This morning I was reading a post on the Travel 2.0 Blog that hit home. Troy Thompson wrote:

“Recently, I was asked to critique changes to an advertising campaign from a well-known tourism destination. While the creative was fine…amazingly not touting anything and everything…the call to action seemed, cluttered.

Perhaps that was because it featured not only the traditional website address and phone number, but also icons for Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, a blog (disguised as an RSS icon that few will understand) plus a QR code.”

Seven calls to action in one print piece! Thompson points out that watering down a strong call to action with six “extras” doesn’t provide more choice, it muddies the water for the user and scrambles your metrics.

This lesson isn’t just for print. On websites, there’s a tendency to offer everything to everyone at all times. Take the typical higher education website, for example. There’s usually semi-permanent placement of calls to action for applying, visiting campus and requesting information. There may also be callouts to promote social networks. In some sections (or everywhere), the school wants you to “give now.” The alumni section wants you to update your info or join an online community. And let’s not forget the ubiquitous share buttons, begging you to Like, Tweet or +1 every page you visit.

What action do you want your visitors to take? You can make a case for everything, but like the Travel 2.0 post said, seven calls to action is probably too many. So how do manage your calls to action?

How to Create Focused Calls to Action

It’s simple: let the context and content of the page guide you. Here are three ways to get started.

#1: Target the context for your call to action

In our higher education example, apply, visit and request information callouts should be seen only in prospect sections. Admission tools shouldn’t bubble over into the alumni or current student-focused content. Likewise, you don’t want a prospective student to be asked to donate to your capital campaign. It’s easy to design permanent calls to action that cascade across every single page of your website, but if your calls to action aren’t targeted, they are visual clutter.

#2: Make the connection between information and action

The second trick to focusing your calls to action is to put them close to the body of your content to indicate a relationship between the copy and the action. If a user is on a page describing first-year housing options, a contextual link to schedule a campus visit or view a virtual tour is more in line with what the he or she might want to do next, while also fulfilling your own conversion goals. A “Visit Campus” button designed into the header of your website won’t have the same contextual relevance as a callout nestled in the copy.

#3 Think “Mobile First”

Finally, think about your mobile site. If you had a limited screen size, what calls to action would you devote space to? Which ones would you cut?

Ready to tackle your calls to action? It’ll be worth it for your visitors—and your conversions.

Originally published as Context and Content Are King: 3 Ways to Focus Your Calls to Action over on the Elliance blog. 

The following scenario happens to me on repeat:

When starting a project, I make a quick sketch, see a “perfect” example, or jot down some idea that I think is just the tops.

I misplace it.

Then I become convinced that it was the key to my genius, and I cannot move forward solidly without it.

Then I find it, and it is complete crap. I’m finally free to move forward toward something smarter.

Does this happen to you?

Obviously a lot of good thinking happens between that first moment of conceptualization and the process of planning a feasible, delightful idea. And not all first ideas are bad ideas. Sometimes they are just raw and require cooking.

But in a way, that bad first idea is good. It’s good because it exposes that there is a problem begging for a solution. It’s a note that there is something there to work with, something to improve.

First ideas can also be very, very dangerous. What happens when bad “first ideas” become idealized rather than rejected? Instead, repeated as mantras? What happens when your internal criticism fails you, or you don’t have someone to help you workshop your ideas? Are these the projects you aren’t proud of? 

There's a bagger at my local market who frequently packs my groceries. He's very organized.

Here's a breakdown of today's purchases to illuminate his orderliness:

3 Fettuccine Alfredo Lean Cuisines
3 Macaroni and Cheese Lean Cuisines
2 pints ice cream (don't judge)

Here's how he packed the items:

1 plastic bag: 3 Fettuccine Alfredo Lean Cuisines
1 plastic bag: 3 Macaroni and Cheese Lean Cuisines
1 plastic bag: 2 pints ice cream

Then he packed the three bags into a brown paper bag, and then the paper bag went into another plastic bag for a grand total of five bags for 8 items, but only one bag to carry.

Now, I suspect that the bagger in question has a compulsion or something else going on. But, that's beside the point. The lesson in this story is for information architects, and that lesson is twofold.

1: How you categorize or group items may not match how the user would group items. If I were packing my bags, I'd put it all in one or two plastic bags, jumbled together.

2. You could be going overboard, categorizing and consolidating for the sake of imposing order, rather than usefulness, resulting in an unnatural effect for the user. 5 bags! 8 items! Enough said!

Now, back to that ice cream...

Here's a true story that serves as a metaphor for why your website needs good navigation and information scent. 

This weekend I conducted a search for chaat masala. I had a Mark Bittman recipe variation for dal, and figured I could just get it at my local super-sized grocery store. This store is, in fact, the largest grocery store in southwest PA, and I had gotten garam masala at smaller stores before. I checked all the obvious places: International, spices, where they keep boxed dinners, to no avail. 

Since I live in an area with a significant Indian population (for Pittsburgh), I am rather close to two Indian groceries, and I knew they would carry my spice. 

Grocery K

I walk in, and it's dark. The store is crowded with products, and things are everywhere. To me, it seemed like the organizational principle of the place was "put the product wherever there is room."    

Grocery M

I walk in, and it's brightly lit. The store makes sense instantly. Dry staples like beans, dal and rice are along one wall. Across from the rice and beans, rows upon rows of spices, herbs, tamarind, sesame seeds... Another aisle has boxed dinners, another for frozens, prepared foods, and even mark-down section. Candy is in front of the register. 

Why I chose Grocery M

Grocery M is familiar. Sure, the other shoppers were speaking in another language, and my knowledge of what I was looking for was slim (spice blend?). But, it was organized. A glance at the store's shelves told me what was in each section, and I found the spices in seconds. Once I found the spices, it took a little while to find my specific spice, but after I briefly browsed the shelves, there it was. 

Organize your content like store M, not store K.  

• Make sure your store is clean and brightly lit. Can someone glance at your website and get the gist of its contents? Or is it cluttered with distractions?  

• Are your aisles organized? Your content organization and navigation structure should make sense and feel natural. 

• Can a new shopper transfer knowledge? I had keywords, nothing more. But based on my experiences at other stores, I had a general idea where to look. I had a mental model. 

• Did the customer convert? Ultimately, I found what I was looking for at store M. Store K? Honestly, I bailed. I knew there were other stores in town, and I didn't want to waste my time. Ask your users and check your stats: are users fleeing your content because they can't find what they are looking for, or did they successfully complete their task?