One of the most important parts of an online marketing campaign is a call-to-action (CTA), which helps turn leads into conversions and sales. You want to encourage your website visitors to take some sort of action, to influence them to do something, whether it be signing up for a newsletter, a free trial, or buying a product, thus creating a “call-to action”. Great CTAs grab attention, encourage action and improve sales. However, creating and testing them can be tough, especially on a budget. If you are looking to create some really effective calls-to-action, consider investing a little of your own time and energy. Look at these tips when crafting your own CTAs. 1) Be Noticeable! Calls to action come in all shapes and sizes, and can promote anything from promotional pages to registration windows. Make your CTAs standout by putting some creativity into the design. Make sure your CTA is big, noticeable, using bright colors or having a button that looks clickable will help gain visitors to that area. Gartner analyst Ben Pring expands on this topic as he states: Any new idea emerges within the context of established ideas. To gain attention amid well-known, well—understood ideas that have their subscribers, a new idea or approach needs a way to both differentiate itself and attract attention. 2) Instill a Sense of Urgency Make sure you let your website visitors that they will miss a great opportunity by not clicking the CTA right away. For example if you want your visitors to buy a product, use an introductory price and make it known it is only going to last for a short time. If your visitor doesn’t buy now, they will risk an increase in price. Make sure to include the words “right away,” “now,” “immediately” or “today” so that it adds a sense of urgency that will motivate the visitor to click now rather than later. 3) Be Straight Forward When you have just a few short seconds of your visitor’s attention so make sure your call to action is understandable just at a glance. Make sure your message is clear and not muddy or convoluted. For example “Meet singles near you” is direct and to the point. If your visitor cannot understand what the CTA wants them to do and for what purpose within a few milliseconds, the message needs some cleaning up. 4) Demonstrate Value  Express the benefit simply, in just a few words. Maybe what they are buying is industry award winning, or that it contains profitable insider secrets. Point out that a free trial of a service comes with around the clock email or telephone support. Basically, make sure you give your customer a reason to respond to your CTA. 5) Demand! Make sure your call- to – action message actually has an action! Make sure your action is short and strong, to the point of sounding demanding. Avoid weak words like “click,” “get,” “see” or “try” and say exactly what your want your visitor to do like, “download,” “sign up” or “buy.” Gartner notes that a common error is to have an image- show only a “graphic and headline without a visible call-to-action button”. To Sum Up: Having a strong call-to action is often overlooked, yet it is a fundamental part of enhancing sales and profits. Whether it is building a customer list, collecting data or simply getting your company’s name out there, CTAs added needed direction and clarity for the website and your visitors. Don’t delay, adding well-crafted CTAs to your website can make all the difference for your company’s marketing campaign.