It’s good to include calls to action on a web page. They can help the user by making it clear what the available next steps are.
But if you get it wrong, you can end up frustrating your users.
What is a call to action?
A call to action (or CTA) is an instruction to the user to do something.
Calls to action include:
- Buy now
- Sign up
- Register
- Call us today
- Share this article
A call to action might look like a button (this can make it easier to spot). Or it might just be a normal link.
Often, calls to action sit on their own line, separate from the rest of the text. But they don’t have to.
Here are the main errors I see with website calls to action.
1. Call to action appears out of context
It’s common to see a call to action right at the top of the page. The logic is that this is the most prominent place on the website – above the fold (so users don’t have to scroll).
The problem is, sometimes there’s important information on the page that the user needs to read.
Thinking about something like an application form, you’ll almost definitely get more people launching the form if you place your button at the top of the page.
But what if there’s something these people really need to know before they start – to have their National Insurance number ready, for example? In this case, the call to action should come after you’ve told the user what information they need to have ready.
Don’t worry about scrolling – design for scanning
Sometimes people worry that users won’t scroll. They put the CTA right at the top of the page because they think otherwise, users won’t see it.
But this is faulty logic. If there’s information the user needs to see before they’re ready to click the CTA, you need to design your CTA in such a way that they’ll see and read that information. The best way to do this is to create content that’s easy to scan.
Sometimes the user doesn’t need any further information before they click on your call to action. It depends on the situation and what the user’s trying to do. Think about what the user needs from your content.
2. Unclear link text
Calls to action should be specific.
Some to avoid are:
- Discover more
- Read more
- Click here
- Fill in the form
There are a few different reasons for this. But the main one is that these general calls to action don’t really focus on solving a problem for the user.
Often, they don’t show you what’s behind the link.
Calls to action need to follow the same rules as any other link text in your web content. You can find out more about this in my post on why you should never write ‘click here’ in web copy.
You should also make sure the language you use reflects the way your users think about the situation. Do they think they’re signing up, registering, subscribing or buying? If possible, do some user research to find out what language your customers use, then reflect that back to them.
3. Not there or hard to find
Some web pages do a really good job telling you what you need to do next, but then make that next step really hard to find.
Sometimes they’ll just say ‘Fill in the application form’ with no link or any clear indication of where to find that form.
Other pages say things like: ‘To apply, click on the link at the bottom of this page’.
This sort of behaviour is infuriating. Give them the link in context, at the most relevant point in the page. Don’t make them go hunting for the link!
There might be technical reasons why it’s hard for you to insert the link at the most relevant point. But really, that’s a problem for you to solve. Don’t make the user do extra work (and risk losing them altogether) because of your problem. Resolve the issue and make it easier for the user.
4. Contradictory or confusing calls to action
Sometimes web content contradicts itself, even within the same page.
A line at the top of the page says you should call a particular number to register your interest. Then at the bottom of the page there’s a form for doing the same thing.
It’s fine if you’re presenting users with a choice – do it by phone or online. But you need to lay out the options clearly. Having different or contradictory calls to action peppered throughout the page makes your web content seem inconsistent and makes you look unprofessional.
The consequences of bad calls to action
These mistakes with calls to action can be costly. Getting calls to action wrong can result in:
- lower conversion rates, because the next steps are unclear or confusing
- abandoned forms, when users click on a call to action without getting the necessary information first
- complaints when users expected one thing but got another.
Calls to action are an essential part of user-friendly web content. Done well, they can show the user clearly how to get their task done. But done badly, they can confuse, frustrate and upset users.
When you’re checking your web content, think carefully about the calls to action. Are the available next steps obvious to the user? Is there any risk of confusion? Get it right before you publish.