When it comes to email marketing, a call to action plays a critical role in your email’s purpose. It defines what action you want the audience to take and allows you to measure the outcome as a result. In order to respect the complexities of a non-linear customer journey, it’s necessary to use a variety of call to actions. This is due to the importance of reflecting the mindset of the potential buyers, as this will ultimately increase their lifetime value.
What is a CTA?
CTAs are vital for an effective email marketing strategy and are designed to prompt the audience to perform a certain action. This is usually done by clicking a link or hitting a button that leads users to a specific online location, such as a product or landing page.
In an email marketing campaign, a CTA uses action-oriented language to increase click-through rates and encourage audiences to interact with the content of the campaign. The content can include marketers asking for feedback, and wanting audiences to consume a piece of content or to make a purchase.
Types of CTAs for your email marketing strategy
For a well-rounded automation strategy, it’s important to not continuously use “Shop now!” “Buy now!” CTAs. Although these examples can be efficient, limiting only to these CTAs without additional components, can result in audiences backing off and shopping elsewhere.
We’ve compiled a list of email marketing CTAs, and when it’s appropriate to use them:
Content-focused CTAs
These particular types of call to actions drive audiences to get to know your brand (and often appear in welcome series flows). Content-focused CTAs may be evident in an article, blog post, or video, that could encourage the audience to take a particular action. As a result, it will guide the audience toward the next step in their engagement with the content.
Examples of content-focused CTAs can include:
Follow us on social media
Watch this video
Listening to our podcast
Join our community
Take our quiz
Attend our event
Sign up to our demo
Trial-focused CTAs
Trial-focused CTAs are useful for e-commerce brands and free subscription models to create a long-term recurring revenue stream. These CTAs are most successful when paired with a sense of urgency, such as using an expiration date on the free subscription.
Examples of trial-focused CTAs can include:
Try subscription free for 30 days
Order a free sample
Download our app
Purchase-driven CTAs
These CTAs are the most popular among brands and are measured by the revenue they generate. They frame the buying experience to be extremely urgent, beneficial and special to convince audiences they must purchase as soon as possible.
As previously mentioned, purchase-driven CTAs such as “Buy now” and “Shop now” can get overused, but further variations can be used to not appear as aggressive. Examples of these can include:
Shop limited stock
Shop limited-time offer
Browse new collection
Purchase from sale
When customers almost convert with your purchase-driven CTA, but they don’t follow through. It’s common at this point to follow up with a discount-focused CTA, however, could choose a CTA that is focused on:
Go back to check out
Go back to cart
Continue shopping
Take another look
Get special discount
Feedback-driven CTAs
These types of CTAs are often used within a post-purchase email marketing flow. Audiences who have recently purchased from a brand will receive an email asking for their opinion on a product. The data received from reviews is essential when looking to develop your products further. Feedback CTAs you make want to use include:
Leave a review
Take our survey
Get in touch
Recommend to a friend
To summarise, by tailoring the call to action to specific the content, you increase the likelihood that your audience will find value in the next step you’re proposing. This creates a smoother and more meaningful user experience and as a result, creates more conversions, engagement, and overall email marketing success.
Need help with email marketing strategy? We’d love to chat! Get in touch today.