How to Measure the Success of Your Email CTA

You can have a great subject line and solid content, but if your CTA doesn’t get clicks or lead to action, the email isn’t doing its job. That’s why measuring CTA performance matters just as much as writing the CTA itself.

In this guide, we’ll break down the two metrics that matter most for evaluating CTA performance in email campaigns, how they’re measured, and how to improve them so your CTAs drive real results.

Which metrics matter most for measuring CTA performance

When evaluating the effectiveness of a call to action, two metrics are critical: click-through rate (CTR) and conversion rate. Let’s explore them both:

1. Click-Through Rate (CTR)

Click-through rate, or CTR measures the percentage of recipients who clicked on your CTA after seeing your email. It's a clear indicator of whether your message, button, or link is compelling enough to drive action.

Most email service providers (ESPs) track CTR automatically. They calculate it by dividing the number of clicks on a specific CTA by the total number of delivered or opened emails, then multiplying by 100 to get a percentage. This makes it easy to compare the effectiveness of different CTAs across campaigns and see which ones are generating the most engagement.

If your CTR is low, there are a few ways to improve it like:

• Make your CTA stand out visually using color, size, or placement.

• Use clear, action-oriented wording like “Download Your Free Guide” instead of vague text like “Submit.”

• Test out multiple versions of a CTA through A/B testing can reveal what resonates best with your audience.

2. Conversion Rate

Conversion rate measures the percentage of people who completed the desired action after clicking your email CTA, like filling out a form, signing up, or making a purchase. A high conversion rate means the CTA matches the reader’s intent and the landing page is clear and persuasive.

To track conversion rates, most email marketers rely on tools like Google Analytics 4 (GA4) or Amplitude. These platforms let you set up events for key actions such as form submissions, sign-ups, or purchases, and then connect those events back to the clicks from your email campaign. Your ES,P paired with GA4 or Amplitude events then calculate the percentage of clicks that converted.

If your conversion rate is low, focus on:

• Reducing friction between the email and the landing page.

• Ensure the landing page aligns with the CTA’s promise,

• Add authority-building content like testimonials or security badges

• Make sure everything works well on mobile.

• Sometimes adjusting the headline on the landing page can make a noticeable difference in conversions.

Best tool to measure your CTA success: Mailmodo

When it comes to tracking email CTA performance, having the right tool makes a big difference. Mailmodo makes this easier by offering link-wise click tracking for both bulk and trigger campaigns. Instead of relying on a single-click count, you can see how each CTA in your email performs, helping you understand which elements actually capture attention when multiple links are present.

Once an email is sent, Mailmodo tracks every click and ties it back to the exact link that was clicked. You can access this data from the campaign dashboard and export it as a CSV file, where each click is clearly mapped to a specific CTA.

Conclusion

From the top level, click-through and conversion rates might look like completely different metrics across different channels, but the underlying content needs to be aligned more than ever.

What you write in your CTA should be reinforced by the copy on your landing page. That way, you can build your audience’s trust in your brand and ultimately improve your email marketing performance.