In planning or creating your own explainer video, have you thought about the importance of having the right Call-To-Action (CTA)? A CTA is what you hear or see at the end of a video, like “Click here and try this for FREE” with a huge submit button underneath or a simple invitation to “Learn more”.
It sounds simple, so simple that sometimes you might completely ignore this point – but CTA is an essential continuation of your message within the video. Without it, your viewers won’t have any information about what their next step should be. Yeah, your video’s awesome. The well-written script, interesting plot, and informative in a completely smart way — but then what?
Put it this way – think of your business as a party. You’re sending everyone an invitation in the form of an explainer video, but you’re not providing any information about where the party is being held – no CTA. Well, while some people will cross the sea trying to find out the address of your party because they just need to go, many will just pass by.
So don’t forget to add your address to the invitation, people. It’s important.
To do so you might need to go on another round of brainstorming to decide your CTA. Would “Try It For Free” sounds too needy? Or would people be interested more in “Click and Learn!” or “How to Master in Less Than 2 Minutes”?
It’s quite confusing to decide what kind of CTA would work the best for your business: Something that would be inviting, turning viewers to potential clients or buyers. Here are three steps that will help you create a great CTA:
1. Find out what your target audience’s preference for learning is.
Does your audience prefer learning by watching, or reading? If it’s by watching, then a smart move would be to make a CTA that will direct your potential clients to a tutorial video. If it’s by reading, make a CTA that directs them to a blog post on your website straight away. If you have the time, and your target market is torn between the two styles, providing both would be a great idea.
2. Know what you want for your business and how the viewers can help you achieve it.
Is it increased traffic on your website or more subscribers? For example, if you want to multiply the amount of traffic you have now, the perfect CTA for your business would be “Visit our website!”. You can even add something else that would further spark your viewers’ interest, like a “Special discount for the first 20 visitors every day”.
Here’s a great example of an explainer video with a good CTA based on what the client wants to achieve. This video by PooPourri introduces something totally new and ends with a massive CTA. Literally. The button that will direct you to their website is so big there’s no way you’ll miss it. Their CTA is as clear as the sky is blue: visit our website, and buy our product. See it for yourself.
3. Remember to stick to being short and precise.
This is how we design the length of our explainer videos; we keep them short to maintain the viewers’ attention until the very end. Doing this ensures that your CTA doesn’t make the viewer think it will take a long time to understand what you want him to know.
Something like “Click Play To Know More” might make people wonder if they are really interested enough to hang around and know more. How long will this “know more” thing last? Are we talking for more than 10 minutes? I don’t think so. So, short and precise. Ditch the “Click Play To Know More” and opt for a more trustable CTA, like “1 Minute Intro – Click Play”.
That’s it, people. Know what your audience prefers, know what you want and how the viewers can help you gain it, and stick to being short and precise. Easy to remember, right? Now it’s time to actually apply those steps! Good luck!
