donation page

What is a Call-to-Action? A Quick Guide for Nonprofits

Ann Green Communications, donation page, donor engagement, fundraising, website , , , ,

A well-worded call-to-action (CTA) can encourage your nonprofit supporters to engage with your cause in a myriad of ways. Learn more about CTAs in this guide!

By Ira Horowitz

Your nonprofit exists because you’re seeking to enact positive change in your community, whether that means tutoring at-risk high school students, cleaning local beaches, or providing meals to unhoused people. 

However, you can’t do it alone—you need your supporters to help you make that positive change happen. This means you have to not only inspire your supporters by informing them about your cause and opportunities to get involved, but also explicitly ask them to take action. 

That’s where calls-to-action (CTAs) come in. By incorporating well-worded and carefully-designed CTAs into your marketing materials, you can encourage your supporters to take the necessary steps to put their passion for your cause into action, whether you want them to donate, volunteer, attend an event, or simply learn more about your organization. 

Let’s take a deep dive into the specifics of CTAs to help you get started! 

Calls-to-Action (CTAs): An Overview

A call-to-action (CTA) is a short statement or phrase that compels someone to take a specific action. Here are some examples of everyday situations in which we’re compelled to take action thanks to a CTA: 

  • In social media posts: “Follow us,” “Click the link in our bio,” “Comment below” 
  • In TV commercials: “Visit our store,” “See it in theaters this Friday,” “Talk to your doctor today about…” 
  • On mobile apps: “Download now,” “Try for free,” “Upgrade to premium” 
  • On billboards: “Call now for a free quote,” “Book your vacation now,” “Take the next exit to…” 
  • On websites: “Sign into your account,” “Find a store,” “Learn more about us” 
  • In emails: “Register for our upcoming event,” “Shop this exclusive sale,” “Learn more”  

Recognizing the everyday places where you’re called to action can help you determine how you can better leverage CTAs for your nonprofit. For example, as you get better at identifying CTAs, you might find you could do a better job of writing CTAs in your Google Ads copy, on your donation form, or in your spoken presentations. 

4 Forms CTAs Can Take Online

Depending on the medium they’re presented in, CTAs can take different forms. While you may include CTAs on physical marketing materials (such as posters or direct mailings) or tap into channels like TV or radio, your online assets (such as your website) will likely be where you focus on driving action and engagement among your community of supporters. 

Here are some of the most popular types of online CTAs to keep in mind: 

  • Buttons: A button CTA is a clickable button with CTA text on your website, such as “Donate now” or “Login to your account.” 
  • Text: Sometimes a CTA can easily be woven into website page copy, linking to a resource for taking action or simply inspiring action. Here’s an example: To learn more about our mission, visit our “About Us” page.” In this case, you could add a link to the words “visit our ‘About Us’ page.” 
  • Pop-up CTAs: Although website pop-ups are controversial, they can be effective when used sparingly. For example, you might use a pop-up on your website that has a CTA to encourage visitors who have been on the site for a certain amount of time to subscribe to your email newsletter. 
  • Image CTAs: Similar to button CTAs, image CTAs are images that have CTA text and a link to whatever action page you’re trying to get your website visitors to check out. 

It’s up to you to determine which type of CTA will work best in your online marketing materials. Start by deciding which action you want your supporters to take and how you want to communicate that action. 

For example, you might want to encourage website visitors to donate through your online donation page. To do so, you could include a button CTA on your website’s homepage that says “Give Now” and links to the donation page. On the donation page, you could feature an eye-catching image of your beneficiaries and a paragraph explaining why donations help make your work possible. Then, you could end the paragraph with one last inspiring call-to-action sentence that says, “Donate today to help us change more lives for the better.” 

While you don’t want to overwhelm your supporters with too many CTAs, having multiple touchpoints like this on the journey to a completed action can encourage potential supporters to follow through and make a move!

How to Create Effective CTAs

No matter the type of CTA you end up using, there are some universal best practices for making your CTAs as effective as possible: 

Use strategic wording.

Choose the words for your CTAs with care so you can catch your supporters’ attention. Start with an action verb like join, sign up, discover, explore, donate, give, register, or shop. You should also choose words that instill a sense of urgency in your audience such as now, today, limited time, or exclusive. 

Example: “Donate today to save more sea turtles” is a much more effective CTA than a generic “Donate.” 

Make it brief.

When creating a CTA, get to the point by using only a few words. This will help you clearly communicate what you need your supporters to do. Plus, keeping your CTAs short ensures that you leave no room for misunderstanding. 

Example: “Register today for our bikeathon on July 11” will likely encourage more event registrations than “We are hosting a bikeathon soon and hope to see you there as a participant or volunteer. Please visit our registration page to get started.”   

Make careful placement decisions.

Where you put your CTAs on your website matters. After all, you need to ensure that they stand out from your other content and resources so they’re easy to see and click on. 

Example: You decide to put your “Donate Now to End Cancer” button in your static menu at the top of your web pages instead of at the bottom so it’s always visible no matter where your visitors go on your website.  

Pay attention to the visual design.

According to Cornershop Creative, color and specific styling are essential to creating a great CTA. Your designs should be eye-catching and consistent with the branding and style of your website. 

Example: You create an image CTA to encourage more people to sign up to foster shelter animals. You use your organization’s brand colors—red, white, and purple—and include an image of a shelter animal that is currently part of your foster program. 

Test and optimize.

As you begin adding CTAs to your website and other marketing materials, it may be helpful to test out different versions. Try asking a small group of your team members to identify what wording, visual look, and placements they think will be most effective for encouraging people to act. You can formalize this process using A/B testing.

Additionally, on your website, pay attention to how well your CTAs help boost conversions on your most important action pages, like your donation page or event registration page. You can monitor conversions with Google Analytics and use the insights you gather to improve your CTAs.

3 Examples of Eye-Catching CTAs

Still need some inspiration for creating a great nonprofit CTA? Check out these three examples of CTAs your organization can emulate. 

1. American Cancer Society 

The CTAs on the American Cancer Society website are brief and clear, encouraging visitors to act quickly. 

The American Cancer Society homepage features a few CTAs without overwhelming its website visitors. Here are a couple of standout CTA moves that inspired us: 

  • The “Donate” button in the top right corner is bright red and features the image of a heart, which helps it stand out and emphasizes the difference a donation can make to those whose lives have been affected by cancer. 
  • The “Learn About Screening” CTA in the center of the screen is paired with an image of real people and language that encourages authenticity and getting a screening to stay healthy.

2. American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals

The CTAs on the ASPCA website have bright colors, emotionally-evocative images, and prominent placement to help encourage action. 

ASPCA does an excellent job of making its CTA buttons stand out with bright orange coloring and bold white text. The text and pictures that accompany the buttons on its rotating banner image also pull at your heartstrings and encourage you to give. 

In particular, the phrase “63¢ a Day Can Help Her Survive” not only implores website visitors to contribute a donation but also highlights how easy it is to make a difference to an animal in need. 

3. Save the Children 

The CTA on the Save the Children homepage is brief and encourages urgent action. 

The Save the Children website reserves the color red for its most important website elements—its logo and CTA buttons, helping them stand out against a white and gray background. Here are a few other reasons we love their CTAs: 

  • The phrase “For many kids living in poverty, summer isn’t fair” is effective in evoking emotion in website visitors.
  • This main button CTA is paired with an image of a child, emphasizing the human aspect of the organization’s mission.
  • Save the Children uses the word “now” to instill urgency in its website visitors, encouraging them to give right away.

CTAs are small additions that can make a big difference for your nonprofit. Use these examples and tips to start creating (or fine-tuning) your organization’s CTAs and pulling in more support for your mission. 

And, if you need the help of an expert, invest in a web design partner that can help you with everything from designing your website to crafting CTAs and beyond! 

With 15 years of experience, Ira Horowitz is an expert in nonprofit online communications and online fundraising. His work has resulted in increased funds and resounding supporter engagement for hundreds of organizations.

Ira oversees Cornershop Creative’s project management team and works with clients to provide them with the best possible final product. He also manages all of their strategic engagements and helps guide nonprofits to determine their long-term strategy goals for online communications.

How to Build Your Recurring Giving Program: 4 Tips

Ann Green donation page, donor engagement, fundraising, monthly donors, website , , , ,

Recurring donors can provide valuable sustainable revenue for your nonprofit. Tap into the vast potential of a recurring giving program with these four tips.

I’m a big fan of recurring giving. It’s a great way to both boost revenue and your retention rate. In this guest post, Philip Schmitz of CharityEngine lets you know how you can build your recurring giving program.

By Philip Schmitz 

Acquiring recurring donors for your nonprofit can revolutionize your fundraising progress, helping you efficiently and effectively achieve your goals. You’ll need to invest time and resources to attract new support for your mission, but chances are you already have untapped potential in your existing connections.

To help you secure a reliable source of funding with recurring gifts, we’ll walk through these four essential tips:

  1. Add a recurring giving option to your donation page.
  2. Market your recurring gifts program.
  3. Leverage your CRM to boost recurring giving.
  4. Report the impact of recurring donations.

From regular volunteers to small-level repeat donors, your organization already has people dedicated to driving your nonprofit’s impact. Give them the opportunity to invest in your cause for the long run by establishing a recurring giving program.

1. Add a recurring giving option to your donation page.

Your nonprofit’s donation page is the primary location for prospective donors to give in support of your mission. Therefore, it’s essential to design your online giving page with everything that supporters may need to maximize their contributions.

As you optimize your donation page for recurring gifts, consider the donor experience. Make it easy and convenient for them to participate. Your donation form should have a checkbox option that allows donors to turn their donations into monthly gifts. Additional ways to further optimize your donation page include:

  • Specifying the impact of each recurring gift amount. Inspire your supporters to take action by giving examples of how each recurring giving amount will contribute to your organization’s on-the-ground impact. This allows them to see how they can make a tangible difference in your cause. For example, an animal welfare nonprofit could write that $20 will provide a shelter dog’s meals for one month, while $50 will cover its medical treatments.
  • Allowing donors to manage their accounts. Offer your donors the flexibility to change their account profiles, recurring gift amounts, payment methods, and any other relevant information online. Your supporters will feel much more comfortable getting involved in your recurring giving program if they have the freedom to adjust their enrollment whenever they’d like.
  • Accepting multiple secure payment options. Facilitate recurring payments by having multiple payment options featured clearly on your nonprofit’s donation page. Donors should be able to pay for recurring gifts with their debit or credit cards, by direct deposit, or using mobile payment services like PayPal.
  • Ensuring your giving page is mobile-friendly. These days, much of the world’s online interactions occur on mobile devices. Whether they’re on the go or relaxing at home, make sure your potential donors can access a high-quality version of your donation page on their tablets or smartphones as well.

According to 360MatchPro’s fundraising statistics, recurring donors contribute 42% more per year than one-time donors. Make the most of this valuable opportunity by setting up your online giving page to promote recurring giving.

2. Market your recurring giving program.

The success of your nonprofit’s recurring giving program depends on how well you spread the word. It’s crucial to not only make your supporters aware of this option, but also motivate them to become recurring donors. Send email updates to your existing donors with information on how to enroll in recurring giving, along with how these gifts will benefit your nonprofit.

To notify as many potential donors as possible, disperse your communications across multiple channels. Appeal to younger donors by creating memorable and engaging social media posts that promote your program. And, as you approach the end of the year, CharityEngine’s year-end giving guide recommends checking back in with your recurring donors and encouraging new enrollment during this popular giving time.

Go further with your marketing by creating a page on your website specifically for your recurring giving program. This will ensure that your supporters have a single, authoritative resource on all there is to know about the program, including the steps for opting in and who to contact with any additional questions.

Tie together all of your web pages and communications with consistent branding and visuals such as your organization’s colors, logo, and photos related to your mission. This way, prospective donors can feel confident that enrolling in the program will directly benefit your nonprofit.

3. Leverage your CRM to boost recurring giving.

Aside from having a CRM with billing software to automatically process recurring donations, use its capabilities for data-driven outreach. The more you understand your supporters, the better you can appeal to them to participate in your recurring giving program.

Segment your donors based on the information in their profiles and tailor your communications to those who may be most interested in becoming recurring donors. Look for repeat donors who tend to give relatively small amounts. They’d likely be receptive to automated monthly payments to support your cause. Some common ways to segment your donors include:

  • Giving history
  • Relevant interests
  • Past involvement with your nonprofit
  • Communication preferences

With these donor segments, you’ll be able to boost the effectiveness of your communications by sending messages that are more relevant to your individual supporters. They’ll feel more valued if you acknowledge their preferences and interests when reaching out about your recurring giving program. 

Furthermore, you can use the recurring gift data you collect in your organization’s CRM to personalize messages to your existing recurring donors as well. For instance, if they tend to give $15 a month, your next email to them could suggest that they increase their monthly gift to $20 a month to power your upcoming initiatives.

4. Report the impact of recurring donations.

The key to maintaining long-lasting support for your nonprofit is regularly updating and thanking your supporters. Even though their gifts are automated, your recurring donors still need to be recognized for their contributions each time they give. 

Be sure to have automatic follow-up emails in place to confirm and express gratitude for every recurring donation you receive. Remember to personalize each message with the donor’s name to show them that your organization values them as an individual. For additional ways to appreciate your recurring donors, consider the following ideas:

  • Mail handwritten thank-you cards at least once a year.
  • Host exclusive monthly donor appreciation events.
  • Spotlight longtime recurring donors as part of your nonprofit social media strategy.
  • Send small gifts of branded merchandise.

By communicating the impact of their contributions and the goals you’ve been able to achieve with their help, you’ll ensure that supporters stay enthusiastic about supporting your mission. Incorporate key data points into a powerful impact story to help them emotionally connect with the positive change they’re contributing toward.

Take advantage of your CRM’s capabilities to guide your communications about recurring giving and more. Your current donor profiles are incredibly useful for identifying ways to encourage further engagement from your supporters. Prioritize your donors’ interests to maximize your fundraising results. With a data-driven approach, you’ll be able to build an optimized recurring giving program that opens up a source of sustainable revenue for your nonprofit.

Philip Schmitz is the CEO and founder of cloud-services leader BIS Global, creators of the CharityEngine fundraising & communications technology platform. Founded in 1999, Phil has managed the vision and strategy for BIS’s suite of integrated business applications & hosting tools used by more than 400 businesses & non-profits.