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“Get a Quote” loses to “See if we can help” by 38 percent in documented B2B service tests. “Book a Demo” loses to “Show me how it works” on cold traffic. The right CTA copy depends on the buyer’s state, the page context, and what you’re actually asking them to commit to. Here are 14 documented tests with what won and why.
The Four CTA Copy Archetypes
Before the tests, a framework. Almost all CTA copy falls into one of four patterns, each suited to a different buying moment.
Action-first: “Get a Quote”, “Book a Demo”, “Download Now.” Direct, assumes readiness. Works best for warm audiences or high-intent traffic.
Outcome-first: “Find Out How Much You Could Save”, “See Your Personalised Report.” The reward is explicit. Works for audiences in consideration mode who need a reason to commit.
Low-commitment: “See if We Can Help”, “Explore the Options”, “Have a Conversation.” Reduces the perceived ask. Works on cold traffic or high-trust-required services.
Curiosity: “Show Me How It Works”, “See What We Found”, “Find Out Why.” Creates intrigue. Works on content pages and awareness-stage traffic.
The mistake most B2B sites make is defaulting to action-first copy for all traffic regardless of buyer state. A prospect who found you through a Google search and landed on your homepage for the first time is rarely ready for “Get a Quote.” They need lower commitment language that matches where they actually are.
Tests on Contact and Enquiry Pages
Test 1: “Contact Us” vs “Have a Conversation” Setting: professional services homepage hero. Traffic: mixed organic and direct. Result: “Have a Conversation” lifted click-through by 28 percent. Why: “Contact Us” feels transactional. “Have a Conversation” frames the next step as low-risk and collaborative.
Test 2: “Get a Quote” vs “See if We Can Help” Setting: accountancy firm homepage, cold paid traffic. Result: “See if We Can Help” lifted enquiries by 38 percent. Why: “Get a Quote” implies a price transaction the buyer isn’t ready for. “See if We Can Help” acknowledges uncertainty without commitment.
Test 3: “Submit” vs “Send My Enquiry” Setting: contact form submit button. Result: “Send My Enquiry” lifted form completions by 14 percent. Why: “Submit” is impersonal and slightly ominous. First-person copy (“my”) creates ownership of the action.
Test 4: “Get in Touch” vs “Book a 20 Minute Call” Setting: mid-page CTA on a service page. Result: “Book a 20 Minute Call” lifted clicks by 22 percent. Why: specificity reduces ambiguity about what happens next. “Get in Touch” could mean anything. “20 Minutes” is a manageable commitment.
Test 5: “Request a Callback” vs “Choose a Time That Works” Setting: recruitment agency site. Result: “Choose a Time That Works” lifted completions by 31 percent. Why: agency language vs buyer-in-control language. The second version gives the prospect agency over the process.
Tests on Pricing and Demo Pages
Test 6: “Book a Demo” vs “Show Me How It Works” Setting: SaaS pricing page, cold paid traffic from LinkedIn. Result: “Show Me How It Works” lifted demo bookings by 19 percent on cold traffic. Why: on cold traffic, “Book a Demo” commits the buyer to a sales call they don’t yet want. “Show Me How It Works” promises information rather than a sales process.
Test 7: “Start Free Trial” vs “Try It Free for 14 Days” Setting: SaaS pricing page. Result: “Try It Free for 14 Days” lifted trial starts by 24 percent. Why: specificity about the offer (14 days, free) makes the value explicit. “Start Free Trial” assumes the visitor knows the trial length and conditions.
Test 8: “Get Pricing” vs “See Plans and Pricing” Setting: B2B SaaS homepage hero. Result: “See Plans and Pricing” lifted click-through by 16 percent. Why: “See Plans” hints that there are options rather than a single price, which reduces anxiety for buyers who don’t know if they’re the right size for the product.
Test 9: “Contact Sales” vs “Talk to Someone Who Knows This” Setting: enterprise tier CTA on a mid-market SaaS pricing page. Result: “Talk to Someone Who Knows This” lifted clicks by 41 percent. Why: “Contact Sales” signals you are about to enter a sales process. The alternative signals expertise and conversation rather than pipeline.
Tests on Blog and Content Pages
Test 10: “Download Now” vs “Get the Free Template” Setting: blog post sidebar CTA for a lead magnet template. Result: “Get the Free Template” lifted downloads by 33 percent. Why: specificity about the asset (template, not “resource” or “guide”) and the value (free) makes the trade-off clear.
Test 11: “Read the Full Guide” vs “See the 12-Step Checklist” Setting: blog post CTA linking to a related long-form guide. Result: “See the 12-Step Checklist” lifted click-through by 27 percent. Why: specificity and a clear format (checklist) signal what you’re getting. “Full Guide” implies effort; “12-Step Checklist” implies actionable brevity.
Test 12: “Sign Up” vs “Send Me the Weekly Summary” Setting: newsletter signup on a B2B content site. Result: “Send Me the Weekly Summary” lifted signups by 44 percent. Why: “Sign Up” is generic. The alternative names the exact benefit and cadence. First person increases ownership.
Test 13: “Learn More” vs “See How It Works for [Industry]” Setting: industry-specific landing page with a dynamic CTA swapping the industry name. Result: Dynamic industry-specific copy lifted click-through by 52 percent over generic “Learn More.” Why: relevance signals. A manufacturing company clicking “See How It Works for Manufacturers” knows the next page was built for them.
Test 14: “Get Started” vs “Start Your Free Assessment” Setting: diagnostic tool landing page. Result: “Start Your Free Assessment” lifted entries by 29 percent. Why: “Get Started” is ambiguous. “Start Your Free Assessment” names the format (assessment), the value (free), and sets an expectation.
Patterns That Consistently Won
Across these 14 tests and wider documented research, the same principles emerge.
Specificity beats vagueness. “Book a 20 Minute Call” beats “Get in Touch.” Every time.
First person outperforms third person. “Send My Enquiry” beats “Submit.” “Try It Free” beats “Start Free Trial.”
Low commitment language converts cold traffic. “See if We Can Help” beats “Get a Quote” when the visitor doesn’t know you well yet.
Remove “Submit.” It is the worst performing CTA label in virtually every documented test. Replace it with anything more specific.
Name the format for lead magnets. “Get the Checklist” beats “Download Now.” “See the Template” beats “Access the Resource.”
How to Run a CTA Test That Gives a Clean Answer
Before running tests, a quick note on methodology. A/B testing CTA copy only produces reliable results at sufficient sample sizes.
For most B2B service sites, button-level A/B testing requires a calculator like Evan Miller’s Statistical Significance Calculator. As a rough rule: to detect a 20 percent improvement in a conversion rate of 3 percent with 95 percent confidence, you need approximately 2,000 visitors per variant. That means 4,000 total visitors to the test.
If your contact page gets 500 visits per month, you will need eight months to run a valid test on a button. In that case, apply the patterns above based on your buyer state assessment rather than testing. Test when you have traffic. Apply principles when you don’t.
CTA copy is the cheapest optimisation you can make. No developer time required. No redesign needed. A 20 to 40 percent lift in clicks from your best-performing page is worth pursuing before almost anything else.
At Fernside Studio, every page we build is reviewed for CTA copy clarity before launch. If you want a critique of your current CTAs and three specific replacements to test, contact us here. Our web design service covers copy review as part of the engagement.