The importance of a call-to-action in your banner ad

How do you gauge a customer’s interest?  By whether or not they click on your ad.  If they don’t click, they’re probably not interested in your offer, right?  Actually, that isn’t always the case.  Sometimes the reason people don’t click is simply because you didn’t tell them to.  That is where the call-to-action comes in.  A good CTA works to attract attention and prompt an action.

Before we jump into the importance of a CTA, let’s take a look at the definition:

A Call to Actions is made up of words that urge the readers or viewers to take immediate action on a sales promotion. Some of the trigger words can include ‘Call Now’, ‘Click Here’, and ‘Right Now’. A commercial or advertisement that does not have a call to action is seen as being incomplete and will not be effective.

Tips and Tricks

• Headline – Spend some time thinking about what you want your customers to do. You want to keep your text relevant to your customers.
• Button – The best Call to Action (CTA) button should be easy to find. You want it to be clear and reflect a sense of urgency.
  • The size of your CTA button should not so large that it distracts your customers from what you are selling on your website.
  • Button shape also plays a big role in the number of clicks your website or promotion gets. Rectangular buttons are seen all over the internet and have been around for many years. However, there are several advantages to using rounded corners: These corners work to draw attention to the inside of the button, while their blunt counterparts draw focus to the outside of the button.
• Color – Picking the right color for your button plays a part as well. This is because every color activates a different feeling or mood in people. For instance, Amazon claims that they have generated more sales by using the orange button on their website. Psychologists suggest that CTA buttons should be red because this triggers more attention. However, it is a good idea to try out different colors to see what your customers respond to.
• Position on your Ad – The position of the CTA button needs to be where the action is going to be. It depends on several factors such as the goal of the banner, intent of the visitor, and the complexity of what you are offering.

There is no “right way” or “wrong way” to include a call-to-action, unless you leave it out altogether.  Smart marketers will experiment with several and see which ones perform better.

AreaEcho Customers: Remember, an extra set of banners is only $27.50, so if you would like to run different calls to action on your ads and see if they make a difference, just give us a call and we will be happy to help!