There is something sort of obnoxious about being hit in the face with a solicitation the minute you walk into a store, especially at the membership wholesale clubs that cost money to shop in. I suppose it’s like television ads before movies; you’re paying to be there but you’re a captive audience, so why not try and sell you a car? Recently I was walking into our local club to buy diapers. I find the shopping experience at these large stores irritating, but that’s the cost of saving a lot of money on expensive necessities like diapers. I wasn’t but ten feet into the store when someone yelled to me, “Sir, would you like to learn more about satellite television?” I managed an uncomfortable smile as an acknowledgment, but walked past him.
The experience got me thinking about calls to action, and how weak the sales person’s approach was. If you insist on bellowing at me the second I walk in, why not ask me something a little more engaging? “Sir, can I show you how you can get rid of your cable company?” Or, “Would you like to save money on cable?” Something along those lines and it becomes a little bit harder to ignore.
Surprisingly, you’ll find this same approach in direct marketing campaigns all of the time. It’s darn near an epidemic with online campaigns, but can also be seen in print.
With integrated campaigns it’s especially important to have a compelling reason for your recipient to get online and respond. Asking a recipient if they would like to learn more about your product or service may not be the best approach.
Include a benefit in your call to action
It’s really easy to include a benefit in your call to action, regardless of the medium, offer, or product/service. Suppose you are selling an insurance product. Instead of “Learn more about Acme Insurance”, try “Let us show you how to save 25% on your premiums”, or “Visit our site to claim your personalized premium reduction offer.” Ok, that might not make it past legal review, but you get my point.
A lot of online advertisements and landing pages include the “Learn More” link. I suppose it’s just easier or somehow feels more user-friendly, or perhaps seems less “sales-ish.” I would argue that the risk of turning off some prospects with a more aggressive call to action is mitigated by the risk of boring the heck out of them and driving them into inaction or page abandonment.
Next time you’re planning a campaign, remember that “Learn More” is NOT a call to action. It is an invitation to ignore your offer, just like the sales guy at the wholesale club. I may actually want to learn more about satellite television, but nothing sounds worse to me than knowingly engaging in a sales pitch in front of a busy store as I’m trying to remember where, in this one million square foot customer-trap, the diapers are.
