How To Write A Hot Headline
I’m the first to admit that when I’m bent over the keyboard, chewing on a pen cap, I’
m usually trying to come up with a good headline. And I’m not any different than a
lot of other writers.
Headlines are incredibly important to marketing copy. That’s what captures the
attention of the reader, and persuades him to read the rest of the copy, whether its
an ad, sales letter, flyer, web page…anything. If you don’t get him with the headline,
you don’t get him at all.
So what’s the secret to writing a great headline? It’s not really difficult, and can be
accomplished with just a bit of practice:
Write to the prospect’s self-interest.
Sounds like a no-brainer, right? Ahh, but you’d be surprised how many headlines
fail to do just that one, simple thing. Instead, they try to get attention in other ways.
They use puns, colorful language, or vagueness to try to draw readers in. In a
recent, national magazine, I saw a huge amount of lousy ad headlines that told me
nothing about their products, much less what they could do for me.
How to avoid this? Just write the headline around what the user gets out of your
product, and be specific!
For example, say you manufacture light bulbs, and your newest model is more
energy efficient than the competition. You could write:
“New Acme E-Star Energy-Efficient Light Bulbs Help Cut Energy Bills!”
Cuts to the chase, right? Says what the product is and gives a benefit—it saves the
consumer’s money. But try this on for size:
“Save Up To $20 A Month On Your Energy Bill By Switching To Acme’s E-Star
Bulbs!”
See the difference? The second one tells how much the reader could save a month,
in specifics. It also uses the most powerful word in marketing language: you. It
speaks directly to the prospect, instead of making a statement. Remember:
specifics sell, facts are your friends, and you’re talking to someone, not at him/her.
That’s what gets their attention.
It’s also more “action-oriented” towards the customer. The first tells him that Acme
has this new product, it saves on energy bills, and isn’t that grand? But the second
actually tells the customer what he himself, personally, will do if he switches to E-
Star: “Save…this much…by doing that!” He can see himself doing it. He’s curious.
He’ll read more.
There’s a lot of tips and tricks to writing headlines, but the basic four will launch your
headlines into high gear:
· Appeal to the prospect’s self-interest
· Use specifics and facts
· Use action oriented language
· Speak to the prospect, not into a void
Try and see!
Julie Ann Waid is owner of Waidwrites Communications, a full-service writing
and editing firm specializing in marketing communications. Sign up for her
free e-zine “J’s Communique: Marketing Tips For Business” at www.waidwrites.
com and get a free, five day e-course "How To Get Better Results From Your
Business Writing (From Memos To Ads).
Copyright 2006, Waidwrites Communications
I’m the first to admit that when I’m bent over the keyboard, chewing on a pen cap, I’
m usually trying to come up with a good headline. And I’m not any different than a
lot of other writers.
Headlines are incredibly important to marketing copy. That’s what captures the
attention of the reader, and persuades him to read the rest of the copy, whether its
an ad, sales letter, flyer, web page…anything. If you don’t get him with the headline,
you don’t get him at all.
So what’s the secret to writing a great headline? It’s not really difficult, and can be
accomplished with just a bit of practice:
Write to the prospect’s self-interest.
Sounds like a no-brainer, right? Ahh, but you’d be surprised how many headlines
fail to do just that one, simple thing. Instead, they try to get attention in other ways.
They use puns, colorful language, or vagueness to try to draw readers in. In a
recent, national magazine, I saw a huge amount of lousy ad headlines that told me
nothing about their products, much less what they could do for me.
How to avoid this? Just write the headline around what the user gets out of your
product, and be specific!
For example, say you manufacture light bulbs, and your newest model is more
energy efficient than the competition. You could write:
“New Acme E-Star Energy-Efficient Light Bulbs Help Cut Energy Bills!”
Cuts to the chase, right? Says what the product is and gives a benefit—it saves the
consumer’s money. But try this on for size:
“Save Up To $20 A Month On Your Energy Bill By Switching To Acme’s E-Star
Bulbs!”
See the difference? The second one tells how much the reader could save a month,
in specifics. It also uses the most powerful word in marketing language: you. It
speaks directly to the prospect, instead of making a statement. Remember:
specifics sell, facts are your friends, and you’re talking to someone, not at him/her.
That’s what gets their attention.
It’s also more “action-oriented” towards the customer. The first tells him that Acme
has this new product, it saves on energy bills, and isn’t that grand? But the second
actually tells the customer what he himself, personally, will do if he switches to E-
Star: “Save…this much…by doing that!” He can see himself doing it. He’s curious.
He’ll read more.
There’s a lot of tips and tricks to writing headlines, but the basic four will launch your
headlines into high gear:
· Appeal to the prospect’s self-interest
· Use specifics and facts
· Use action oriented language
· Speak to the prospect, not into a void
Try and see!
Julie Ann Waid is owner of Waidwrites Communications, a full-service writing
and editing firm specializing in marketing communications. Sign up for her
free e-zine “J’s Communique: Marketing Tips For Business” at www.waidwrites.
com and get a free, five day e-course "How To Get Better Results From Your
Business Writing (From Memos To Ads).
Copyright 2006, Waidwrites Communications
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