How to Design Powerful Email Call-To-Actions That Convert

Smart email campaigns make a substantial part of successful internet marketing. The goal of every entrepreneur is turning their subscribers into potential customers through their well-thought-out email newsletter. The major question is, which content to include in your email?

This is what the world knows about online sales technologies today:

• Users are not patient (8 seconds till they’re turned into leads or it’s a NO);
• More users prefer mobile browsing;
• The “BUY” button is no longer effective;
• Users get used to filling in forms on landing pages;
• Emails work better when they’re personal.

Many entrepreneurs are convinced email-marketing is no longer effective, which is eventually their biggest mistake…Amazon, eBay, Google, and the entire group of top international brands use emails for direct-, cross-, or up selling. In fact, a HUGE amount of traffic is being converted into real sales with the help of so-called email newsletter.

Click here to read more about tips and inspiration from the newsletters our email marketing experts love most.

And now with the existence of multiple email services allowing you to send automated email series, you have all the resources to run successful email marketing campaigns.

But if you ever dealt with email marketing and it wasn’t going well, it may have simply lacked a CTA (call-to-action)…

What is Call-to-Action?

Call-to-action is either a word, phrase, or button that urges a user to take a certain action. You can use calls-to-action in any content intended for your target audience – from social media and ad banners to videos and emails.

CTA has the potential to bring you more clients and make them complete the wanted action.

After all, how would you gain more customers with the help of your email campaign if you don’t ask about it directly?

Why Calls-to-Action Are Important

CTAs are used for:

• Generation of leads;
• Social media reposts;
• Raising leads;
• Sales closure;
• Maintaining the audience;
• Event promotion.

Simply put, the main purpose of any call-to-action is to attract potential clients, turn them into leads and sales, as well as leave them satisfied in prospect.

Unfortunately, a lot of company owners pay less attention to the CTA email marketing design than they should.

About 70% of small B2B companies use NO call-to-action and therefore fail to find their best customers.

At the meantime, picking a random CTA is not enough for a successful email campaign. One should pay attention to the email and CTA design.

Let’s get down to 7 handy tips on how to design a powerful email call-to-action that will eventually convert.

1. Which Format to Choose?

So, every call to action can be either textual, as an image or as a button.

Doubting which one to choose? The second option will always work better.

But regardless of which one you choose, make sure that the CTA link will actually lead to the wanted landing page, form, etc.

Just like in this Travel Responsive Email Newsletter Template, most buttons have a traditional rectangle shape. If you are not willing to risk or show your imagination, you can leave it that way and it will totally work.

Nonetheless, if you want to stand out, feel free to experiment with shapes. Just keep it readable ?

2. Location is Vital

If your call-to-action is located in a bad place, you’re eventually missing the opportunity to increase conversions.

The next task would be trying to arrange the CTA on the page the way it becomes immediately noticeable. This way, your potential clients will not waste their time searching for this important button or text. The most effective place for a call-to-action is placing it on the top of the newsletter. The person wouldn’t need to scroll down till the end of the email because he sees it immediately.

Important reminder: always think of smartphone users. You’ll need to adapt the CTA button so that it will be convenient to press even on a small smartphone screen.

Super Responsive Email Template is a great example of how a contrasting button placed in the center of the top image can catch the person’s eye from the very first second. The super multipurpose template includes a drag-and-drop StampReady builder and is supported by one of the major email services – MailChimp.

3. Size Matters

So whichever elements you are going to use as a call-to-action – text, buttons, or images – what matters most is their actual size. The choice of size may eventually affect the conversion levels, so you better NOT screw it up.

Email marketing pros would always care about the size of their CTA elements. For instance, if you make them too large, there is a huge risk for customers to simply ignore them. Herewith, too large buttons or text may overlap the other elements of the newsletter and this would only create some extra mess.

Alongside, the size of your CTA shouldn’t be too small as it should be noticed by viewers right from the first second they open your newsletter.

Long story short, there should always be a golden middle ?

4. Enhancing Text with Images

Themed images can significantly increase the overall conversion of email campaigns. It’s easier for a subscriber to react to a picture instead of making him read long texts and then urge them to make an action.

See how this method works in a BigSale Newsletter Template:

Important reminder: some of your subscribers may not see the images in their emails because of a slow Internet connection or just because they blocked this option in their settings. Thus, make sure the user gets enough information from the text only.

5. Conveying the Message Using Text

When writing a CTA text message, think of what’s important for your subscriber. Most likely he will spend a couple of seconds to analyze your newsletter before closing it.

To convey a message and urge to make a simple one-click action, make it simple and clear. Explain why a reader should click the CTA button and what will come as a result.

Every call-to-action should give a clear answer to the What and Why questions. The easier and more transparent you formulated the action, the easier it will be for a reader to perform.

Writing a strong CTA is not easy but here are some basic tips:

• Make your call-to-action a short phrase starting with a verb: Call, Download, Get, Read, Learn, etc. Avoid using words like “here” or “there”;
• Limit your offer in time using words like “now” or “today”;
• Make your product/service more attractive using such tempting words as “free”, “discounted”, etc.;
• Add some unique value to your proposal. Mention the strongest benefits for a client once he or she gets it.

6. Duplication Is Good

There is nothing bad of repeating your call to action unless, of course, you have two or more same-looking buttons all over the page. To make your CTAs look different from each other (although it will lead to making the same action), follow these 2 simple rules:

• Do NOT place them close to each other – it may only confuse;
• Write different text messages.

Finally, do NOT overload your newsletter with too many CTAs. Stick to no more than two or three clearly-stated calls-to-actions instead of several vague statements.

7. Fully-Responsiveness for Mobile Devices

The year of 2019 continues to follow the 2018 mobile browsing trend. According to Litmus report, in December 2018, 43% of all emails were opened on mobile devices.

Users are now more likely to browse their email newsletter using their smartphones rather than on a desktop. Thus, having a fully-responsive email design is vital these days.

Before sending your CTA to subscribers, check how if the letter looks well-designed and is adequately displayed on all devices. Is your CTA visible? Does it fit in the screen size? Do images load quickly?

A good strategy would be acting the other way around. You put your best efforts into developing and improving the mobile version and only then get down to the desktop version. Although, if you decide to purchase one of the email newsletter templates, they will be adapted automatically.

Finally, don’t forget there exist additional CTAs for smartphone browsing. Along with the major calls-to-actions, you can include such buttons as “Request a Call” or “Call Me Back.”

Wrapping Up

Effective email marketing gives you incredible kickbacks.

Even if you think your business is “boring” (you’re selling industrial equipment), you can increase the net profit at least by 20% by using a powerful email CTA. For instance, such a world’s top online reseller as Amazon receives $2,5 for every dollar invested in their newsletter.

Use our recommendations on practice, test them, and purchase high-quality email newsletter templates only!

P.S. Let us know if our 7 tips were helpful as you were designing your own email newsletter. You are also welcome to share your experience with working with the mentioned templates.