When your nonprofit is emailing a call to action, an obvious goal is to get as many responses as possible. Here are two small techniques that can boost response rates.

  1. Show the call to action twice – First right at the beginning/top, and then again where you have it at the bottom.
  2. Display a “badge” highlighting your call to action – Here’s a simple way to do it: Choose an image that conveys the problem/solution.

Put the image inside a little nested table with two rows. Row 1 is the image, Row 2 is the caption. A caption can actually have a huge effect on response rates, because people’s eyes go straight to that. Instead of describing the picture, the caption should be like a headline, e.g. “Conservation Bank At Risk – You Can Help.”

Don’t forget, every point of contact is an opportunity to reinforce your organization’s message and brand.

With that in mind, here are two more tips:

  1. Check the text, and make sure it is the same font and size as what you’re using on your web site.
  2. Include the organization logo (with a link to your web site when clicking on the image).

Bonus tip: Keep it simple! A single column layout is fine, especially if you have people reading your message on mobile devices. Don’t get carried away adding a bunch of fancy graphics and buttons that will only distract the reader from the most important task.