action of some sort. They can be used on visitors to a website, sent out to an email marketing list, or shared with existing customers in some way. The call is a notification to do something, such as request additional information or download a pdf, and it is closely related to internet marketing. Often, it is the first step in a conversion funnel.

While many people have heard of a call-to-action, there is sometimes a bit of ambiguity. When marketers refer to a call-to-action, they aren’t always talking about a physical thing. Sometimes the term refers to the desired action, rather than the design element triggering that action. The call-to-action might be to sign up for a newsletter, while a designer might say it’s a button that says “subscribe for updates.” For some marketers, the call-to-action is only the desired result, and it is far from optional.

However, from a user experience point of view, it is much more specific and variable. Call-to-actions are page elements that can differ significantly in approach and design. Some CTAs are intrusive and ineffective, while others are organic and high converting. In terms of usability, they pose a unique challenge of being persuasive, yet not overly aggressive. Creating an effective call-to-action is a mixture of understanding your audience, having effective copywriting, utilizing strategic design, and regularly testing your elements.

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Why Your Webpage Should Have a CTA

With all of the challenges around creating effective call-to-actions, many website owners wonder if they even need one. Any internet marketer will quickly say yes. CTAs make it easier for websites to obtain conversions, which ultimately drives revenue, and ideally leads to profits. It doesn’t matter what industry your website is in, or which action you’d like users to take. The fact is, websites cost money and call-to-actions help pay for them.

Call-to-actions are relevant on every page of your website. Whether you’re selling products or services or trying to provide information to help consumers, you expect users to take some sort of action on each page, and that CTA helps spell out what that action should be. If suggesting steps that users should take seems too much like selling to you, consider this: humans expect call-to-actions. Including them on your website pages is not intrusive, its considerate.

The internet is full of content, some of it good and some of it bad. Unfortunately, nowadays there is so much content that the average person cannot distinguish between what they should be paying attention to and what they can ignore. This is a problem because the human brain can only process so much. Yes, our brains are supercomputers, but our processors and memory have their limits.

A call-to-action helps the brain scan for the most relevant information so that it can efficiently process what’s needed to solve its problem. Are you looking to buy a new pair of shoes? While all of those product descriptions are great and help you feel empowered in your decision, in the end, you just want to buy a pair of shoes. The call-to-action removes the noise and helps your brain decipher how to buy shoes.

While this may not sound like a scientific theory, it actually is. As explained by the marketing analytics company, Kissmetrics, humans want call-to-actions due to a psychology principle called perceptual set theory . This theory analyzes how the human brain processes information. It also gives insight into human expectations and motivation. Simply put, we are exposed to a myriad of information, and our brains have a set method for perceiving it. When it comes to website content and anything else we think about, the information must first pass through a filter of three processes before our brains decide to act. They are:

Select: We first make the decision to pay attention to the information presented to us. There is just too much data for us to process at once, so our brain picks and chooses. On a website, this is done by using design, to draw attention to valuable content.

Infer: Once we’re adults, our brains are full of memories. We then use those memories to be more efficient. UX design is excellent at building upon this process. With an understanding of your users, you can craft call-to-actions that elicit positive emotions.

Interpret: With information in front of it, and a personal reference to connect to it, our brains are now ready to interpret. If you’ve gotten their attention and they associate it with something good, they will likely interpret it as such. It doesn’t really matter what you say at that point, perceptual set theory shapes our reality.

Perceptual set theory explains how humans think, but there is a broader, more relevant reason why you should bother to create a call-to-action. As part of our tendency to infer, we look for things that are familiar. We need that familiarity to interpret the massive amount of information presented to us on a daily basis.

A call-to-action is familiar. Users expect to see a “click here” box on the bottom of a webpage, and if you don’t provide one, they may become confused. They may even be disappointed. Worst case scenario, they may start the process of selecting new information to pay attention to.

“Our brains expect to be told the next logical action when presented with new information.”

Including call-to-actions on your website helps people know what to do.

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Your user may expect to see a call-to-action on the bottom of a webpage, but that doesn’t mean they will automatically take action on it. It still needs to stand out from the rest if you want it to convert. An effective call-to-action is one that drives conversions, while bad ones are easy to find.

Here are some ways to create call-to-action content that converts:

Make it stand out. The easier it is for your CTA to catch a user’s eye, the better. Use colors, images, buttons, and other effects such as animations and shadows to make sure it doesn’t blend in with other page elements. Keep your pages well organized to avoid clutter and pay special attention to any call-to-actions in the gutters of your pages.

Use action language. If you want your users to take action, you must write it like you mean it. Instruct readers on what they should be doing, whether it is to call, download, or schedule and use language that evokes emotion to convince them to do so. Keep your language simple and friendly. For more tips on the writing of your call-to-action content, read this Wordstream article .

Make it relevant. Your call-to-action should be a logical next step after reading and digesting the other content on a page; therefore you should try and make it relevant. Use CTAs that make sense in the copy. For example, when talking about costs, include a CTA of “request a price” or if talking about a specific product, include one that says, “buy now.”

Think about where it will appear. Websites appear differently on various types of screens, leading to different experiences based on the device someone is using. Your call-to-action should be optimized for both desktops and mobile devices. Also, consider where it shows up on the page. Perhaps it makes more sense to place your CTA at the top, instead of the bottom.

Have one on every page. While you only need one CTA per page (more could cause choice paralysis ), you should make sure that every page has one. This is because every page exists as its own entity in the eyes of search engine bots. If a user visits your site due to a search, they may only visit the page they landed on, leaving you with one chance to convince them to take action.

Measure and improve. Once you’ve created and executed your new call-to-actions, it is important to measure them over time to see if they can be improved. Use tools such as Google Tag Manager, trackable phone numbers, or web forms to have a clear idea of how much return you are receiving on your investment. Once you have enough data, test out other scenarios to increase your conversions and better help customers understand what their next steps should be.

Written by Jenn Marie

Jenn Marie is a freelance copy writer and internet marketing strategist based out of the Seattle area. A true tech evangelist, Jenn previously helped individuals utilize the full potential of Dell, Microsoft and Amazon products. She now focuses on building authentic online presences for small businesses and entrepreneurs through her company, Jenn Marie Writing & Marketing.

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