A call to action is the line that says what to do next. Most are either missing or buried in a pile: like, comment, share, follow, click the link, turn on notifications. A reader who is asked to do six things does none of them.
One ask per post
Pick the thing you want most from this post and ask for only that. If it is a reply, ask a question. If it is a visit, point to one link. If it is nothing — a post that is simply good — it is fine to ask for nothing.
Make it small and specific
- “Which of these would you pick?” instead of “thoughts?”
- “Save this for when you are packing” instead of “save for later” — a reason turns it into a favour for the reader, not for you.
- “The full list is in the link in my bio” instead of “check the link in bio!!!”
Ask something you will read
A question is a promise that you will look at the answers. If you do not reply to the first ten, the next post’s question gets fewer. People notice whether you listen long before they notice the wording.
Where it goes
At the end, or in the last line, after the reader has the thing you offered. A request in the first line asks for payment before delivery. The exception is a post whose whole point is the ask — a launch, an event — and there the ask is the first line.
Read the last line of your last five posts. If four of them say the same thing, your readers have stopped seeing it.