The headline is the single most important line of text in your entire piece of copy. Why? Because if it doesn’t make people want to read on, they won’t. And then the rest of your lovingly-crafted copy will go to waste.
So, what does a good headline look like?
Well, if you’re selling something, invariably the best headline captures the biggest benefit of what you’re selling. You can phrase it in several ways:
- As an invitation: Find out how I can help you get more sales
- As a closed (yes or no) question: Would you like to get more sales?
- As a solution to a problem: Here’s how to get better results from your marketing
Other ideas for headlines you might like to consider are:
- an update to a product
- a special offer
- a piece of news (although it needs to be of genuine interest and relevance to your readers)
- a shocking or surprising fact
- a request for help
- a testimonial
Some people like to write their headline first. Others prefer to wait until the end and they’ve immersed themselves in what they’re saying. Neither way is better than the other, it’s simply which works better for you. (I come up with a headline first and then invariably rework it once I’ve finished writing the rest of the piece.)
