What is a CTA? Advertising and Marketing CTAs Explained For Beginners

What is a CTA? CTA stands for Call To Action. So what is a Call To Action? It is an instruction or a direction that a business gives to a potential customer in order for them to purchase a product or a service. You want to tell customers the actions you want them to take so they can become one of your customers, which can include a variety of directives. You may even use multiple call to action phrases for customers to subscribe to your email list, join your giveaway, and shop your online store.

Call To Action (CTA) Definition: An instruction that you give to potential customers so they perform a specific action.

Call To Action (CTA) Tips:

- Make your offer as clear as possible.
- Use the most relevant Call To Action for the next step you want customers to take.
- Test long and short CTAs.
- The CTA in your ads should match the CTA on your website.

Common CTAs:

- Shop
- Subscribe
- Book
- Contact
- Discover
- Sign Up
- Watch
- Learn More
- Book An Appointment
- Start Your Free Trial
- Book Now And Save
- Reserve Your Seat
- Sign Up For 20% Off
- Try It For Free
- Download Our App
- Get Started Today

Call To Action (CTA) Example 1:

A travel destination is promoting summer vacation deals. Each advertisement tells potential customers to 'Book Now' for the best travel deals.
What is the CTA?
The CTA is 'Book Now'

Call To Action (CTA) Example 2:

Surfside PPC is promoting a free 3-hour Digital Marketing video for email subscribers. I tell people to subscribe to watch the video.
What is the CTA?
The CTA is 'Subscribe'