How to make your CTA's irresistible (increase clicks by 202%)

📆 Friday, 20th October 2023

Hi, and welcome back to Growth Espresso - your one-stop destination for ✨ everything ✨ D2C and E-commerce.

Today, we talk about the biggest study done on Call-to-Action Buttons (CTAs) and the key takeaways to 2x your conversions.
Courtesy: Jeffrey Vocell from Hubspot

Before we jump to the study, check out 2 of our favorite newsletters to stay updated with the latest marketing content:

Let’s get back to the findings of the study..

After analyzing and comparing more than 330,000 CTAs over a six-month timeframe, we discovered that personalized CTAs convert 202% better than basic CTAs.

That's because personalization entices users to explore what a brand has to offer, with the hope that it can solve their problems, including those they may not yet be aware of. This is precisely why social media platforms invest considerable effort in refining their algorithms. By blending confirmation bias (seeing what you want) with fresh information aligned with users' interests, they maintain elevated levels of dopamine and curiosity.

Here’s how to use personalization and get that effect on your website to increase conversions:

1. Crush their objections

The most common thing keeping people from purchasing is that there’s still something they’re uncertain about. A simple CTA like ‘Sign up’ still leaves a lot of questions. “Will you need to put your credit card in? What if you forget to cancel the free trial before it gets charged?” Addressing these concerns in the CTA text, or in small text underneath it, can increase your click-through rate (CTR).

• Sign up —> Start for free now.

• No credit card required.

• Buy now —> Get x% off now!

• Cancel anytime

2. Make it pop

This one goes against conventional wisdom- Your CTA needs to match your brand colors.

Your CTA can be any color that it needs to be to help stand out and attract more clicks. Your website has a black background with white and red text. Make the CTA lime green.

Most websites will stick with their brand colors and have their CTA blend in. Which is the opposite of what you want, but they feel stuck to stay "on brand" when their real goal is to convert.

3. Action verbs

Use action verbs related to the outcome they want.

I recently gave out a free resource for copywriting. On the landing page, I didn't make the CTA generic like “Learn more” or “Download now." I had it as "Upgrade your copy" because the outcome they want is to upgrade their copy to escape competition in business.

The goal was to show more value upfront.

4. Nobody wants to be the first

To dramatically increase clicks, show social proof. This can be done in the CTA button or in small text underneath. Try a CTA like “Join 10,000 others” or a small text underneath “Over 10,000 happy customers.”

Another trick is to add a real-time counter under your CTA showing your sign-ups increasing by the second. This works amazing if you’re already getting traction and have your product being shared organically.

5. Instant gratification

The most successful products have the quickest time to value. How quickly can someone get a desired outcome from your product so they can tell their friends? So address this in your CTA. Again, instead of the generic ‘Learn More’, try ‘Get (outcome) in (short time frame)’ An example can be “Get a new website in 5 minutes” or “Sleep better tonight.”