A strong call to action is imperative for a Direct Mail piece. It’s what drives recipients to take action. Once they make contact with you, they become a lead and are one step closer to becoming a customer.
When people discuss tips for direct mail copywriting, the CTA often is left out of the conversation. Many advertisers struggle with writing CTAs and wind up with something that’s weak and ambiguous. To help, we’ve come up with some essential rules for writing a call to action that’ll generate responses and sales.
Make It Clear
Your CTA needs to be crystal clear about how you want recipients to go about responding to your mailer. Don’t be vague and make sure that you’re specific. If recipients are confused or unsure of what to do, they’ll ignore your mailer and won’t contact you.
Keep It Simple
It should be easy for your mailer recipients to get in touch with you. A multi-step process or anything that requires them to go out of their way is an inconvenience. Most people are busy and don’t have the time nor patience to deal with such a hassle, so help them (and help yourself!) by having a simple response process.
Consider Your Audience
What do a good advertiser and good salesperson have in common? An understanding of their target audience. You too should know who your prospective clients are and how they’ll want to contact you. For example, Millennials are big smartphone users, so asking them to get in touch via text or scanning a QR code would be a smart strategy. Seniors, on the other hand, would likely prefer to mail in a response card. Of course, those are generalizations, but the idea is to know what your target audience’s preferences.
Create A Sense of Urgency
You’ve probably noticed that promotions are usually short-lived, such as flash sales that just last a few hours or discounts only valid for a weekend. Why? Because the small time frame instills a sense of urgency in buyers, pushing them to act fast. Many people are procrastinators or are extremely busy. Either way, if you give them too much time to respond they won’t. They’ll forget to get in touch or keep putting it off.
Show The Benefit
People won’t respond to your direct mail piece if they don’t see an obvious benefit. Your CTA should answer the question “what will this do for me?”. People are always looking for ways to improve their lives and find solutions to their problems, and your mailer should do just that. “Start growing your business now, call us today for a free consultation” gives people a reason to respond, whereas “Call us today to speak to a representative” isn’t enticing and doesn’t highlight a benefit.
Don’t Pressure
An effective CTA makes someone want to take action immediately or soon after reading it. However, you don’t want to lose your credibility by pressuring recipients into making a big commitment. This is especially important if you’re in the mortgage or auto industry, as people don’t buy cars or homes in haste. Instead, your CTA shouldn’t have any type obligation. Offering people something free, such as a consultation, trial, or sample, is a good way to encourage responses. And, once they get in touch with you and try your product/service, you’ll have a better chance selling them on it.
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