….and reads your message…
If you’re like most Americans, you’re bombarded by 3000+ marketing messages a day.
Catching your prospect’s attention is getting tougher everyday.
And without their attention, you don’t have a hope of selling anything.
The #1 job of your headline is to catch your reader’s attention.
Writing a Scroll Stopping Headline Starts with Knowing Two Things:
1-WHAT you’re selling —
Might sound crazy but a lot of people don’t have a clear message. Whether you’re selling blue widgets or health coaching, be clear.
And yes, your “sale” may be a click.
As in, asking someone to download something or even click to read your post. One step leads to the next.
2- WHO you’re selling to —
There’s an expression “the riches are in the niches.” What that means is don’t try to sell to everyone. Sell to YOUR specific ideal audience for the best success.
Here’s an example of a good headline by Bidsketch, a company that sells proposal templates for creatives.
Their headline is clear. “Create professional client proposals in minutes.”
If you create client proposals in your work…this DEFINITELY grabs your attention.
Their subheading is a testimonial that says, – “Cut down my proposal time from three hours to 45 minutes…”
Now you’ve really got my attention.
Yours too if you’re a graphic designer, copywriter or other service provider. Every service professional wants to spend less time writing proposals and more time doing the work.
Below that testimonial, we can “see a sample proposal.”
It’s a seamless process leading you to sign up for the free trial IF you’re the intended audience.
While the Bidsketch example is elegant in it’s simplicity, other headlines are literal in calling out their intended audience.
This approach works too.
For Women Over 40 Who Want to Lose 15-20 Pounds Safely and Permanently
For Business Owners Who Want to 10x Their Business…in the Next 12 Months
See how those are SPECIFIC?
They have a specific target market AND they show a useful and valuable benefit.
When you’re writing your scroll stopping headline, don’t be vague and don’t be boring. “Check out my latest blog post” won’t get you raving fans.
Think Buzzfeed not borefest.
There are dozens of proven models for writing headlines that get results. It has nothing to do with being a “writer” or English major and EVERYTHING to do with being a helpful sales person.
You know those times when you’ve bought something and the experience was wonderful? The salesperson answered all your questions and made sure you got just what you needed?
That’s the purpose of copy. It’s “sales in print.” And if you want to make more sales, you need to get clear on who your prospect is. This applies whether you’re writing a blog post, a sales page, a subject line for an email, or anything else.
3 Ways Entrepreneurs Can Improve Their Headlines
1- Being specific about your intended prospect. This is MOST important.
2- Use one of the many headline formulas as your starting point. “How to…” “Who else…” “If, then…”
3- Don’t start with the headline. That can bog you down. Instead, write your piece first. Then think about the biggest benefit your prospect can get from reading it and use that in your headline if you can.
Remember, your goal is to get your intended prospect to stop scrolling and read your post. You can write scroll stopping headlines when you’re clear on your ideal prospect.
