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Archive for August 9th, 2009

The Benefits Of A Benefits Driven Headline With Specificity

Often the most powerful headlines are those that include some specific benefit within them while simultaneously peaking the interest of the reader as to what may be inside the article.

Let’s look at the following as an example8230;

“5 Secrets to Doubling Your List In 90 Days

This headline includes both a benefit statement and specificity.

Specificity in included in three ways the number of secrets 5 the benefit of doubling your list specifically says what it will do and specifically in what period of time 90 days.

Now if you were a reader who was interested in building a list do you think this headline would get your attention? I think it would.

Remember the purpose of a headline is to stop the reader or scanner dead in their tracks and pull them into reading the article or other form of copy.

Lets assume you are an Internet marketer or small business owner and have the desire to increase the size of your mailing list either email or snail mail. You are scanning a newspaper journal or magazine looking for something interesting to read.

Your eyes fall upon the following three article headlines:

Headline 1: “How To Grow Your List

Headline 2: “5 Secrets to Doubling Your List In 90 Days

Headline 3: “The Importance Of Growing A List

Which one do you think you would turn to read first?

In this case both the first and second headlines contain a benefit statement but the second headline includes specificity which the first does not.

Under the above scenario I believe that the reader would read the article associated with headline 2 first then since headline one also includes a benefit statement implies that it will reveal methods techniques strategies or tactics on how to grow you list which is something you would like to know the reader would read the first article if he or she had enough time available to read both. While the article associated with headline three would probably get passed over.

Why would article three get passed over you ask? Well it is boring. It implies that it will simply tell you something that you most probably already know given the scenario so why waste your time reading what you feel is already obvious.

Additionally headlines one and two are in the active voice which is more powerful that the passive voice.

Takeout: Include a benefit statement in your headline with as much specificity as possible and watch your sales skyrocket.

About the writer:nbsp;nbsp;Joe Niewierski the VP of Marketing Promotion at PostcardMania became a published writer after graduating with a BA in Advertising from the University of South Florida. Joy Gendusa founded PostcardMania in 1998; her only assets a computer and a phone. By 2005 the company did over 12 million in sales employed over 100 people and made Inc. Magazine’s prestigious Inc 500 List as one of the 500 fastest growing companies in the nation. Gendusa attributes her explosive growth to her ability to choose incredible staff and her innate marketing savvy. 70 of her staff are young creative minds under the age of 35 like Joe. For more free marketing advice visit Joy and Joe her website at www.PostcardMania.com