Get people to do what you want them to do
Written by niki juhasz
In 2017, Stanford Social Innovation Review begged nonprofit leaders to “stop raising awareness already.”
They wanted action. They wanted change. They wanted advocates to take their work to the next level.
I think we can all agree that right now – in this chaotic year of 2024 – moving our audiences to take action is more critical than ever. No matter what your campaign, your call to action (CTA) needs to be powerful, or it won’t work.
That’s why we’re sharing quick tips (backed by data from Harvard and Stanford experts) on how to craft a strong CTA.
Bonus: we’re including do’s, don’ts and examples for every recommendation!
make it specific + action-oriented.
Stanford data tells us your audience needs a clear, specific call to action. Think about what you want to accomplish, and what action your audience needs to take to make your vision a reality. Then, ask them to do that ONE thing, and one thing only.
📣 Your goal: Getting people to sign a community petition to stop developers from destroying already limited affordable housing in your community to make way for expensive luxury homes.
❌ DON’T say "Learn more about Big Evil Corporation's history of displacing families, and get involved with the petition to stop their work."
Simply learning more isn’t going to win campaigns this year.
And, this message has asked people to do two things in one sentence – learn more AND get involved with the petition.
Pick ONE action only.
✅ DO use a clear, extremely specific call to action: “Sign the petition today to ensure our county’s families get to stay in their homes.”
Psst - Stanford recommends always starting with a verb.
ensure your audience knows how to do the thing.
As you consider your main ask, remember the CTA needs to be something your community actually knows how to do.
📣 Your goal: You know Councilmember Darcy cares about what his voters (aka parents!) want. You want more parents to get in front of the councilman, so he votes for your initiative.
❌ DON’T use vague language, such as “advocate with your city council member.” That doesn’t actually mean anything to your average parent. Remember, they aren’t advocacy experts!
This kind of vague language leads to questions. For example, HOW are they supposed to advocate? What does advocating actually mean in reality? What are they even supposed to do?
If your audience is confused, they won’t take action. Instead, they’ll fully freeze and take no action. Reminder: working parents are even more burned out than they were during the height of the pandemic. We have to make action as easy as possible for them.
✅ DO share specific steps they know how to take, through platforms they’re already on. For example, make your ask: “Post this message to your Facebook on August 5 and tag Councilmember Darcy at @councilmemberdarcy.” This tells parents exactly what to do, when to do it and where to do it. Easy.
explain the why.
Your audience is much more likely to take action if they see how taking action matches their values. They need to see HOW the solution solves the problem.
📣 Your goal: You’re advocating with your Board of Education to pass a budget with strong supports for early childhood education programs. You know BOE members care about your district’s graduation rates.
❌ DON’T expect them to connect your ask with their values themselves. Saying something like “investing in early childhood education is great for our district, which you should care about,” isn’t good enough.
✅ DO connect your CTA with their values. For example: “We know you care deeply about our students’ graduation rates. Data tells us that when we invest in early education, students are more likely to graduate, attend college and become high earners. Vote YES on our early learning budget.”
We have specificity, a singular call to action and a values tap. Magic!
2024 needs to be the year of strong, action-oriented CTAs that will help us win campaigns.
So get out there and write clear, singular, specific calls to action that will actually move people to act!
