We talk about the benefits of writing fresh, engaging content on a regular basis a lot at Yardstick. Blogs give you an opportunity to build relationships with clients, but they can also help you establish new leads. This is where your call to action (CTA) comes in. With the right CTA, you can turn readers into prospects and clients.
Why is a CTA important?
Your CTA should reflect the next step you want your readers to take and are an important part of your marketing strategy. They can help give you some direction and produce more engaging content. When it comes to blogs, a CTA is likely to be a line or two of text, but it should spur prospects to take the first step to build a relationship with you. A strong CTA can boost leads.
So, what should you keep in mind when adding a CTA to your blog?
1. Be clear about what you want readers to do
First, you need to understand what you want readers of your blog to do, and why.
For many financial planners writing a blog, a CTA will aim to lead readers to book a discovery meeting. Whether that’s by contacting you directly or leaving details so you can follow them up. When writing a CTA, be clear about what your readers need to do. If you’d like them to pick up the phone, say so. Don’t overcomplicate it and be direct, it could give prospects the push needed to reach out to you.
2. Stick to one action
When you’re building a marketing strategy, you probably have several things you want prospects to do; sign up to your newsletter, arrange a meeting and download resources, for instance. But stick to one aspect in each CTA. Encouraging potential clients to try and do all this in a few short words can lead to confusion; should they give you a call or register their details?
3. Focus on the potential client
When people search for a financial planner, it’s often because they’ve experienced a trigger. Perhaps they’re worried about managing their finances in retirement or they’re unsure of how to pass wealth on to the next generation. Your blogs should focus on clients, and what you can do for them, rather than your business. It’s the same with a CTA.
Whilst it can be tempting to list your achievements as reasons why a reader should want to work with you, putting the prospect at the centre is essential.
4. Highlight how you can help
I know I’ve mentioned above that you shouldn’t focus on your business. But you should also mention how you can help clients achieve their goals. It’s an opportunity to build trust and demonstrate why they should follow your CTA. However, you need to carefully think about how you phrase it, keep the focus on the client and why your expertise can help them still. Saying ‘we have 20 years’ experience and hold chartered status’ might be accurate but it pulls the focus back to you. An alternative could be ‘for the last 20 years we’ve helped retirees realise their dreams’.
5. Use action phrases
Using the right words or phrases can have an impact. Using strong verbs at the start of your CTA can prompt action whether it’s ‘learn’, ‘download’ or ‘subscribe’. They give a clear command of what you want the reader to do. Actionable verbs are those that can actually be carried out in a literal sense, and if they can do them straight away, even better.
6. Make it easy to take action
Don’t make it difficult for your readers to take the action you want them to take. You could miss out on interest simply because it seems too complicated or time-consuming.
If you want readers to pick up the phone, put your phone number in the blog. Don’t make readers search your website for contact details. An internal hyperlink to your ‘contact us’ page can provide potential clients with options when you want to drive leads as well.
If you want them to provide their contact details, to sign-up for a newsletter or receive a guide, for example, review your forms. Requesting a lot of information can be off-putting, a simple form is more likely to deliver results.
7. Don’t just use CTAs at the end of blogs
With blogs, it’s common to see CTAs at the bottom of the page, tying up the points and encouraging readers to take action. While CTAs work well here, this isn’t the only place they can be used. Incorporating a CTA into the main text of your blog can prompt readers to seek your expertise too. If you’re talking about complex regulation or the importance of building bespoke financial plans, for example, a mid-blog CTA can be just as successful.
Want help with your content (including writing CTAs)? Call us to find out how we can help you craft content that suits your audience and boosts leads.
