Does the headline of your sales ad or marketing piece really deserve 80% of the time you spend on writing the ad copy?
That's the suggestion of author Ted Nicholas, one of the all time greats in direct marketing.
He figures that between 50 and 80% of the sales generated in direct advertising are attributable to the ad's headline.
That's a pretty amazing statistic, but maybe not totally surprising given the way readers skim copy and jump from heading to heading.
Nicholas says he writes as many as 250 headlines for one ad until he is confident that he has the best one possible for a particular situation.
Here are ten suggestions to consider when writing your next killer ad:
1. Use a conversational style. Forget formality and college level grammar. You want to pull your reader in to the conversation and engage him as though you were talking to an old friend face to face.
2. Tell a story. One of the most effective headline styles is the one that paints a mental picture for the reader. Let him visualize how happy and satisfied he'll be using your product.
3. Put your #1 benefit right into the headline. You only have a few seconds to commit the reader to reading your ad further. You want to draw him in by giving him the #1 reason why he should stick with you.
4. Put quotation marks around your headline. Studies show that doing so increases the customer response. My guess is that it has to do with drawing him into the conversation and making him feel that you're talking directly with him. Try this simple suggestion on your next ad and see if it helps.
5. Appeal to the prospect's emotions by using words that elicit a gut reaction. Get the reader to "feel" the need to read the ad. Many folks buy on emotion alone and you want to stimulate those buying impulses.
6. Use simple, easy to understand words. Don't try to be too clever, fancy, or use jargon that some readers may not grasp. Most often, direct and to-the-point is the best approach for your headline.
7. Describe your product as "totally new" or "just announced" or "first time ever." Readers are drawn to being the first to see or recognize something. So headlines like "Discover the amazing new way to . . ." forces the reader to continue reading the ad to find out just what this new discovery entails.
8. There's a fine line, sometimes, between hype and excitement. Boring ads don't work. The prospect will be gone as soon as he is tired of reading the headline that doesn't spark some emotion. Good headlines make for exciting reading. Look at the gripping headlines in the National Enquirer as examples of writing that creates excitement and curiosity.
9. Leave the reader anxious to get into the body of your ad. The headline should leave the prospect curious and hungry for more. You want him to be overflowing with desire to solve his problem by purchasing your product.
10. Feel the reader's pain. You must place yourself in the reader's shoes. It doesn't matter what your concerns are . . . the prospect is reading your headline looking for something that interests him, or that saves him time, or that makes him feel good. Tell him how you are going to solve his problem with your product.
I'll give you some additional suggestions on headlines later. Headlines are so important to your success. Become a student of this subject and your expertise will pay you great dividends.
Information businesses rely heavily on content and generally require the use of a headline. Learn this art well.
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