Do You Make These Mistakes in Your Headlines?

Our last post gave some basic ideas on how to prepare conceptually for writing your next headline, and offered intimations of the importance and difficulty of the task.  One quick note about the postscript: Reviewing tabloids and magazines is a great way to guage what fascinates the mass public.  And to see how those publications trigger that fascination.  The reason you should check the newstands is that their Cosmo will have racier headlines than the one you would get by subscription.  They write two sets of headlines: one to make the sale in the store, the other to save embarrassment on your coffee table. 

Moving forward, you'll be relieved to know that this post will simplify the arduous process of writing winning headlines for you.  After all, this blog is titled "Copywriting Made Simple".  The pain of this challenge becomes tolerable (though still challenging!) if you keep in mind the one simple job of the headline.

Are you ready for relief?

Here it is.  The only job of your headline... is to get your prospect to read the next sentence.

I still recommend you write dozens of headlines.  I even enjoy this approach.  Go ahead and plug in all the stock formulas you've saved in your swipe files (as I did for the headline of this post).  See how they match the overriding desire of your market.  How they capture the promise of your product (if that's how you get them to read the letter).   

Here's a big mistake: writers try to make the sale with just the headline.  A corollary is trying to make the strongest headline possible, ignoring the larger sales strategy.  Here's a bigger one: they base the headline on what the seller's ego thinks...as if their prospect cares. 

Can you imagine the agony of trying to fit the whole sales process into 10-17 or so words?  For certain space ads for a minority of products, it can work.  But if you can construct a full sales letter, spare yourself the challenge.  And what I'll tell you next will allow you to avoid the other mistakes as well. 

At the most basic level, your headline need only name the primary (according to your market) desire your product satisfies.  There are many tricks, and many nuances.  You can dress a headline in many colors.  But if you understand this concept, you'll save a lot of time writing. 

In the coming posts we'll see just how to make this basic headline more complling.  Both by plugging it into tested headlines, and by beginning a more advanced exploration of different types of headlines.  And a few tricks, like how to develop a hook, as well.

In the mean time, go ahead and check out some headlines, new and old, and see how you can modify them for your industry.

To Your Higher Response,

Sheridan

www.recession-proofmarketing.com