CTAs and the roles they play

CTAs and the roles they play
28 April 2023     1114

CTAs and the roles they play

Alright, let us talk about organizing CTAs (Call-to-Actions), layout, and placement on your website or digital product. First, let us start with CTAs.

A CTA is a button, link, or any other type of visual prompt that invites users to take a specific action, such as "Buy Now," "Subscribe," or "Learn More." When designing CTAs, you want to make sure they are prominent and easy to find. That does not entail cluttering the screen with them, though.

Why write about them at all? Because they play a crucial role in creating a smooth user experience, encouraging engagement, and ultimately guiding your users to what they are, or should be, looking for.


buttons


Structure

In terms of layout, simplicity is key. Keep your design clean and uncluttered, with plenty of whitespace to draw attention to the most important elements.

Typically, CTAs should be placed above the fold (i.e., visible without scrolling), and the language should be clear and concise. Conversely, if you have a more complex product or service, you may want to place the CTA at the bottom of the page, after users have had a chance to learn more about what you offer. You can add a jump down button, say in the top right corner, which takes you to the CTA if you think that is appropriate as well.

So what you wanna pay attention to is how a given CTA button affects the navigation flow, and whether its placement could be justified in terms how the website comes together.

When it comes to placement, think of the user journey and the specific actions you want them to take. For example, if you have a landing page for a specific product or service, you may want to place the CTA in a very prominent location, so the users do not look any more time on unneeded information.



a picture of a keyboard, button highlighted



Design and content elements

The design of your CTA button itself is also important. You want your button to be eye-catching and should clearly communicate what it symbolizes. Use contrasting colors to make your button stand out from the rest of your content. Avoid using vague or generic phrases like "Click Here" or "Submit," and instead, opt for more specific language that highlights what function it actually serves. But make sure that the text size is adequately scaled.

Group related information together and use headings and subheadings to break up long blocks of text. Make sure your font is easy to read and that there is enough contrast between the text and the background.

Context is important because it helps your CTA stand out and resonate with your target audience. A decent way to achieve this is to make your CTA specific and relevant to the content on the page. If you have a blog post about a particular topic, such as "5 tips for improving your coding skills," your CTA could be something like "Download our free book for more tips and tricks." This CTA is specific and relevant to the content on the page, making it more likely that users will click on it.


ctas of different colors



Other factors

Another important consideration is mobile responsiveness. There is an ever growing user base that enters your website with just a phone. This should obviously be reflected in your decisions. CTAs, in terms of size, should be large enough so the user has no problem clicking it, but not too huge to the point where they cannot avoid clicking it.

In addition to layout, and placement, there are is also something we have already mentioned in passing. That something is navigation. It is really hard to get anything of importance done if your navigation chains are all wonky. You can read more about how to improve on that in one of our earlier blogs.

Finally, remember that testing and iteration are what will allow you to actually understand how these CTAs fit in a system. Run A/B tests to see which layouts, CTAs, and placements work best for your specific audience. Use analytics tools to track user behavior and identify areas for improvement. And do not be afraid to make changes and try new things – just do not commit to all of them at once.

Ika

Ika