Website Copywriting

call to action swipe file

Build Your Call To Action Swipe File To Write High-Converting Copy

Do you ever sit down to write your business copy and have no idea where to start? 

Everyone gets writer’s block, but how are we supposed to overcome it? 

Instead of putting off writing for your business again, do what the professional copywriters do…Open up your call to action swipe file.

What’s a swipe file? It’s a collection of excellent copywriting you can use to gain inspiration. But what it is not is the license to duplicate the copy as your own. We don’t like plagiarizers (and it doesn’t look good to your target audience either). 

Why You Need A Swipe File For Your Website Copy

So why do you need a swipe file for your website copy? Apart from giving you ideas when you have no clue what to write, a swipe file gives you a starting point to think differently about your copy. Its intended purpose is to inspire or give an idea on what to do. Before we reveal our call to action swipe file, what is a call to action? 

What Is A Call To Action? 

It is what it sounds like. You are calling your intended audience – usually your target customer – to take a specific action. That action does not have to be a buying one.

Remember, there are a lot of steps that happen in the customer journey to convert a complete stranger into a raving fan. Not all of those require a monetary transaction. 

Need more than inspiration and ready to grab hold of helping copywriting hand? Schedule a discovery call today!

Your Call To Action Swipe File For Your Website Copy

To help you out, we’ve added a variety of B2B and B2C examples from various industries. When building out your own swipe file, don’t be afraid to go outside of your industry or competition. Sometimes, the most obscure sites may actually spark a brilliant copy concept. 

Subscribe Call To Actions

The money isn’t in your social media. It’s in your email list. Here are a couple of our favorite subscribe call to actions. 

What we love about this call to action is the ability to tie in what they do – sell sheets and mattresses – with the copy. It’s unique, yet indicates that their email newsletter isn’t some boring newsletter. Nobody wants to clutter their inbox. 

Don’t underestimate the value of pop-ups! But definitely use them sparingly if you want to protect your user experience. This call to action is a favorite because it uses a little social proof to encourage people to subscribe to their blog. 

Sign Up Or Download

Want to provide some up front value before engaging in a more sales type conversation? Sending them to a sign up or download action is a perfect way to increase your buy-in. 

This call to action has everything. It identifies the audience as overwhelmed entrepreneurs and business owners. It sets the expectation that for 5 days, you’ll get 20+ hours of free time back. And it gets people to sign up for the waitlist. We love waitlists because they are great ways to build your email subscriber base. 

DigitalMarketer offers workshops, courses, and certifications for marketers and entrepreneurs. Because marketing is one of those things that is confusing (as there is no quick formula for success), they offer a blueprint. The headline is straightforward. The subhead is effective. But even more so, we love how they include both a “How It Works” and a “Download” button. 

Read Blog Call To Actions

Blogs are fantastic ways to increase your SEO. But they can also be used to engage with your target audience, to show them you know your stuff, and to build some credibility. But how do you get them to read your blog? 

Amy Porterfield’s content strategy primarily relies on her podcast, Online Marketing Made Easy. As such, she’s divided out her episodes into several categories based on where her target audience is in their businesses. Instead of forcing her audience to sort through the topics themselves, she’s made it easy (pun intended). 

Reach your target audience with effective copy that really converts. Contact us today to learn more. 

The social proof and variety of content available really bolsters the click through rates. The headline alone proves that the content they are producing isn’t just from theory or a quick Google search. It’s proven through the businesses that they work with. 

Try For Free Call To Actions

Free trials help to reduce the fear of making a bad decision. It allows the customer to see the value without experiencing the risk of losing money. Here are a couple of “try for free” examples we love. 

Once upon a time, the only way you could access music (without being told what to listen to) was through CDs or cassette tapes. With streaming services, the big question became: what’s the value in this? To get over the hurdle, Spotify doesn’t simply place music in the entertainment category. They equate it to living life. The word “everything” suddenly makes the opportunity for a free trial that more valuable. 

Not only is ClickFunnels addressing the problem they solve (converting customers), they also add in an entire section of social proof directly underneath without it being an entirely separate segment.

In three words, Hubspot is able to effectively communicate that their CRM has the power small business owners need to run their businesses without feeling overwhelmed. This is a great example of the power behind using fewer words.  

Get Started Call To Actions

Depending on your business, it may be ideal to sell a “starter” package to give the customer a sample of what to expect. This is typically used for those investment type products or services. For example, you could sell a starter kit that includes a variety of samples or a segment of your larger service. 

For new buyers, Harry’s presents this starter offer as a special gift. There are a couple elements that are really attractive:

  • Apparent discount
  • Low risk with free shipping
  • Samples for everything a customer needs to evaluate the product
  • Freedom to choose color
  • Easy process flow to access offer

Learn More Call To Actions

You may need to send your audience to explore different areas throughout your website. This is especially important if you have a complicated product, process, or have a page that dives deeper into a specific feature. 

The imagery and the headline does it for us at first glance. But what’s more than that is that they direct their audience to either explore their different mattresses and to compare their mattresses against competitors. If you know anything about mattresses, there couldn’t be a more confusing product as there is no standardization. 

We’re big fans of Keap anyways since we run our business using it. But what I love about their home page is that they have many, many, many features that are transformed into benefits. Then they have specific pages that dive deeper into those benefits (hence the “learn more”). 

Call Now Or Schedule Call To Actions

In the case that your business is more consultative, these types of call to actions are ideal for your business. 

The simplicity of this is what really sets this one apart. There is no play on words or entertaining copy. However, an identification of who they want, what they can get, and what to do. You do not have to over complicate your copy to be effective. 

Quiz Call To Actions

Instead of sending them to a download resource page, quizzes are fun and engaging ways to get your customer to stay on your site. 

What we love about this call to action is that it’s taking what can often be a confusing topic (there are almost too many options) and simplifies it into a pathway. The goal here is clear and simple.

Where To Find Inspiration 

If you need to find inspiration, there are several ways for you to create a swipe file: 

  1. Use an already existing swipe file. Sites such as SwipeFile.com make it really easy to sort through what you’re looking for. 
  2. Use one location to store your screenshots. If there are great CTAs, we upload them into an organized folder system on Google Drive or put it on a dedicated Slack channel. 
  3. Create a framework or template for different types of copy. Don’t want to store screenshots? Create a document or spreadsheet with headline and/or call to action templates or formulas.

Need Help Creating Call To Actions Or Ready To Hand It Over To The Pros?

FocusCopy takes the pressure off entrepreneurs’ and business owners’ already heavy shoulders. We write converting copy (headlines, call to actions, and all!) that gets your message across to the right audience.

Even better, we write in your voice. Meaning not even your mom or best friend will realize you’ve outsourced your writing.

If you’re ready to stop staring at a blank screen and finally work with professional writers who know effective call to actions (and so much more), then schedule a discovery call today.

Focus Your Copy On Conversation & Conversion

Let’s Grab A Virtual Coffee With Us To Discover How To Boost Your Words
Top Problems Website Designers Experience

Website Designers: There’s A Better Way For Copy

You didn’t become a website designer to…

Write copy.

Analyze word choice. 

Get words out of your client’s mouths. 

Wait on copy. 

No. You became a website designer to bring an idea to life and generate a platform for businesses to grow. 

After talking to dozens of website designers and developers across the United States, we’ve learned they all struggle with one thing. And that one thing can tank a project’s success or delay project timelines. 

So before we reveal the big struggle, what are the top problems website designers face? 

Top Problems Website Designers Experience In Their Business

There are many moving parts when it comes to website design: the branding, the copy, the design, the development, and the client themselves. But there are top problems website designers experience that rise to the top. 

Lack of Client Vision 

“I want a website.” But what do you want the website to do? 

One of the most frustrating things website designers experience is when their clients lack clarity. They don’t know what they want their website to do, how they want their prospects to navigate through, or what this website can do for their business.

When clients lack vision, expectations often go unmet. That usually ends in leaving a bad taste in everyone’s mouth. And you definitely don’t want that!

Prolonged Timelines 

You might layout a perfect timeline for your clients with ample feedback windows; however, the timeline extends for several weeks (or even months) in reality. 

For example, one website designer in our network shared how they had one client whose project timeline was 3 months (a pretty standard timeline). However, two big issues extended the timeline up to 9 months – 3 times the original estimate. What happened? They let their clients write the copy themselves (even though they weren’t copywriters or experienced in writing website copy), and they were relaxed with their feedback windows. 

Unspoken Expectations

Expectations. The e-word. When there is no clear communication based on either party’s expectations for the project or relationship, it’s bound to end up in disaster. Unmet expectations usually end in a frayed relationship and poor feedback. 

If you’ve already passed the kick-off meeting and suspect that there are unspoken expectations, schedule a call with your client to understand what success looks like for them. Then you can either readjust to meet those expectations or share how you are already working towards those expectations. 

The Website Copy

We wouldn’t be writing this article if the website copy wasn’t the biggest problem website designers experience in their business. After meeting with dozens of designers across the United States, we’ve learned that there are two models: 

  1. The designer relies on their clients to provide the copy. There is no contractual agreement for the client to hire a copywriter. Usually, they write the copy themselves. It isn’t optimized for search engines and is typically way longer than needed. 
  2. The designer writes the copy themselves (and they usually hate themselves for doing that). It creates an unnecessary bottleneck in the business because copywriting isn’t your first or even second favorite part of the job. 

Instead of relying on your clients to write their copy or writing the copy yourselves, let’s connect how we can build directly into your process to create copy that reflects your client’s brand voice and resonates with their target audience. 

Schedule a discovery call with FocusCopy today to explore how we can support you. 

Options For Website Designers To Avoid Their Copy Problems

Now, we know the top problems website designers experience. But what are the options for website designers to avoid their copy problems? 

Ask The Right Questions

To find the best answers, you need to ask the right questions. Here are a couple of questions to assess whether the client can provide the copy or whether you need to enforce they use your copywriting skills (hopefully, provided by FocusCopy).

  • As for your website copy, are you writing your own copy, or are you hiring a professional copywriter
  • What does success look like for this website? 
  • Do you want to create meaningful engagement with your target audience on your website? 
  • How much time can you commit in [insert timeframe you want to copy] to write, edit, and deliver your copy to us? 

Stand By Your Timelines

If you’ve included it in your contracts, enforce your timelines. One thing we’ve seen help many website designers and marketers is to put into place a revision or feedback period. This not only makes this website project your client’s priority, but it allows you to better plan your resources. 

Find A Solution For Website Copy

Usually, investing in a website redesign and redevelopment is a big deal for companies. Emphasize that you wouldn’t make a big investment without actually doing it right. We have created a couple of options to help you improve your service offerings. 

Send Website Copy Templates

A blank page is your worst enemy. We’ve created a whole host of website copy templates that you can download directly from our website to help your clients fill out their copy. 

Click here to access (go to resources page).

Make Copy Completed By Professional Writers A Requirement For Your Clients

Another way to avoid the copy situation altogether is to require it as part of your website package. If you don’t have a copywriter on your team to supply the copy, you can partner with a company like FocusCopy to outsource the copy development. 

Interested in chatting with us? Schedule a call with us today to explore a potential partnership. 

Partner With The Website Copywriting Experts

As a preferred partner for website designers all across the nation, we work closely with your process to add value to your clients and streamline the most frustrating part of the design process – the copy.

Focus Your Copy On Conversation & Conversion

Let’s Grab A Virtual Coffee With Us To Discover How To Boost Your Words