How To Write Eye-Grabbing Headlines That Catapult Your Prospects Into Your Ads

Just taking a break from the “advertising mistakes” mini-article series because I had to write a little something about headlines – without a doubt, the most important aspect of your ads.

A great ad with the wrong headline can bomb, whereas a great headline on an average ad will probably do quite well. Let’s take a look at a few techniques for coming up with sales-boosting headlines.

First things first: Avoid these proven sales-killing “headlines” like the pox

1. Your company name

2. A generic industry or service category (e.g. “Plumbing Contractor”)

3. Or on a website or brochure, “Welcome to ABC Industries”

The points above sound basic (and they are), but it’s surprising how many ads and websites make those mistakes.

OK, so how do you create great selling headlines that practically catapult your readers into your ad? Here are a few tips…

1. Call out to your target audience. If your message is aimed at stockbrokers, mention “stockbrokers” in the headline.

2. Mention specific benefits. Face it – consumers are jaded. We all are. Heck, I can hardly get out of bed in the morning General statements like “Lose weight fast” or “Save Money on ” are no longer effective. Specific numbers and images evoke much more potent images in your prospects’ minds than generalities. That’s why they sell much better.

3. Use vivid, action-oriented verbs. Especially online, high-energy headlines work very well.

Here’s a headline that uses all 3 of the above techniques…

“New Software Boosts Stockbrokers’ Income by 34, 43, even 125% – by Slashing Time Spent Chasing “Dead” Accounts and Lazer-Focusing Your Energies on the Big Players”

OK, it needs a bit of work, but you get the idea. Onward.

4. Use “cognitive dissonance”. That’s a fancy way of saying, make your audience curious. Here’s a headline we’re testing for a client that sells custom bumper stickers:

“Do You Wonder How We Can Sell Full-Color Stickers At A 1-Color Price, with FREE Artwork?”

This type of headline makes people curious – they feel compelled to find the answer and relieve a sense of “dissonance” with this apparent paradox.

5. Include some challenging or surprising information. Here’s another headline that I wrote for a rubbish removal firm’s website…

“Fast, Professional Rubbish Removal, Sydney-wide…We’ll Pay You $1 Per Minute In Cash If We’re Late!”

The “hook” is the guarantee. Also bear in mind that most of the people who see this headline will have already searched for the term “rubbish removal sydney” or similar…That may influence the content of the headline, compared with say a newspaper headline that is designed to appeal to only a few prospects from a large number of readers.

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