Yesterday’s post got us into that direct marketing kind of mode. The weather in Nashville was beautiful so I (Jerry) spent some time in the afternoon sitting outside reading a Dan Kennedy book, No B.S. Wealth Creation for Entrepreneurs. Highly recommended, as are all of Kennedy’s books. Anyway, in keeping with the theme of applying direct marketing concepts to your online marketing, I thought I would spend a little more time talking about headlines.
Following is a short list of classic, proven headlines that you can modify to your own situation:
How a New Kind of Clay Improved my Complexion in 30 Days
How I Improved my Memory in One Evening
6 Types of Investors – Which Group Are You In?
A Little Mistake that Cost a Farmer $3,000 a Year
Advice to Wives Whose Husbands Don’t Save Money
Are You Ever Tongue-Tied at a Party?
Discover the Fortune that Lies Hidden in Your Salary
Who Much is a Little Leak Costing Your Company?
One thing these ads all have in common is that they pique the curiosity of the reader without giving away too much detail. Each one is a little bit of a mystery. The point is to make the reader want to read more to find out the detail. Each play on a concern or problem that the prospect has, and implies that reading more will reveal the solution to the problem.
The headlines should also be tied to your “USP” – your Unique Selling Proposition. This is the thing that separates you from others in your industry, and the reason someone should do business with you. Jay Abraham has a technique for creating a USP that is very simple but does a great job in helping you discover the USP for your business. Here is what you do:
1. Get a couple of sheets of paper and a pen.
2. At the top of one sheet, write “You know how…”
3. At the top of the other, write “Well, what we do is…”
4. Then just fill in the blanks.
For example, if you are a stock broker, you might say:
“You know how some stock brokers don’t ever call you to let you know how your portfolio is doing?”
and then respond with:
“Well, what we do is call all of our clients every Friday afternoon with a report about how their portfolio did that week.”
You could then build your USP around the idea that you provide superior customer service by calling all of your clients weekly to discuss their portfolio. This could then be tied into a headline such as “Does Your Stock Broker Ever Leave You Wondering What’s Going on With Your Account?” Your headline then feeds into your marketing content where you explain about the extra effort your firm puts into maintaining communication with your clients.
So start with your USP, and then use it to create a powerful, provocative headline which leads into benefit-packed advertising copy. Do this on your web site, your emails, and all other forms on online marketing.
If you would like help implementing an effective online marketing campaign for your business, contact Work Media at 888-299-4837 or Info@WorkMedia.net.