The Many Ways to Write a Great Call-to-Action

If you sit down to write a call-to-action (CTA) and you expect it to be a piece of cake, you may be mistaken. There is an art to writing an effective CTA and you probably will not be able to just whip it off in a second, at least not the final draft.

An effective CTA takes a lot of effort in general

You may very well find yourself in a position of having to sit and think long and hard about what you want to express through your CTA. Sometimes it takes several iterations before you have a draft that you consider final. However, if you approach your CTA writing in a certain way, you may be able to change that situation and develop a technique in which you start to write effective CTAs much more quickly and easily.

Your CTAs should be customized to each piece of content for maximum impact.

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Before you even attempt to write a CTA, there is a thought process that goes behind it. If you can come up with a creative, compelling way to express your CTA, you will have a good chance of grabbing the attention of your target audience members and enticing them to keep reading. The big challenge is how you are going to get to the point where you can write that easily. The following are several different tips that should help you to do just that. If you use them and they work for your particular business, you will view writing CTAs as fun rather than being the chore that you have always considered it to be.

• Give it to them right away: You live in an age in which people don’t have time or patience and they don’t want to make the effort to work for anything. They want everything handed to them immediately. If you can’t make that happen, they will move on from your content to someone else’s if that other person can give them what they want right away. That kind of CTA leads people to believe that the answer is right in front of them and all they need to do is reach out and grab it.

• Establish an emotional connection: Establishing an emotional connection with the other person is critical to your success. If you tell a story that resonates with the other person, they will respond to you (in all likelihood). There is no way for you to create a relationship with the other person if he or she can’t relate to you emotionally. That is one thing that all human beings share. They all respond (whether positively or negatively) when their feelings are being called upon. You can bet money on that.

• Considering geographic location: Many businesses consider geographic location as one of their major demographic points. If that is the case with your particular business,  your CTA should reflect that as well. For example, if your CTA offers a coffee and a free consultation, it is probably more effective to be able to sit down with the other person (literally) than to have virtual “coffee” over the phone or Skype.

• Address a problem: The best way to establish a relationship with the other person is by convincing that person that you are able to solve his or her problem. Your CTA should reflect just that. No matter how amazing you are and how incredible your background and experience are, if you are not able to solve the other person’s problem(s), none of that actually matters. Once you have established the relationship, you will have the opportunity to tell the other person about how amazing you and your business are. You really do need to follow a certain order so that you build a relationship that is solid and enduring.

• Pose a question that resonates: If you ask a question that makes the other person feel that you are addressing him or her directly, you will have him or her eating out of your hand. In a similar fashion to the previous bullet, you are addressing a problem that the other person is experiencing; however, you are expressing that problem a little differently. If you are not aware of it already, you should understand that posing questions in order to grab the other person’s attention is an extremely effective way of expressing yourself. 

• Include the other person: The people within your social circles want to feel that they are a part of the group and that their opinion(s) matter to you and to the other members of the group. It is the worst feeling of all to feel as though everyone is a part of something that one person is excluded from being a part of. Make sure that you are as sensitive as possible and include that person.

• Say it plainly: One approach for your CTA is simply coming out and telling the other person what you want or need. You actually have a good chance of the other person agreeing to giving you what you are asking for. It won’t be fancy or flowery but it certainly will be honest, which a lot of people will appreciate.

• Sing the praises of our offerings: The fact is that you are selling something. It doesn’t mean that you are delivering an obvious hard sell but your ultimate goal is to sell a product and/or service to the other person. Of course, going from Point A to Point B is not necessarily easy. If you want the other person to eventually buy what you are selling, you will need to make sure that he or she becomes well acquainted with your offerings. That also means that you communicate clearly how the other person and his or her business will benefit from what you are selling.

• Customize your CTA for the individual: Before you actually write a CTA, you will want to give some thought to the person on the receiving end. You will want to customize your CTA content to the other person’s wants and needs. That means that you will need to wrap your mind around the other person. That may or may not be easy but it is far from impossible.

• Offer an incentive: If you offer something of value to the other person in your CTA, it will be appealing to the other person. The incentive can come in many different forms but you will want to make sure that it has a clear value for the other person.

• Paint a clear picture: Your CTA should be so effective that it allows the other person to envision it clearly. Your words should make them see what you want them to see. This is especially helpful because a lot of people are visual. Your message will work very well with them and they will respond in kind.

Conclusion 

An effective, amazing call-to-action is an extremely important element of your content. It is the bridge that connects the majority of your content with your reader/target audience member. In fact, without it, your reader will have absolutely no way to develop a relationship with you, which is critical to your success. Also, remember that if you convey urgency in your CTA, the other person will be convinced that if he or she does not act right away, the opportunity will be lost. It is a very effective way of thinking. An effective CTA will bring you more business and it will provide you with the opportunity to establish new relationships as well.

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