Slick Aesthetics + Clicks = Good CTA

I spend a lot of time thinking about CTAs (or call to actions) over the course of an average work week. My team puts together advertising units, widgets and mini-site mock ups almost daily for big name brands and it's important to create CTAs that are clear, eye catching and effective in converting to clicks. Some of the things we pay attention to mirror the tips mentioned here but there are a few more things to keep in mind that can help ensure you're designing an effective CTA:

1) Size matters - make sure the CTA is big but not obnoxious. I've seen designs that go so big that the CTA ends up resembling an ad unit rendering it invisible to less savvy users. Find a good balance between your buttons and the surrounding elements but always strive to make it stand out, without scaring the user way.

2) Shape it up - Making your CTA look like a nice, inviting, rounded corner button makes sense about 90% of the time, but if you're designing within an existing site or ad unit be mindful of the existing style. Sometimes, a link may be your best bet rather than using something resembling a button or badge. Whatever you end up doing, remember to use high contrasting colors to draw the eye and mouse.

3) Stick it where it counts - Positioning the CTA is probably the most important thing to consider. Remember that a user's eye will generally track from left to right, top to bottom so the top-right portion of whatever you're designing will be your hot spot. It often seems natural to place the CTA at the right/bottom-right of your design, but we've found that even with something like a 728×90 ad unit the CTA on the far left will perform more effectively. This is an excellent example of good positioning. Learn it.