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Article
3 Secrets
to Writing Great Heads
How to write headlines that turn browsers into readers
By
Robert Middleton
About
the author
In the advertising business, studies have shown that using an improved headline over the same exact body copy can boost response up to several hundred percent. Many of the same principles that work in the advertising business apply as well to other forms of marketing communications, including newsletters.
Let's look at exactly how a headline works and how you can make yours better. There are three very basic, but very powerful principles in writing headlines:
- Promise a benefit (So what?)
- Qualify the reader (Who cares?)
- Compel the reader to read the article (this is the trickiest part)
Experience editors know when to follow the rules and when to make an
exception, but they apply the rules most of the time. Let's look at these
principles one by one, using a hypothetical headline:
Not too exciting. It identifies the topic, but nothing else. Let's add a benefit.
Education IRA Saves You a Fortune in College Expenses
Now that's a lot better. There is a direct promise of a benefit. That gets my attention and interest. Now let's qualify the reader:
Education IRA Saves Parents a Fortune in College Expenses
What we're doing now is focusing on parents, not everyone. When you read this headline and you're a parent (or grandparent), you become much more interested. "That's for me," you think. People love information that's custom-made for them.
Now let's make it even more powerful and lead the reader into the story:
How Education IRAs Saved Three Families $80,000 in College Expenses
Look at how this headline evolved. First it was a statement. Then it was a story about money. Now it's a story about people. And people love stories about people, especially about people like themselves. If you have space for a deck or tag line, you can add:
And how they can save
you a fortune too
There are several other ways to pull people into the story. One is issuing
a challenge, using the word "these":
Entrepreneurs: Do You Make
These 3 Time Management Mistakes?
At the end of this article I'm going to talk about a time-management
seminar that we want readers to attend. But I didn't mention the seminar
in the head, because it's so compelling (especially for entrepreneurs).
The deceptively simple word "these" makes you wonder what these
three mistakes are.
Another technique is to lead with "X Ways..." For example:
Ten Ways Entrepreneurs are
Saving Time and Making More Money
You've got to read this because you want to know what those 10 ways are
and how other people just like you are using them to succeed!
Experienced advertising copywriters and newspaper editors know these
secrets. Pick up a copy of Reader's Digest and notice how the
headlines pull you into the stories, article after article.
Now go to work
Take a look at the newsletter articles you've written or edited. Do
they follow the three rules of effective headlines? If not, work to
improve your heads, one step at a time, until you have headlines that
makes it virtually impossible for your target reader not to dive
enthusiastically into your copy.
About the author
Robert Middleton is the principal of Action Plan Marketing, based in California. Robert's website (