Create The Big Promise You
Are Making To Your Buyers

For most people, the tendency is to write a headline that arouses curiosity or is cute or funny like all the ads you see on TV. That’s the natural tendency and an easy trap to fall into.

Let me give you an example of how I did this the other day. I wrote a headline for a course that said: Together We Will Change The Face Of Internet Marketing Forever. We had a big, bold graphic of a guy with high-tech markings on his face.

The problem is, what is the PROMISE? The promise is they will change the history of Internet marketing. But do they CARE about the promise? You see, that is the issue. You have to promise something the prospect or customer WANTS and is willing to spend money or take action TO GET.

Changing the face of Internet marketing is not the number one thing on most people’s minds if you know what I’m saying.

It’s more like feeding the kids, paying the bills, buying a new car and taking a vacation. The common denominator in good headlines is a big, bold promise.

Here are tons of examples of good - and BAD - promises so you can get a feel for what works... and what doesn't.

Exactly How To Write A Killer Headline That
Attracts Buyers Like A Magnet

Your headline is the single most important part of your sales letter. Engrave that into your brain!

I've seen TONS of people spend days, weeks, even months on their sales copy and then only focus on their headline for a half hour. Big mistake.

Usually the headline is the very first thing your readers will see. If you haven't grabbed their attention... if you haven't powerfully conveyed WIIFM (what's in it for me?), they're gone in mere seconds.

Then there are your subheads. These are the bold "mini-headlines" that separate your body copy into segments. Many times you'll begin a new thought in your letter with a subhead. The key here is to make each subhead as strong, powerful, and benefit-driven as possible. They should be able to stand on their own as the HEADLINE for your letter.

That's why I mentioned them here. The information in this icon applies to subheads as well as your main headline.

Step One: Choose Your Appeal

It still amazes me how much information there is out there. Back when I was trying to learn how to market, there were so few decent resources that you could count them on one hand.

One of the best old-time copywriting books I had was Tested Advertising Methods by John Caples.

In Tested Advertising Methods, Caples speaks of 4 appeals - or angles - you can take when writing your headline:

1) Address the BIG benefit - or the WIIFM

There's only one reason why people will buy a product - to benefit from it. To use the product and get something out of it that's value is perceived greater than what they paid for it.

What are some sure-fire benefits that appeal to pretty much everyone?

Well for starters --

2) Offer NEWS or a breaktrough discovery

Everyone wants to be on the cutting edge. Always "ahead of the game". And a breakthrough discovery of a revolutionary new way to solve X problem could be just what the doctor ordered!

Let's say someone's losing their hair. What if they came across a...

"Shockingly Simple Insider Secret That Quickly -
And Permanently - Reversed Their Hair Loss?"

They'd be on board with that product. Or at least the headline would've caused them to read the rest of the copy.

Maybe you're a guitar player. What if you read about a...

"Revolutionary New Way To Exercise Your Fingers That
Allowed You To Play Faster, Cleaner Guitar Solos --
In Half The Time?"

There are a lot of guitar players out there that would definitely appeal to. People will pay money for that type of knowledge.

3) Offer a fast, simple, and easy way to achieve a desired end-result - a "how-to" headline

This is the landmark of the information product business.

People will pay good money to learn what you know. People have hobbies. People decide to "take up" golfing or crocheting. And other than doing it yourself and suffering through endless trial and error, the only way to learn how to do stuff is through an info product.

A video, an audio, a home study course, a book or ebook, an e-class... all of those things are information products. I can't tell you how many times I bought a "how to do X" product. It's human nature.

So you might offer a faster, easier way to learn how to do something. You can also offer a different or alternate way of getting to that desired end-result. A better way.

For example - many lawns around south Texas have crab grass. How 'bout an ad for a product that promised...

"How To Get Rid Of Crab Grass With Common Household
Items (That Cost $3 Or Less) In Just Days?"

4) Make the reader so curious that he/she would be CRAZY not to read the rest of the copy

Curiosity should mostly be used to get people IN to the body copy. By itself, curiosity will probably NOT sell your product. But what it CAN do is pretty much guarantee that they'll read what you have to say... that is... IF you do it right.

"2 Over The Counter Medications And Just 30 Minutes A Day --
And You'll Achieve Exceptional Relief From Your Fibromyalgia"

What on EARTH could those 2 over the counter meds be?! If you're a Fibromyalgia sufferer, you'll be reading that letter for sure.

Copywriter John Carlton penned this headline: “Amazing Secret Discovered By One-Legged Golfer Adds 50 Yards To Your Drives, Eliminates Hooks And Slices… And Can Slash Up To 10 Strokes From Your Game Almost Overnight!”

He's got all the appeals in there:

"Amazing Secret Discovered" -- news

"By One-Legged Golfer" -- curiosity

"Adds 50 Yards To Your Drives, Eliminates Hooks And Slices… And Can Slash Up To 10 Strokes From Your Game" -- BIG benefit/WIIFM

"Almost Overnight!" -- fast, simple, easy way to achieve your desired end-result

Step Two: Use powerful language that hooks the reader

Powerful language can either make or break your headline. There's a BIG difference between hype and a powerful headline.

"How-to" headlines actually speak for themselves most of the time. Just tell them what you're gonna help them do.

"How to Learn To Play The Mandolin
In Only 5 Easy 1-Hour Courses"

There's nothing special about that headline. It just tells them what they'll receive. It can stand fairly well on it's own. But how could you re-word the headline above to pull better?

"You Can Learn To Play The Mandolin With This
Revolutionary How-To Course.

Plus -- You Will Love The Way You Sound In
3 Weeks Or Less Or You Pay Nothing!"

Mentioning the offer or guarantee in the headline really makes it easier for them to decide to read on. And always reverting back to YOU and what's in it for YOU always helps.

Step Three: 12 headline templates you can use

Secret: One way to make your promise more dramatic is to drop in the word "GUARANTEED" at the very end of the statement. The words “OR IT’S FREE” works well too. But do this only if you can make those statements. 

By putting these at the end of a sentence, or by making the word “guaranteed” the very LAST word after a dash, you draw attention to it.

You save money on your trip – guaranteed 

That is a lot more compelling than saying: “I guarantee you’ll save money.” Or worse yet: “I guarantee money savings.” The last sentence is worse because it doesn’t use the word YOU at all.

Can You Afford To Offer A Guarantee?

This depends, of course, on what you’re selling. But typically there IS something you can guarantee. Most people are afraid their guarantee will COST them money when it will normally make them money IF the competition does not also offer a dramatic guarantee.

In my business of selling marketing training, almost everyone offers guarantees. That means you get NO BENEFIT by also offering a guarantee since it is not a unique or unusual offer.

So what you try to do is make your guarantee stand out by dramatizing it. That’s what I did with the “I’ll Kiss This Elephant’s Butt If…” statement. That’s something you don’t hear every day.

Step Five: Use specific numbers if you can substantiate them

Here are examples: "How to Lose 10 Pounds In 2 Weeks" is a lot more compelling than just "How to Lose Weight."

You get a 33 point inspection with 6 mechanical tests, 4 eyeball evaluations, 8 meter gauges and 3 hand checks.

That is a lot more compelling than just: “We’ll examine your car to see what’s wrong with it.”

FLAW: Notice the flaw in the “33 point inspection” statement. What is it MISSING? There is NO BENEFIT to have this inspection done. You have to always include a benefit TO THEM.

You get a 33 point inspection with 6 mechanical tests,
4 eyeball evaluations, 8 meter gauges and 3 hand checks –
that spots troubles BEFORE they cause breakdowns, so you
can take your vacation worry-free

The part I underlined is the addition of the benefit to the customer.

Of course, any time you make a guarantee or a statement such as the one above, you have to make sure you aren’t incurring too much legal liability. There is a balance between a dramatic promise you can perform on and one that will get you sued.

Here is an example of enumerating items for the dramatic value from one of my sales letters:

Plus, with the new 2.0 version you get a complete web page design system including 41 background images, 15 order buttons, 7 satisfaction guaranteed images, 10 action images, 224 background and font colors, 14 font styles, 12 font sizes, 6 testimonial designs and 8 different layouts for your features and benefits!

That statement is a LOT more powerful than just saying: “You get a software program that writes and formats a sales letter.” By adding in all the different numbers, you make it LIVE!

That statement does not have a benefit but the big giant sentence right above it said this: "Just Fill In The Blanks, Click A Button And Out Pops A Sales Letter."

That statement is the benefit – they get a fast, easy-to-create sales letter.