How to Create Effective CTAs to Market Your Fitness Business in 7 Easy Steps

Calls to Action (CTA's) are great at drawing attention to the right places on your website and are even better at engaging users. A CTA can be anything from a text, to a button, to an image the prompts the website visitor to take an action.

Research has shown that good CTAs outperform AdWords in the CTR they generate. While AdWords generate 2% click-through rate (CTR) [G1] , CTAs get an admirable 3.29% CTR across industries.

The Fitness Industry seems to benefit the most from well written and placed CTAs which is why you could also benefit from learning how to master them both offline and online.

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While CTAs are mostly associated with online marketing, there are many ways to include them in your offline and local marketing strategy. For example on your business cards, flyers, any adverts you place at the newsfeed of local businesses, in the papers, on the radio or TV and or even at events where you present yourself as the local personal trainer.

What makes a good CTA?

Let's clarify what we're even talking about and how they can be relevant to many areas of your fitness marketing.​
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​Call to action (CTA) is a marketing term used extensively in advertising and selling. It refers to any device designed to prompt an immediate response or encourage an immediate sale. A CTA most often refers to the use of words or phrases that can be incorporated into sales scripts, advertising messages or web pages that encourage consumers to take prompt action. (from Wikipedia)

Characteristics of a good CTA:

• grab attention
• create an urge
• spark engagement

When it comes to online marketing and your personal trainer website, a CTA strictly speaking is the button that encourages your visitor to take that next step.

In offline marketing and advertisement the definition is more vague and refers to any design elements that have the above characteristics on a marketing material. E.g. use of words, colours and visuals to grab attention and inspire the reader to take action.
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There are tens of thousands of fitness studios and gyms around the world. There may be 5-6 in your own neighborhood. This is why it's important to implement CTAs both online and offline on your marketing materials that will make you stand out and engage your audience in a way other fitness businesses don't or can't.

Here are 7 tips to create highly engaging and converting CTAs for your fitness marketing.

1. Word It Wisely ​

The words you use in your CTA will determine whether your visitors will contact you or not. When writing, use words that create a sense of urgency. Make it sound as though the offer lasts only temporarily or has limited availability and that customers absolutely cannot live without it.
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For example, say Email us today and  claim 15% off on yearly membership. Offer lasts only until midnight!’ You’ve offered a benefit and given a timeline. This will encourage visitors to reach out to you for more information, at which stage you can work on converting them.

You should also consider personalizing CTAs, especially online where people make their decision to take action there and then. CTAs on your fitness website with personalized phrases like ‘I want to create my personalized workout plan today’ had a 42% higher CTR than those that said ‘Create your personalized workout plan today’. Michelle's landing page for her challenge is a great example:
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2. Make Your CTAs Actionable ​

When people come across a nicely designed flyer or a website that answers their fitness questions, they will appreciate its content and would likely be happy to learn more so long there is something to tell them what to do next.

If you have a CTA that is not actionable, is it really a CTA one might ask?

A good CTA is one that directs its readers to an action. When creating a CTA, include action verbs like ‘Click’, ‘Call’, ‘Speak’, ‘Write’, ‘Request’ etc. in the copy.

This will tell your audience that there is something that they need to do, in order to find out more about the issue or topic they are looking to solve.

Offline example can be a flyer that offers a solution for a problem and invites its readers to download a free guide on the topic from your website. Ensure the link is easy to remember or set up a service where they send a code to a phone number and in exchange they receive the link in a reply.

When it comes to your fitness website, your options are endless and the best solution depends on what action you'd like your visitors to take.
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3. Specify the Benefits ​

This step is most important in your fitness marketing strategy since the action is expected to be taken some time after the reader comes across your marketing material. This means you'd like to make an impression that you will be remembered for later when the readers get to their laptop, have time to make that phone call or pop-in to your personal training studio.

Example:
If you're running outdoor bootcamp sessions during the spring and summer months and are planning to distribute flyers in the local area with a free trial offer, make sure the flyer is focused on all the benefits they will experience by getting in touch, not just the free trial. Something like the below banner on Superdad Fitness Project's Home page.

​Think more energy to play with kids, feeling confident in swimsuit, getting better sleep, etc. Pair that with appealing visuals, a clear design and state your contact details and the terms of the free trial clearly for higher conversion rates.

4. Have Fun with the Design ​

Visual CTAs work wonders in marketing. Incorporating fun colors, quirky designs and easy-to-use buttons/links can turn a boring-old CTA into something fresh and alluring.

Your options may feel limited with an offline marketing material to ensure it also looks good in print and knowing once printed you can't change that. However, you have a lot more room for testing with your online presence. If something doesn't work, it's quick and easy to change it at any point to test it again.
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Feel free to experiment with the size and shape of your CTA buttons. Balance between proximity and whitespace when using graphics in the CTA. Place related images and graphics in close proximity to each other. Leave plenty of whitespace around the graphics to draw visitor’s focus onto the image. If providing links, use just one (as more would be overcrowding).
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Use stylish fonts and contrasting background-font colors. Helvetica, Roboto and Avenir are good choices for fonts. As a rule of thumb, use a font style, font size and color that’s different from the ones you’ve implemented in the rest of the copy. Your CTA should stand out on the page and be visible to your visitors.  

5. Include the Location

This is for your online marketing again, specifically about how you use CTAs on your personal trainer website. Including your location on the page where you place your CTA can increase the chances that people who are looking for fitness services just like yours in your area will find your offer.
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Studies show that 30% of all mobile searches are linked to location. This means 30% of your prospects are searching for your service by narrowing down on your location. While the CTA button itself has limited space for wording, including your location in the main copy where it's relevant, and in the page's SEO description can increase the chances of your page to be found via organic search.

6. Remove the Fear of Commitment 

Many CTAs contain sentences that indicate long sales pitches and false promises which can be quite scary for visitors. For example, a CTA that says ‘Join our email list today for deals on our memberships’ can discourage people from following-through as company newsletters are often considered to be sales tools (and the fact that you’re using the word ‘deal’).
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Instead, why don’t you answer the visitor’s questions? Or better yet, quell the fear that they have about your impending sales pitch? Use your promotion to reassure and encourage. A good alternative could be, ‘Join our email list to receive more fitness tips directly to your inbox. ’. It’s inviting without resembling a sales pitch. 

7. Echo a Consistent Brand Message

Experimenting with colors, words and shapes to grab people's attention, but there is a difference between nailing what makes your CTA stand-out and creating something that contraddicts your branding.

When the latter happens, people will get confused and may misunderstand your brand message. Focus on sending the same message with all your marketing materials, both online and offline.

You can find the below CTA within our lates blog on My PT Website. Even though it's designed to stand out, the elements fit in with our overall brand vision.
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​Try to retain the same tone, flavor and message across your marketing and keep them personal to your fitness business. This way your audience will always recognise you the second they come across your campaigns.