CTA stands for Call to Action. When you’re talking about an email you’re sending to your list, the call to action is when you say, “Hey Reader, click this link to get a once in a lifetime deal” or some such.
The more you can get your readers to click the links you put in your emails, the more traffic you send to your offers. The more traffic you send to your offers, the more sales you can make. Usually.
Okay, there is an exception to this rule, and it’s if you don’t set up your email and your offer to be congruent. Like if you say in your email, “Click here to discover the best fertilizer for roses” and then you send them to a page that is advertising a cleaning solution for rubber duckies… you’re not going to make sales.
But let’s assume that your email sets up your reader to know exactly what to expect when they click the link. The more people who click the link, the more people you have who can potentially purchase the product and the more money you can make.
Thus the question becomes, how do you get more of your email subscribers to click the links without holding a gun to their head?
By using the CBS method:
• Command
• Bolden
• Soften
First, you’re going to COMMAND them on what to do. Don’t be subtle here. Don’t slip your link in there and assume they will click it just because it’s there – they won’t.
You’ve got to TELL them to click it.
• “CLICK HERE NOW”
• “Go HERE now for full details”
• “This is the link to click NOW”
Next, you’re going to BOLD keywords. People tend to scan emails just like they scan sales letters. By bolding the keywords, you can stop a scanner in their tracks and get them to do your bidding.
“The price will double at midnight so to get the discount go here now and check this out before it’s too late”
Read just the bold words above and you’ll realize it’s everything the subscriber needs to know they should click the link NOW.
Finally, you might want to sometimes SOFTEN the language you use.
If you only say, “CLICK HERE NOW” it seems kind of pushy or bossy.
But if you say, “CLICK HERE NOW and see if this is for you” then you’ve softened the language and made it more friendly.
“Click HERE now and see if this can double your income”
“Click THIS LINK now and find out why 2,926 reviewers give it 4.8 stars”
“Go HERE NOW and discover for yourself why grown men blush when they see this”.
Remember CBS to increase your email calls to action: Command, Bold and Soften.
