Artcle by: Hubspot

Calls-to-action (CTAs) are one of the most critical inbound marketing tools. Whether they take the form of anchor text links, images, or buttons, CTAs are what motivate and direct your visitors to take a desired action, usually on a landing page. This could mean anything from registering for an event, downloading content and converting into leads, or encouraging prospects to move further down your marketing funnel toward sales-readiness.

But not all calls-to-action are effective at converting your visitors. And because we’ve worked with so many marketers over the years, we’ve seen our fair share of lackluster and underperforming CTAs in our day. So to help you get a handle on some of the most critical CTA best practices, this post — and the accompanying SlideShare – will uncover the good, the bad, and the ugly of calls-to-action, so you can learn what works (and what doesn’t) with CTAs.

1) DON’T use “submit” on your form buttons.

DO use valuable and actionable copy, such as “Download Now,” “Get Your Free Trial,” “Speak to an Expert,” or “Buy Now.”

Why? Think about it: No one likes to “submit” to anything. By stating the value of what the visitors will receive by clicking the button, you will reduce anxiety and friction and, thus increase clickthroughs.

2) DON’T hide your CTAs where no one can see them.

DO place your CTAs above and below the fold and within the visitor’s “eye path.”

Why? Calls-to-action are worthless if no one can see them! Don’t make the mistake of neglecting to position important calls-to-action front and center so visitors miss them altogether.

3) DON’T use the same or similar colors in your CTAs as the page’s background color.

DO use bold, contrasting colors in your CTAs so they don’t blend in with the page.

Why? If your CTA uses colors similar to those of the background — whether on a page, in an email, or within any other channel, it will blend into the page, making it difficult for visitors to notice. Simple as that!

4) DON’T use teeny, tiny CTAs that no one will notice.

DO make them big and bold.

Why? So they stand out! It’s important to make CTAs one of the bigger, more prominent objects on a page to increase the likelihood of clickthroughs.

5) DON’T make the design of your CTAs look flat.

DO make them look “clickable” and button-like by adding bevels, shadows, and hover effects.

Why? Online visitors are conditioned to recognize clickable elements like buttons and links. Use copy or design to indicate that visitors should “click here.”

6) DON’T use CTAs in the wrong place at the wrong time.

DO use CTAs that relate to the content on the existing page, or align with the buyer’s interests and needs.

Why? Many marketers make the mistake of pushing a CTA too soon or with the wrong audience. Matching the CTA with the lifecycle stage or interests of the visitor will make for a more effective call-to-action and increase clickthroughs.

7) DON’T be too wordy.

DO make sure CTAs are clear, simple, and uncluttered.

Why? Attention spans are short. Get to the point quickly.

8) DON’T use vague, cliché, or passive language.

DO use compelling and actionable copy that conveys the value being offered.

Why? The most effective calls-to-action tell visitors what to do (e.g. click here, download now, get your XYZ). Use words that convey action so there’s no question about it.

9) DON’T oversell and under-deliver.

DO set the right expectations about what visitors will receive.

Why? Many calls-to-action make fake promises. Just think of decades’ worth of Mad Men type advertising. Visitors have high expectations that your CTA will deliver what’s promised.

10) DON’T link your CTAs to your homepage.

DO direct each CTA to its own dedicated landing page that restates the offer and copy from the CTA.

Why? A homepage is a dumping ground for all miscellaneous traffic. CTAs give you the opportunity to increase conversions by driving visitors from a particular channel or source to a specific landing page that is closely tied to the CTA. This reduces friction because visitors will know they landed in the right place. Bringing them directly to the homepage will make them feel lost and reduce the likelihood they’ll convert.

Continue Reading: HUBSPOT – 20 Critical Do’s and Don’ts for Clickable Calls to Action (CTA)

The post Clickable Calls-to-Action (CTA) – 20 Critical Do’s and Don’ts appeared first on Simply Social Media Solutions.

I’m a big believer that you need to create strategies for your online and offline marketing integration in order to establish a unified message about your brand and capture audiences from every media source. It’s not enough anymore to just promote your brick and mortar business offline, now-a-days, you need to grab your customers attention from every angle.

Cross promotion using a consistent brand message will solidify your reputation in the minds of your customers.

I ran across this article today that I thought would help drive this point home. Geoff Livingston, in his article, “4 Reasons Why Your Marketing Will Die Without Integration“, talks about how your traditional marketing media, such as direct mail and radio, is a starting point for creating conversions online. Integration of both online and offline marketing has a direct impact on your overall marketing results. Something that should NOT be ignored.

4 Reasons Why Your Marketing Will Die Without Integration

by Geoff Livingston

One word: Convergence.

Social media marketers need to harness media convergence and integrate direct and advertising to maximize the impact of their various communications, on and offline.

Convergence has been brought about by the widespread adoption of mobile and social media. The combination has empowered customers to access the Internet anywhere and discuss it.

The resulting anytime anywhere access to the Internet breaks the isolation of any one type of media form, including radio ads in the car and newspapers in a local subway.

Convergence creates a need to integrate, the process in which all communications from a company or organization — regardless of form — work together to present a unified brand experience for a customer. Integration yields more leads, creating better ROI for marketers. It includes cross promotion of ideas, themes, and calls to action, including participation in social media.

Continue Reading–>

Need Help with your Social Media Marketing?

The post Why Online and Offline Marketing Integration is so Important appeared first on Simply Social Media Solutions.

Each week we feature one of our local businesses Facebook fanpage from Oakville and the GTA.   If they offer something of interest to you, why not LIKE their page and show some support.

Would you like your Facebook Fanpage featured here?  Or maybe you know of one that we should feature?  Leave us a comment below with your details.  Please only Oakville and GTA (Ontario) businesses.

The post Simply Local Facebook Fanpage Features – September 2012 appeared first on Simply Social Media Solutions.

Each week you’ll find tons of great ways to network with others and share your blog or social accounts with others.  While you may not want to contribute every week, know where to find these little groups will come in handy.
The concept behind this is to support each other, NOT just to post your own thing.    You don’t have to share every post or like every page, but even a like or something to help would be amazing. Be sure to follow the instructions provided by each group as they will differ.
I personally would rather have people “follow” or “like”  me IF they are interested in what I have to say and maybe even contribute by offering helpful comments, suggestions or just feedback.
If this sounds like something you would be interested in and could gain value from, then by all means…Join away!

Simply Social Media for Small Business is our Facebook Group where each week we will be hosting a share and support post.  If you are a member of the group, you can share a post from your Facebook page that you want to feature.

Join and Participate: http://www.facebook.com/groups/simplysocialmediasolutions/

Showoff Friday!  – Friday

It’s the DAY again to celebrate ‘YOU’ – the fans!

Share your masterpiece, achievements, posts, or anything you want us to know about. Explain it briefly in the comment and leave a link if need to. Free to promote others too, the stage is yours

(No affiliate links allowed)

Posted to Social @ Blogging’s Facebook page each Friday: http://www.facebook.com/SocialBloggingTracker

Social Spotlight Day  - Every other Friday

Who wants to put their social media efforts into the spotlight today?
Show off any social network you want: your FB page, your Twitter, your Pinterest or anything else.
NOTE: you must include http:// before the URL so the link is clickable.

Then click “Like” and “Share” with your friends so they can be in the spotlight too!

http://www.socialspotlightday.com

Facebook Friday Networking Party – Fridays

Happy Friday!

Welcome to my Facebook Friday networking party.

Post your Facebook business page below.

Feel free to tag this page and share with others!

Let’s have some FUN with this!

Watch Rick Rockwell Goes Social’s page http://www.facebook.com/RockwithRick

Brag Your Blog – Tuesdays

[Promote Yourself] BRAG YOUR BLOG and don’t be shy! Feel free to tell us about how great your blog, podcast, videos or other content is in the comments section! Like and Share to help spread the word

Watch for the weekly post at http://www.facebook.com/BrandLoveLLC

 R & R Fanpage Friday

Let’s celebrate and Share, Care, Connect, Network & Engage!

1. Please be sure you’ve switched to “Use Facebook as:” yourself and not your Fan Page.

Please invite your friends who might like to join the party. The more involved – the more all benefit. Let’s Party and make this one the best yet!!

? Party Networking Tips ?
Please consider stopping by and commenting on one of the posts if you have already liked/connected with a page at another networking party.

* Pages that include offensive or contain inappropriate content are excluded from this invitation.

[tag]

RECEIVE MORE COMMENTS ON YOUR UPDATES in return for adding [tag] to the end of comments you leave on the pages in this VIP (Very Important Pages) list.

HOW IT WORKS:
1.Using Facebook as your personal profile, tell us about your business or page and include a link to your page.

3.SWITCH TO USING FACEBOOK AS YOUR PAGE. Visit as many pages in the VIP list as you wish. Read an update and leave a comment relevant and appropriate to the update. Tag the comment by adding [tag] to the end of your comment.

4.Page owners who receive a [tag] comment should reciprocate by visiting the page that gave them the [tag] and leave a [tag] comment relevant and appropriate to the update.

5.Share this update to your timeline, page and groups. Invite other people and pages to take part.

The more people and pages that join in, the more comments our page will receive

??The pages you visit you should also LIKE as your profile page. This will develop true AFFINITY between your page and the pages you [tag].

Let’s get commenting and networking.

The offers will be add as comments throughout the day. If you don’t see the comments click the image. If you’d like to take up an offer, CONTACT THE SELLER DIRECTLY.

If you are a business owner, you are welcome to add a comment with your offer, follow the ins

http://www.facebook.com/SocialMediaHive

~Toresa
We are always on the lookout for new ways to network and grow our fan base across the social sphere, so if you know of any exchanges you would like to share, be sure to leave the details in the comments below.

The post Weekly Social Networking Opportunities appeared first on Simply Social Media Solutions.

Activating it is pretty simple and I’m going to show you how to do it step by step, but before I do, you should look at creating your new header.  It must be 1252px x 626px and leave a space in middle where your profile picture will be. (see mine below)

Now for instructions…are you ready?

1) Once you have your image ready, login to your Twitter account and go to “settings”.

2) Click on the “Design” tab

3) Now scroll down until you see the “Customize your own” section and click on the “change header” button to upload your new image.

4) That’s it!  Your done:)

Need help creating your new Twitter Profile Image?  Contact us here or wherever we are on the web.

~Toresa

Wanna show yours off?  Leave your link in the comment below to share…

The post How to Activate Your New Twitter Profile appeared first on Simply Social Media Solutions.

Each week on Wednesday’s we’ll be sharing some of the interesting articles we’ve found across the web.  They will include topics that will help your business such as social media, blogging, marketing, computers, etc.

This week we found:

The New Beta Version Of Skype Brings Better Microsoft & Facebook Integration [Updates] 

With Microsoft’s acquisition of Skype, it comes as no surprise that the new Skype version would be made to work better with Microsoft accounts. The newly released beta version of Skype 5.11 for Windows gives us an early window into the developments.

Read More

Did You Know Twitter Deletes Your Old Tweets? Here’s How to Back Them Up

The importance of backup can never be overstated. No matter what it is, if it’s important to you, back it up. You never know when something might fail, and you’ll find yourself wishing you’ve taken the time to back up your stuff. Your Twitter presence is no different. In the several years Twitter’s been around, many of us have collected thousands of tweets, followers, DMs and lists. While not all of these can be backed up, why not save what you can?

Read More

7 Great Ways To Find Free Images Online

Prehistoric man knew how to communicate with images. Thankfully, his descendants didn’t forget; because where would we be without art, photography, movies, X-rays, animation, digital imaging, 3D printing, and Instagram. Okay, the last one was bit of a light-hearted addition, but even that shows you the pull of a picture.

Read More

How to Activate Your Facebook Community

For quite some time the only visible number on Facebook for brand pages was “Likes”. This was the instrument that we used to measure theFacebook presence of every company, small or large. That all changed when Mark Zuckerbergrolled out the “People Talking About” metric. This metric placed a whole new emphasis on engagement and activity with your community.

Read More

Kickstart Your Stalled Blog Content, Part 1: Six Steps to a Fresh Post

Just starting a blog? Longing to revive an old, forgotten blog? Or just feeling guilty because you’ve let your blog languish without a post for a little too long?  If your blog’s fallen behind your ideal post frequency, you’re in luck. Today, I’m going to give you a six-step plan for kickstarting stalled blog content. The work we’ll do today takes just 40 minutes in total, but you can split it up in to five- and ten-minute blocks if that’s all you can fit in.

Read More

Kickstart Your Stalled Blog Content, Part 2: Make Writing Work For You

On the weekend we looked at a little exercise for kickstarting stalled content on your blog. This approach can be useful for reviving a long-neglected blog or just for reinvigorating your blogging when you’re struggling to keep up a regular posting routine.

Read More

Enjoy!

If you find interesting articles around the web that’s you’d like to share, leave the details in the comments below and share with our readers. (Note: we will be monitoring these comments, so please only post quality and relevant articles)

The post Wednesday’s Social Share by Simply appeared first on Simply Social Media Solutions.

I decided to test this new Twitter widget out on my site right on the homepage (the location not permanent as we are re-vamping our site shortly) and sidebar.  It’s versatile in that you can place it anywhere on your site without worrying about the width overlapping or messing up your layout.  As well, the height, defaulted at 600px, is also adjustable.

I love it’s ability to show my tweets in real time.  In fact, I’ll be using it to promote our new Facebook group (hashtag #simplysocialmedia) to encourage more active members as well as to seek out answers and opinions from outside members.

Before I go ahead and share the article by Brandlove, LLC (@BrandLoveLLC), let me show you the two different twitter widget sizes we tested on our site.

Large version we placed on homepage….

Smaller (300px) we placed in our sidebar…

Cool, eh?  Ok, here’s the article that will give you all the details and show you exactly how to grab this Twitter widget for yourself.

____________________________________________________________

Cool New Twitter Widget: Embeddable Interactive Timelines For Real-Time Interaction on Any Website!

 Twitter recently launched a new tool that makes it easy to embed interactive timelines of Tweets on any website. This is a great new feature that adds a real-time dimension to articles and blog posts on other web sites. What differentiates this new tool from other Tweet widgets is its fully interactive nature that allows readers to reply, re-tweet, favorite, follow an account, view tweeted photos– all without having to leave the page. The auto-expand photos option brings the photo front and center in the timeline, and you can expand Tweets just like you would on twitter.com to see cards, and retweet and favorites counts.

Continue reading this article

What are your thoughts?  Share your experience by leaving a comments below…

~Toresa

The post Twitter Widget: New Embeddable Widget for Interactive Timelines appeared first on Simply Social Media Solutions.

If you’ve been on the fence about diving into mobile marketing  for your business, the stats gathered by Cory Gaddis at Mobilize Worldwide should help you finally make that choice.  In an article I was reading by Jamie Turner of the 60 Second Marketer, he shares the remarkable stats that will blow you away (and make you think!).

Here are just a few:

• 33% of US mobile customers prefer offers via text message to those via mobile Web (21%), apps (11%), and voice mail (8%). DMA UK
• By 2013, mobile phones will overtake PCs as the most common Web access device worldwide. Gartner
• 95% of smartphone users looked up local information, and of those, 61% called and 59% visited the business. Google IPSOS
• Of smartphone users asked why they would scan a QR code, 87% said to get a coupon, discount or deal. MGH
• 16 % of smartphone users report that they’ve made a purchase as a result of a marketing message they received on their phone. Email was by far most effective, with 55% purchasing as a result of an email received on their mobile device. Exact Target
• More than half of those who purchased as a result of a marketing message on their smartphone did so on the device itself. Exact Target
• In June 2011, the number of U.S. wireless subscriber connections surpassed the U.S. population. CTIA
• Mobile user traffic remains constant throughout the week, and holds at a consistently high level from 9 a.m. until 11 p.m. Yahoo!
• Half of smartphone owners have scanned QR codes and 18 percent of them made a purchase after scanning. Consumer Pulse

Mobile marketing is more than just developing an app for smartphone users.  It’s about using the various tools available now to businesses to push their reach even further.  It’s another way to connect with your customers and stay in contact.  And it doesn’t have to cost you a ton of money.

Here’s a few ways your business could join the mobile revolution:

Mobile Friendly Website – people search their phones for business information, to contact you or even for products.  Make sure their experience is easy by ensuring your website is mobile friendly.

Mobile Applications – So many business models could benefit from creating their own mobile app. and the costs these days are very affordable.  Your own app puts you in the hands of your customers, allowing you to send notifications directly to their phone.  Once they download your app. you now have the ability to send them coupons, ideas, product updates, holiday wishes, etc., providing you a very valuable tool.

QR Codes – Integrating QR codes into your offline marketing is becoming more and more effective as smartphone users increase.  I’ve seen Real Estate Agents use them on their For Sale signs, businesses use them to offer coupons, museums use them for showing videos about each exhibit.  Just get creative and get your QR code out in the public eye.

Text Message Marketing (SMS) – Much like creating email lists, you can now also create mobile lists that will allow you to send messages instantly to your customers.  They opt in (exactly like your email subscribers) and agree to accept text messages from your company.  It’s a very powerful way to stay in contact with your customers, keep your business in the forefront of their minds and create brand loyalty.

Local Marketing Social Sites like Foursquare – These sites are becoming more and more popular as people use them to check in to the places they visit and offer reviews about their experience.  Sites like Foursquare offer rewards to those that check in and connect people that may be interested in the same places.  They also offer amazing tools for businesses that help to encourage visits and reward returning customers.  Local businesses should be taking advantage of these sites to connect with their customers and create not only relationships but also loyal customers.

Just like with social media, businesses now need to embrace the mobile market to stay in top form.

If you have questions or would like to consider adding theses marketing tools to your portfolio, contact us to see which options would best suit your business and how we can help you make this new transition easy and affordable.

~Toresa

The post New Mobile Marketing Stats You Should Consider appeared first on Simply Social Media Solutions.

You can build a website, dress it up and glam it out with all the bells n’ whistles, but if nobody knows it’s there, what good is it?I’m sure when you decided to start your offline business, you didn’t just make it all snazzy, open the doors and expect the crowds to run you down, did you? No. You had to make the effort to get your business out to the people, and the same holds true for your online marketing channels.

In this lens we created on Squidoo,  we share a few ways you can cross-promote your offline and online business to maximize both and drive customers to your door (s).

Offline & Online Marketing Integration Ideas 

Do you have other ideas? Share them by leaving a comment below…

~Toresa

Image courtesy of Webknots - Integration of Online and Offline Marketing – 2012 (also a great article)

The post Offline & Online Marketing Integration appeared first on Simply Social Media Solutions.

Enjoy!

ps. some amazing infographics included…beware!

~Toresa

48 Significant Social Media Facts, Figures and Statistics Plus 7 Infographics

Written by Jeff Bullas

I came across some interesting statistics that has me quite concerned about the dental hygiene levels on this planet.

Apparently there are 600 million more people that own a mobile phone compared to those who own a toothbrush.

Some research reveals that there are 4.8 billion mobile users but only 4.2 billion people with a toothbrush.

Does that mean that every mobile should be sold with a free toothbrush or should you need to produce your toothbrush before you are given possession of your new mobile phone to ensure that future personal close encounters are engaging and pleasant?

Another interpretation of those statistic is that toothbrushes are too expensive.

The Importance of Statistics

Statistics are used to make important decisions and social media statistics, facts and figures are often used to justify new media marketing strategies and tactics to the CEO.

The social media landscape changes rapidly and keeping up with the latest numbers is an essential part of continuing to make your marketing relevant and focused.

Here are the latest facts, figures and statistics for seven major social networks that marketers need to take notice of.

I have also embedded an infographic for each social media network.

http://www.jeffbullas.com/2012/04/23/48-significant-social-media-facts-figures-and-statistics-plus-7-infographics/

The post 48 Significant Social Media Facts, Figures and Statistics appeared first on Simply Social Media Solutions.