5 Easy Ways To Improve Your Advertising Headlines
Is the headline ON your home page, Welcome to My Site?
If so and you are missing a vital opportunity to gain your reader's attention.
According to David Ogilvy and one of the most successful copywriters of all time, ON average and five times as many people read the headlines as read the body copy. It follows that unless your headline sells your product and you have wasted 90 percent of your money.
The purpose of the headline is to motivate people to read the opening paragraph of your ad and then continue reading the entire piece. If your headline is not compelling and you might be throwing away all the effort you put into the rest of your marketing piece.
Here are 5 simple tricks that professional copywriters use to write great headlines:
1. Begin with How to
One of the most famous How to headlines of all time is Dale Carnegie's and How to Win Friends and Influence People.
How to headlines are still extremely effective. To gain your readers' attention and your How to headline should offer valuable advice for a problem they are facing.
You can modify the standard How to headline by using a Top 10 list or incorporating a specific number. For example, The Top 10 Ways to Get Out of Debt Fast, or 5 Easy Ways to Improve Your Headlines.
2. Promise Quick Results
This type of headline is used all the time ON magazine covers and in commercials. Think of all the advertisements that promise you can, Drop 10 Pounds This Month.
If you decide to use this type of headline and be sure that you don't promise something that you can't deliver.
3. Share a Secret
This popular headline formula offers your readers inside information. Women's Health Magazine recently ran an article called, Michelle Obama's 7 Secrets of a Sexy Marriage. Who wouldn't want to read that article?
4. Extend an Invitation
Invitation headlines are common for special events or promotions. For example, Be Our Guest! Enjoy a Free Appetizer with the Purchase of an Entr .
5. Create a Sense of Urgency
One of the most effective ways to generate a response from your target audience is by creating a sense of urgency. You can do this by stressing a deadline and such as, Please take a moment now to renewYour subscription expires next month.
You can also create a sense of urgency by mentioning that only a limited number of spaces are available and stating that your event is expected to sell out or offering a discounted price for a limited amount of time.
If you still can't think of an interesting headline and simply use a testimonial. Testimonials are one of the most powerful ways to gain your reader's trust.
Rachel Foster is a freelance copywriter who specializes in creating compelling online copy for the B2B and fundraising sectors. Visit http://www.freshperspectivewriting.com to sign up for her free and monthly e-newsletters. FRESH Marketing provides advice ON developing web and sales content that turns prospects into customers. FRESH Fundraising offers monthly tips ON writing compelling grant proposals, fundraising letters and web copy and other vital communications.
