What are CTAs? The Do's and Don'ts of CTA Design
Calls-to-Action (CTAs) are keys to unlocking a deeper engagement with your audience. As a healing arts practitioner, your website is an essential tool for attracting and connecting with potential clients. At the heart of turning these visitors into clients are your CTAs. But what exactly is a Call-to-Action?
A Call-to-Action (CTA) prompts users to take action.
Calls-to-Action (CTA) guide your users om your website to take some specified action. It's typically a clickable button with a clear, concise message. You know that big "Buy Now" or "Book Your Appointment" button you see at the top of a website? That's a CTA. Its size, color, placement, and wording have been meticulously studied and tested. The good news is there's already a wealth of knowledge available, and you can follow these steps to optimize your own CTAs.
However, it's crucial to remember that ineffective CTAs can serve as roadblocks, hindering your ability to successfully grow your business. Therefore, mastering your website's CTAs is an essential part of online marketing for any therapy or wellness business. Let's get into the world of CTAs and learn how to make them work for your healing arts practice by diving into concise writing, accessibility, colors, size, placement and more.
The power of clarity and brevity
As the famous saying goes, often attributed to Mark Twain, "If I had more time, I would have written a shorter letter." This highlights the power and importance of being clear and succinct. In the realm of CTAs, brevity isn't just a stylistic choice—it's a necessity.
“ If I had more time, I would have written a shorter letter.”
Your CTAs are essentially tiny billboards on your website, with a limited amount of space to make their message known. As such, they need to convey their intent quickly and unmistakably. A visitor to your website, whether they are a potential yoga student or a prospective therapy client, should instantly understand what you want them to do.
As an example, lets say a massage therapist who had a CTA that simply said, "Proceed." This language is vague and passive, leaving potential clients uncertain about their next steps. Was this button to book a session? To learn more about the therapist? The ambiguity led to fewer clicks, and thus fewer bookings. By changing this CTA to a more explicit "Book Your Massage Now," the therapist would likely able to make the action clear, and see an immediate uptick in client appointments.
The power of clarity and brevity in CTAs cannot be understated. To paraphrase one designer, CTAs are like a door. Good ones come with a window where you can see inside and know where you’re going. Bad CTAs are a door without a window; you have no idea what’s on the other side.
Takeaway tip: Be short and specific with CTAs to guide your visitor's actions effectively. Here’s a visual with examples:
Use clear, concise and where applicable, specific CTAs
Accessibility: designing for all
As practitioners in the healing arts, it’s likely that inclusivity and accessibility are already at the forefront of your minds. You strive to serve a diverse range of individuals, each with unique needs and abilities. While this sensitivity is often applied to physical spaces and direct services, it's equally critical to extend this thinking to your digital presence as well. When it comes to designing your website and CTAs, accessibility should never be an afterthought. Keep in mind that if you’re not intentionally including, you may be unintentionally excluding.
Creating accessible CTAs is not just a matter of good ethics—it's also good for business. Approximately 15% of the world's population experience some form of disability, and a sizable number of these individuals use assistive technologies to navigate the web. By designing with accessibility in mind, you not only ensure an inclusive experience for all users, but you also broaden your reach to potential clients who may be overlooked by less inclusive competitors.
When we talk about accessible design for CTAs, this covers a few key areas. Firstly, there's the issue of color contrast. The colors of your CTA buttons should stand out from their background, allowing those with visual impairments to identify them easily. More on color below.
Then there's the issue of size. CTA buttons should be large enough to be clicked easily, even by those with motor difficulties. Additionally, the text within the button should be sufficiently large and clear to be read by individuals with visual impairments.
By integrating these principles and more into your CTA design, you'll ensure that your website is welcoming and usable for all—regardless of their physical abilities or the devices they use. Remember, inclusivity is at the heart of the healing arts, and your website should be a reflection of that ethos.
Takeaway tip: Design CTAs that are inclusive and accessible to reach a broader client base.
Color: A key distinguisher
The color of your CTA is like its uniform—it distinguishes it from its surroundings and makes it easy for visitors to identify. But choosing the right color for your CTA isn't as simple as selecting your favorite shade of blue. The colors you select must align with the rest of your brand's color scheme while still standing out enough to grab attention.
Take another example let’s say of a physical therapist who chose a light blue CTA button because it matched the calming, cool colors of their brand. Despite the aesthetic harmony, the CTA was frequently overlooked because it blended in too seamlessly with the background. This led to lower engagement and fewer bookings than desired. A redesign that replaced the light blue with a complementary, yet more noticeable orange made the CTA stand out, and we can assume the click-through rates increased almost immediately.
But here's a word of caution: while contrasting colors can draw attention, picking the wrong cool and warm colors can clash and be visually jarring. When you're deciding on your color palette, take the time to double-check your choices against a color wheel, consult with a designer, or run it by a small focus group of friendly clients. This extra step can save you from a design faux pas that could turn visitors away instead of drawing them in.
Speaking of design, if you ever want to irritate a designer, just tell them to make it “pop,” e.g., “I love your first execution of this design, but do you think you could take another cut and really make it pop?” This story comes to mind because ultimately you do want your CTA to pop, and it can be tricky to describe what it will take to get there. It's a fine line to make things pop without interfering with your brand principles but done well, it can lead to more eyes on your CTAs and more clicks turning into appointments.
Finally, whether you’re confused about or fascinated by color, we’ve got an entire blog dedicated to website colors. Check out: Colors that connect: how to choose the right palette for your practice’s website and branding.
Takeaway tip: Choose CTA colors that align with your brand but still catch the eye.
Size and shape: subtle yet significant
Ever found yourself on a website, eager to make a purchase or book an appointment, but you couldn't find where to take the next step? "I already want to give you my money! Why are you making it so difficult to figure out how?" Or maybe you've had the opposite experience where an overbearing CTA button felt intrusive and off-putting, “I see your point but I’m leaving now…” The size and shape of your CTA buttons can significantly impact your visitors' experience, and striking the right balance is key.
Let's imagine a chiropractor who decided to make her CTA as large as possible, hoping it would attract more attention and encourage visitors to book appointments. However, the oversized button was perceived as aggressive and out of place, causing visitors to wonder if it was a scam and leave the website prematurely.
After receiving feedback about the obtrusive button, she resized it to be 20% larger than the surrounding elements and made it rectangular—a universally recognized shape for buttons. The redesigned CTA still stood out, but it didn't overshadow the rest of the site's content. As a result, her website became more user-friendly, leading to an increase in appointment bookings.
So, remember: while you want your CTAs to be noticeable, they should not be overwhelming or distracting. They are an important part of your website, but they are just one part of a more extensive user experience. Striking a balance between standing out and fitting in is the key to successful CTA design.
Takeaway tip: Balance the right CTA size and shape for a user-friendly and inviting experience.
The strategic placement of CTAs: guiding visitors to action
Imagine landing on a website and feeling confused about the next step. It's like entering a shop, wanting to buy something, but not finding the checkout counter. It's frustrating, right? Ensuring your CTAs are strategically placed will help prevent visitors from having a similar experience on your website.
Done well, visitors will take your well thought-out CTA placement for granted because it just “works.” Take the website of a fictitious popular yoga studio as an example. The moment you land on their website, you see a "Sign Up for a Class" CTA button. It's placed above the fold (the imaginary line where people have to scroll to read more), easily visible without needing to scroll or search, inviting visitors to become part of the community.
Scrolling further down, after a detailed section describing the variety of classes on offer, you find another CTA: "Book Your Yoga Class Now". This button is strategically placed to prompt action right after the visitor has read about the available classes. The journey from consideration to action becomes seamless and intuitive. Easy.
Well-placed CTAs create a smoother user experience and help guide visitors towards becoming your clients. Remember to position your CTAs where they'll be easily noticed: the 'top' and 'bottom' are well-established choices, but they can also be effectively placed after sections of significant information or choices. Adjust according to what best serves your healing arts practice and potential clients.
Takeaway tip: Place CTAs wisely to guide visitors effortlessly toward action.
Focus on one main action: less is more for decision making
While it's fine to repeat the same CTA on a page, offering more than one primary action can dilute the overall potency.
Let’s consider the website of a wellness center that houses a massage therapist, a Reiki professional, and a registered dietitian. Suppose they wanted to offer their visitors the chance to book appointments with each practitioner right from the homepage, aiming to simplify the user's journey. So, they placed three different "Book Now" CTAs—one for each practitioner—on every page of their site.
The results wouldn’t be good. They’d quickly notice that the CTAs weren't being clicked as often as expected. Visitors were overwhelmed by the choices and didn't know which button to click. What they thought was convenience ended up creating confusion.
This mirrors findings in decision-making studies. Psychologist Barry Schwartz, in his book "The Paradox of Choice", highlights that while some choice is undoubtedly better than none, more is not always better than less. An experiment called 'The Jam Study' demonstrated this concept well: when a grocery store offered customers a choice of 24 different jams, fewer people made a purchase compared to when only six jams were on display.
Drawing from this, each page on your site should ideally have one primary CTA. If you need to include more than one CTA on a page, try to ensure they guide the visitor towards the same end goal, so they reinforce each other instead of competing for attention. Repeating the same CTA can be effective—it maintains focus, simplifies decision-making, and keeps the desired action front-of-mind. Remember, the goal is to guide your visitors, not overwhelm them with choices. Make it easy for them to take the next step with you.
Takeaway tip: Simplify decision-making by spotlighting one main action with your CTAs.
The magic number of CTAs: balancing act between guidance and overload
Following up on our last section, it's not only the type of CTAs that can affect your visitor's decision-making process but also the sheer number of them. Too few CTAs, and your visitors might struggle to understand the next steps. On the other hand, too many CTAs can overwhelm and confuse, which is similar to our wellness center example earlier.
This might seem counterintuitive at first. After all, shouldn't more options allow for better chances at getting a click? However, every time you add another CTA, you're asking your visitors to make another decision. And with each added decision, the process becomes more complex, tiresome, and time-consuming.
The Hick's Law of decision-making states that the time it takes for an individual to make a decision increases with the number and complexity of choices. So, the more CTAs you have, the longer it will take your visitors to decide, which increases the chances that they might leave without taking any action at all. They may also get annoyed and feel like something is being demanded of them.
This is somewhat related to getting people to come to your website at all. When using best practices for SEO, you want to make sure you use keywords, but not over-use them to the point where they become distracting. If you’re new to SEO, we wrote a foundational blog piece that will help you start thinking about it, called, “What's holding your SEO back?”
As a general rule, aim for around two CTAs per page—one at the beginning and one at the end. The first one captures those ready to take immediate action, while the latter serves those who prefer to get a bit more information first. This strategic balance ensures that your visitors are guided effectively without feeling overwhelmed, making it easier for them to take the next step with your business.
Takeaway tip: Limit the number of CTAs to guide without overwhelming the visitor.
Conclusion
Creating a powerful, effective Call-To-Action is both an art and a science. From crafting the perfect concise message, to selecting the right color, size and placement—every detail matters. Your goal is to guide your visitor smoothly and intuitively towards a desired action, whether it's booking a massage session, signing up for a therapy appointment, or registering for a yoga class. Always remember to focus on one main action per page, strike a balance in the number of CTAs, and above all, ensure that your CTAs are accessible to everyone. As practitioners in the healing arts, you understand the power of thoughtful, focused action. Apply that same wisdom to your CTAs and watch as your online engagements flourish.