Legendary advertising copywriter David Ogilvy once famously said that when you write your headline, you have spent 80 cents of each advertising dollar.
But consider this–Ogilvy made that argument decades ago. That was long before YouTube, Facebook, and twenty-million other media channels came along, all vying your precious attention, all vying for the valuable advertising dollars your clicks can provide.
Can you imagine how much more his words ring true today?
Entire essays have been written about how to craft the perfect headline, and in some ways, copywriting is almost like a religion. Unless you plan on converting, you probably don’t want to bother reading all of its sacred texts.
But if you are just hoping to write better emails, or capture a larger audience with your next social media post, there are a few simple things you can do to make any headline better.
- Make a promise. A big promise. This is copywriting practice 101 and if you truly see the principle in action, you will never be able to unsee it again. You’ll notice it everywhere from television ads to political speeches. The key to this principle is to go big. Make your readers or viewers say to themselves, “No! How could they possibly do that?” The famous “Face Lift in a Jar” ad is considered one of the best examples of making a huge promise like this.
- Be specific. Imagine yourself on a dinner date. What impresses you more? For your date to say, “I graduated from a prestigious university with honors.” Or… “I graduated from Harvard, Magna Cum Laude.”
Consumers are savvier than ever. In a world where it is easier to swipe left than ever, they want hard data, and you have to be the one to educate them. They want facts, so if you can, give them to them quickly. - Let them in on a secret. Humans are vain creatures, and if there is one thing we hate, it’s being left out. So make sure your headline lets your reader in on a secret. Better yet, make your reader feel frightened that they will be missing out if they don’t read whatever it is you have to say.
Who knows, that well-crafted sentence or two might be the difference between a hundred followers and a thousand. Because your story is only a good story if it’s told well.
Stefanie Cosman 