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5 Calls to Action – You Should be Using in Your Videos

5 Calls to Action – You Should be Using in Your Videos

Would you like to make your videos more effectively engaging and convert viewers? Then make better use of calls to action.

CTA’s aren’t just confined to blog posts and other written content only. 50% of internet users in the US watch online videos every day, and believe it or not, a recent study by Cisco projects that video content will make up 82% of overall web traffic this year. 

If you’re not making good use of calls to action in your videos, you’re missing out.

So what is a call to action (CTA) anyway?

A call to action directs or invites a person to take a particular action. It’s a jargon of the digital marketing world and is, in essence, a form of persuasion.

What action you want viewers to make can vary. This ranges from subscribing, making a purchase, or pointing to a page. They appear as links, short sentences, or buttons that lead users to the intended actions.

The internet is awash with marketing messages. Thus, people tend to ignore advertisements and sometimes develop decision fatigue. A good call to action gives people clear pointers in their customer journey.

Say you have a great promotional video. This generates intrigue and excitement for your product or brand. A call to action guides viewers closer to you, allowing you to convert people into customers.

It’s still necessary to produce fresh, quality content to keep audiences engaged, but your content will be more impactful when using a well-placed CTA. Read more below on our 5 favorite ways to use these tactics.

5 Video Call To Actions

1. Mid-Roll Calls to Action to increase conversions

You can use calls to action at the beginning (pre-roll), middle (mid-roll), or end (post-roll) of your video, with the majority of content creators (96%) placing them at the end. Why is this? Because the viewers that make it to the end of the video are the most engaged – however the fewest in numbers. 

Mid-roll CTA’s can technically be placed anywhere between the beginning and end of the video – with roughly 4% of video marketers using this placement. 

Pre-roll CTA’s are used at the very beginning – with sub 1% of creators using this tactic – which makes sense. How can you ask someone to take action on something before they even know what they’re getting themselves into?

Of the 3 options on CTA placements and their effect on conversion metrics, based on a recent analytics study from Wistia, you can see the most impactful placements are as follows: 

  • Pre-roll conversion rates = 3.15%
  • Mid-roll conversation rates = 16.95%
  • Post-roll conversion rates = 10.98%

So calls to action placed in the middle have a higher conversion rate than in the end or beginning of a video – and you can expect that the longer a viewer sticks around, the higher quality lead they’ll be. 

 

2. Matching CTA’s to the emotion of your audience

Video’s superpower is that it can engage with audiences’ emotions more deeply and faster than other mediums. You’re aligning with people’s desires to motivate them to the next step, and when well-executed, there’s nothing better or more powerful.

With this in mind, matching your CTA’s to the emotions of the video and audience is crucial. Say you are an insurance agency. Saying “click here for more information” would be plain and uninspiring. A motivating CTA could be “Contact us and secure your future today!”. Our top picks in regards to emotional responses are: 

  • Explicit CTA’s – short, sweet, and to the point “Click here for more info”
  • Inspirational – using desire to move them forward “Making Dreams Come True – learn how to help”
  • Subtle – taking consideration to not dilute the larger message “Learn more by visiting etc…”

 

Using active language is also crucial. Think of Nike’s “Just Do It” tagline. It depends on the viewer to interpret the “it,” yet they’re also invited towards Nike’s own goals.

 

3. Text vs. Image CTA’s

CTA mediums come in two main types:  text & image – with each prescribed to a specific job. 

For text CTA’s – this is a customizable clickable text that will be shown in your video.

For image CTA’s – this is a customizable uploaded clickable image.

Of the two above, text CTA’s make up almost 74% of all CTA, with image CTA’s making up the other 26%. Text are generally easier to implement – but image CTA’s carry a higher conversion rate with them being on average 13% to texts 10%. So spending some extra time to add that image will be worth it. 

5 Video Call To Actions - CLicke HErea

4. POWER WORDS!!! 

What are power words ,you ask? They’re basically a copywriter’s secret weapon – the words known to trigger psychological and emotional responses.  

For video – the main four are: 

  • “Free” – everyone wants a deal and “free” sells all day long. It implies you’re getting a bargain and lowers the bar on making an action. It’s not for everything but applied right and you’ve got yourself a deal! FYI… “free” cta’s in video convert that highest at 12%
  • “You” – it frames the conversation to make it feel like you’re speaking to each individual person. It sparks the brain into the closest activation outside of saying the person’s name. This is the second highest converting term on our list at over 9%.
  • “Now” – basically how everyone wants everything these days. We’re activated by instant gratification, and this is the word to use to trigger that response. This carries the third-highest conversion rate at ust over 8%.
  • “New” – who doesn’t like a surprise or learning something “new”. We’re literally wired to explore and learn – conversion rates = just over 7%. 

 

5. Action words ->>>

Like peanut butter and jelly, power words + action words = a perfect combination.  What are action words you say? They’re the highly actionable verbs that make you take action. 

Some examples with their conversion metrics if used vs. without are: 

  • Click – 9% increase
  • Try – 6% increase
  • Buy – 2.5% increase
  • Download – 11% increase
  • Register – 12% increase
  • Signup – 19% increase

According to Wistia – using action words increased conversion significantly across all of the above verbs except “buy”.

Putting the cap on the above – by combining power & action words & using positive, actionable language, you’re almost guaranteed to increase the performance of your videos – so why not give it a try if you haven’t yet?  

Taking it home

Videos comprise a good chunk of online content that people consume. However, producing a video with great content isn’t enough. You must have effective video calls to action to make good use of your content.

Remember, calls to action can be disruptive to the viewer experience, so be creative in using them – but remember – as David Ogilvy once said, “ Never stop testing, and your advertising will never stop improving”. 

Want to use video to promote your brand? Contact us today and check out some of our great services.

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