Don’t send out the wrong message

Call-to-actions are in place to prompt visitors to take a desired action. This may be an opt-in, a sale or any type of click that brings the user closer to your business goals.

These call-to-actions can be the make or break of your online success but there are still many websites that commit stupid mistakes that make these call-to-actions become unseen, irrelevant or lost within the text.

Here are the 6 most common call-to-action mistakes that we’ve seen around the net:

1. Cluttered pages

Many estate agency websites take the wrongful approach trying to show as much information above the fold. This approach usually just looks extremely messy. The content and message you are trying to get across normally gets lost in the confusion of the page.

A call-to-action is supposed to send the users eye to a specific area of the page. With cluttered pages the users eyes are drawn everywhere, losing the effectiveness of your call-to-actions.

2. A Blended call-to-action

A call-to-action is supposed to stand out. Having the background match the colour of the font or the button of the call-to-action will just blend them together losing the visibility of the call-to-action. Using a solid colour in contrast to the page will help draw out your call-to-action button.

3. A distracting background

Incorporating your brand colours into your estate agency website is great for brand recognition but when the colour is overpowering (bright yellow for example) it can become too distracting.

The background of the website shouldn’t draw your eyes away from the content on the page so use your brand colours wisely.

4. Lost call to action

Being too subtle with your call-to-actions won’t help either. Some estate agency websites chose to have simple text call-to-actions like “Get moving” but instead of making it stand out they keep it in a standard text and colour.

If you really want to lead users to an intended action, use buttons in contrasting colours. Text will never be strong enough to get users’ attention. The button should include a contrasted colour that screams “click me” without slamming it in user’s faces.

5. Too many call-to-actions

We know you want your visitors to view and read every page on your website but in reality, users are here to scan throw the content and find what they are looking for. They don’t have time to read everything and if you make it difficult for them to find exactly what they want quickly they may give up and look elsewhere.

Try to stick with one or two call-to-actions on a page. Keep your call-to-actions sweet and to the point, sometimes giving to much information will just annoy the user.

6. Button Placement

The placement of the call-to-action is crucial for its success, if the user has to scan the page first to be able to see the button then it’s in the wrong place.

The placement is equally as important as its size and colour. The call-to-action should have space around it (not crowded by content) and be in plain view (not below the fold).