I get a lot of email promotions. Some are newsletters I have asked for, while some are spam from Indy Chamber members who have decided to subscribe me to their mailing lists against my will. In any case, one thing I notice about many of these email campaigns is that no matter how well-designed or appealing they are, they frequently miss the boat on the call to action.

For example, I often get an email inviting me to an event. Let’s say I want to go – what do I have to do? Much of the time, the campaign invites me to call a number to register, fill out a paper form, or reply to the email. If it’s a paid event, sometimes I’m told that I should bring a check or cash to pay at the door. Really? All I should have to do is click a link and register online. Anything more complicated than that is guaranteed to encourage people to ignore your message.

What about a spa offering 20% off selected services this week? The email should contain a prominent link that allows the recipient to book services online immediately.

Here’s the thing. When people are scanning emails, they are in a certain context. That context is clicking on things and getting information as a result of that clicking. Trying to make the user change contexts to make a call or print a form is working against the momentum that is already in place. The path of least resistance to the user is to remain in that context of clicking and processing. This is why you should allow your customers to get what they need or perform a transaction with a few clicks.

Don’t make it difficult for your customers to do business with you. Make sure your call to action is a click.