The Headline

The Headline

If you put me up against a wall and asked me what the most important part of your sales copy was, I’d have to say the headline.

Why is the headline so important?

As just a regular person on the street, with no knowledge of copywriting whatsoever, you can probably answer that question just by your own actions in everyday life.

How many times have you passed a newsstand or a magazine stand and took notice of the latest People magazine with the headline “John Doe Marries For The 5th Time” or whatever the hot gossip is for the day and just HAD to get a copy to find out what’s going on?

Think about it. You haven’t seen the content of the magazine at all. The only thing you’ve seen is a headline and from THAT headline, you made your purchase.

Well, the stats don’t lie. Studies show that 80% of all online purchases through sales copy are made based on the headline.

In other words, if your headline isn’t downright to die for, you’re losing about 80% of your business.

This is why, next to the time spent on putting together bullet points, copywriters spend more time on headlines than any other part of the copy. As a matter of fact, all good copywriters come up with multiple headlines and test them against each other to try to come up with the best one.

That brings us to the $64,000 question. What makes a good headline?

There is no definitive answer to this question. A good headline is one that makes sales. If that means coming up with a headline like…

“Your Mother Approves Of This Product”

…and if that headline makes sales, then it’s a good headline.

Now, there may actually be target markets that might respond to headlines like that. Maybe there are potential consumers who are seeking parental

approval for something. By telling them that their mother approves of the product, they may very well think more seriously about making the purchase.

The point I am trying to make, and this is what you need to come away from it with, is that you can’t condemn or condone a headline based solely on the headline itself. You have to look at it in the context of your target market.

Let me give you another perfect example.

I’m a big daytime TV drama fan, especially of the show “One Life To Live.” One day, I was passing by a magazine rack and saw a Soap Digest issue that had the headline “Todd Manning Dies” and I almost fainted. I picked up the issue and ran out of the store with it, after paying of course.

Now, somebody seeing that same headline who doesn’t watch “One Life To Live” even if they are a daytime TV fan, would have no interest in that headline and might not buy the issue.

The point is this…the headline is only as good as the market that it’s targeting. Having said that, there are procedures that great copywriters go through in order to come up with headlines that force the reader to go through the rest of the sales copy…and I’m going to show you what they are.

The first way to go about creating a headline for your product, and probably the simplest, is to pick out the one thing that your product promises to the consumer and use that one thing as the headline.

For example, the headline I use for my article writing book, which might very well be my best converting product, goes like this…

“Write Killer Articles In 30 Minutes That Sell!” “Turn YOUR Words Into Cash!”

Straight forward and to the point…you’re telling people that if they buy your product, they’ll write articles in 30 minutes and make money.

Certainly this headline is going to get people to at least check out the rest of your copy to see what it’s about. That’s where you fill in the details. But if the headline doesn’t grab them by the throat, then there are no details to get to because they’ll close up your page faster than a speeding bullet.

As a matter of fact, tests have shown that you have between 3 and 5 seconds to get someone’s attention with your headline in order to get them to read the rest of your copy. If your headline doesn’t grab them that quickly, they will be gone that fast. Think about it. Take a stop watch and time how long it takes you to read the headline above. It takes me about 4 seconds and I’m a moderate reader.

So that’s it. That’s all the time you have. Don’t waste it.

Another way to come up with a headline is to go to what I call the “Questions Board” People are captivated by questions. Let’s face it, when somebody asks you a question, you’re almost forced to answer it, unless you have absolutely NO interest in the subject matter. But if that’s the case, what are you doing at the sales page anyway? Remember, the people coming to read your sales copy have been previously pre-qualified by some kind of ad. So at least you know that you’re reaching your target market. If not, then you have to seriously re- evaluate your marketing methods. But that’s another story altogether.

Here’s an example of a powerful question headline.

”If I Could Show You A Way To Make Thousands Of Dollars A Month On Autopilot…Would That Be Worth 5 Minutes Of Your Time?”

Let’s pull apart this headline and see why it works.

The first thing is that you’re showing somebody how to, not only make money, but to do it on autopilot. Then, on top of that, you’re telling them, in the form of a question, that it will only take 5 minutes of their time to find out how.

You’re promising thousands of dollars (significant income) with minimal time invested to learn how (convenience of time) thus almost forcing them to read on.

Another approach to writing headlines is with the powerful statement. Here, you don’t ask a question but just make a statement that is so bold that it almost sounds like it’s too good to be true.

Taking that same question headline, we can modify it slightly and turn it into a statement.

“Discover How To Make Thousands Of Dollars A Month TOTALLY On Autopilot!”

“You’re Just 5 Minutes Away From The Secret!”

It’s basically the same message, just presented as a statement. The facts are still the same however.

You’ll notice we began the headline with a keyword, “Discover.”

This is probably one of the most powerful keywords in all of copywriting. Later on in this book, I’m going to cover a list of keywords, not only to use, but to avoid as well. Yes, as there are words that make great copy, there are also words that kill copy. All of this has been tested and approved by the experts. Like I said, don’t reinvent the wheel. Just make a better wheel.

Another approach to writing headlines is to feature the offer. In other words, let’s say you’re offering a free trial membership for a site. You could use a headline like this…

“Have Access To 1 Million MP3’s For 30 Days Free!”

Now, if you’re a music lover and really get into downloading mp3 files off the Internet, how can you possibly resist an offer like that? Certainly you’re at least going to want to read on and see what you get. Sure, there is going to be a catch to the membership. Maybe it’s limited downloads, or maybe you can only play them online. But when you see the catalogue of what’s available there’s a good chance that you’re going to spring for the paid service.

When thinking of a headline, think of what you would say to somebody whose attention you’re trying to get and they’re in the process of walking away from you. What are you going to do? Are you going to calmly say something like, “Please don’t walk away?” No, you’re going to scream at the top of your lungs, “If you walk away you’ll NEVER find out what I know about…” and you can fill in the blanks. In most cases, that person is going to turn around and walk back to you just so they can hear what you have to say.

That headline has to scream off the page. It has to be a matter of life and death. Don’t be afraid to be outrageous with your headlines. Sometimes the most outrageous headlines are the most effective.

Another method of writing headlines is what I call the “Pain/Pleasure Headline”

This is where you point out a person’s pain in the headline and then at the same time, show them how you’re going to take away that pain.

Remember, people buy things because they want to solve a problem or feel better. Well, when you’re in pain, you’ll do anything to feel better.

Here are a few examples of headlines that use the pain/pleasure tactic.

“Suffering From IBS? Discover A Natural Treatment That Cures Your IBS In 2 Weeks!”

“Are You $20,000 Or More In Credit Card Debt? We’ll Get You Out In 6 Months Or Less!”

“Is Cigarette Smoking Killing You? We’ll Get You To Stop In 30 Days GUARANTEED!”

I can go on, but I think you get the point. You point out the person’s pain and then immediately after, give them the solution, or provide them with the pleasure point.

Another method that copywriters use to come up with headlines is the powerful offer.

For example, take a look at this headline. “I’ll Give You $500 Of Legal Advice…FREE!”

If you’re looking for a lawyer and you see a headline like this, you’re not

going to jump all over it? Now, you’re probably thinking, why somebody would make an offer like this? Well, knowing many lawyers, I can answer that. It’s because $500 of legal advice is not a lot of time in hours. Most clients need much more time than this and will ultimately end up hiring the lawyer. It’s worth it for the lawyer to make this offer given the possibility of a much bigger paycheck.

Another method that copywriters use to come up with headlines is the testimonial.

For example, take a look at this headline.

“My Acne Was Completely GONE After Just 3 Days Using Acne-Be-Gone” That’s quite a powerful testimonial, especially if you’re suffering from acne.

How many people will be able to pass up at least giving this product a try?

Certainly they’re going to read the copy. Testimonials are some of the most powerful headlines that you can use because they show that others are raving about your product.

Another great method for coming up with headlines is the warning.

Take a look at these headlines.

“Warning! Failure To Read This Can Cost You $2,000 Or More In Auto Insurance”

“Warning! Your Drinking Water Is Killing You!”

“Warning! Your Home Is Falling Apart This Very Moment”

You can almost guess what businesses these headlines are targeting. The first one is most likely a company that offers better auto insurance rates. The second one is most likely a company selling bottled water or water filter systems. The third one is probably a company selling home inspection or pest prevention services…possibly a home repair company as well. There are several options here.

If the market is properly targeted, these headlines should be very effective to bringing in sales. Certainly they should get the rest of the copy read.

And there is one last method that copywriters use to get headlines. They steal them from others.

Don’t look so surprised. Swipe files are a big thing. As a matter of fact, there is a site on the Internet that has hundreds of old classic ads that have been proven to convert like crazy where you can pick up tons of ideas.

Here’s the URL:

HARD TO FIND ADS

You will find ads from Gary Halbert, God rest his soul, and many of the masters. I actually dished out the $300 and purchased the text files of these ads. Worth every penny and then some!

Before I close this chapter, I can’t stress this enough. Slave over your headlines! Make sure that they are the best that they can be for whatever you’re promoting. Make sure that you come up with at least 5 headlines for your sales copy and test them all to see which one converts the best. I’ll be getting into testing and tracking later in this book, as there is a right way and a wrong way to do it.

Now, let’s take a look at the headline that I used in my sales copy for the Honest Income Program…

I Was Begging For God To Strike Me Dead...

“How A 45 Year Old

Out-Of-Work...Out-of Money... Out-Of-Hope Father Now Generates

A $10,000 A Month Income

WITHOUT Going To A Job”

Actually, what we have here is a pre-head and a headline. Let’s examine these and analyze them.

I start off with “I Was Begging For God To Strike Me Dead…”

This gets the reader asking, “Why? What could have possibly been so horrible that this guy wanted to die?”

This sets up the headline. “How A 45 Year Old Out-Of-Work…Out Of Money…Out-Of-Hope Father Now Generates A $10,000 A Month Income WITHOUT Going To A Job”

Okay, that explains it. The guy was out of work, broke, down on his luck and now he’s making a mint.

Think this isn’t going to get people to keep reading?

When I changed my headline to this one, it more than doubled my conversion percentage. I still test to see if I can do even better, but so far, this pre-head and headline have proven to be the best.

Last thing I’m going to say on pre-heads and headlines is that they should be highlighted. Preferably, pre-heads should be black on yellow and headlines should be in red. You can modify these colors just as long as you make sure that your headlines stand out from the rest of your copy in both color and size.

The next step in the copy process is thinking of an opening paragraph.