Website Call to Action; Alternatives to “Contact Us” for lead generation

Here’s a question to ponder: Why did you build a website for your business?

Perhaps you didn’t really think about it and thought it was something that was expected in order to stay relevant. But, most likely than not, you built it with the hope that it would serve as a silent sales person that would help generate leads and grow your business.

Building a website is a great first step for an inbound marketing strategy, but you can not build it, launch it, then let it be and hope that it will generate the leads you want and expect. You must implement, and consistently test and readjust, conversion optimization strategies on your website.

What is Conversion Optimization?

Conversion optimization focuses on increasing website conversions. A conversion can be many different things, depending on what actions you wish for the website visitors to take on your site. Some examples are:

• Contact form filled out
• Phone call completed
• Request a demo or a free trial
• Ebook or Whitepaper downloaded
• Sign-up for an email list
• Follow, Like, +1 your company on social media

Conversions Are Initiated with an Eye-Catching CTA

A conversion is usually initiated with a Call to Action (CTA). A CTA can also be many different things, but in short it is the actionable language that is used to tell the website user what you need/want them to do to take the next step.

Most websites don’t put a lot of creativity into a CTA. To see what I mean, go onto ten different websites and most likely than not they’ll all use similar ones, such as:

• Call Today
• Contact Us
• Join Our Email List

I guarantee you that your website visitors have been on your competitor sites, and they’ve seen hundreds of websites. They’ve taught themselves to tune out CTAs, so you need to really catch their attention. Here are some ideas for CTA’s to help you stand out from the crowd.

Best Practices for CTAs

First, here are some best practices to follow with CTAs:

• Add calls-to-action on each page – make it relevant to the purpose of the page.
• Create contrast to draw the eye – think buttons, bright colors, and images.
• Don’t ask for too many things – keep it simple. Just 1-2 CTAs per page.
• Place critical information high on the page – don’t hide it at the bottom.
• Give detail – ‘Buy Now’, ‘Submit’, and ‘Click Here’ are the worst. Tell users what you want them to do, and what’s going to happen once they do.
• Give options – visitors are in different stages of the buying cycle. Convert them where they are and then focus on building a relationship

Alternatives to Over-Used CTAs

Instead of Contact Us

• Contact us today for a ________ (ex: free report on 2014 commercial real estate)
• Learn how ______________ (ex: VoIP can save you time and money)
• Get a _____________ (ex: free market analysis for your home)
• Request a Custom Quote in 24 hours
• Try Us Out! Sign Up for a Free 30 Day Trial
• Download our Ebook: Top 10 Questions to ask your Widget Provider

Instead of Call Us

• Call Us to Get Started
• Call now for a free 30-minute consultation
• Call today and find out ____ ( ex: what the I.R.S doesn’t want you to know)

Instead of Join Our Email List

• Subscribe now for _______________ (ex: free monthly tips on organizing your home).
• Join 5,000 other Professionals for Monthly Industry Emails
• Join to get access to weekly exclusive member deals and discounts

Now, go to your website and see where you can use these tips to increase your website conversions!