10 headline formulas that work like magic

Bob Stone, one of the world’s best known copywriters said “Your first 15 words count more than the 15,000 words that follow!”

Any serious copywriter (and most successful bloggers out there) agree with the statement and actually put the advice to use every day. Why?

Because it’s the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. Those first few words that you start with (your headline) are often written in haste. Yet, they count for 50% of the success of your entire copywriting project.

Unfortunately, in today’s rush, it’s hard to spend 90% of your time coming up with a winning headline. This is especially true if you’re mass-producing content on a day-to-day basis (like bloggers and article writers).

The good news is that formulae exist that you can use to speed up your headline writing process… But before I give the formulas to you, let me say this: If you really want your copy to generate maximum response, you MUST spend a considerable amount of time writing, fine-tuning and testing your headlines.

How to use these headline formulas.

The way to use these formulas for maximum effectiveness is to take the time to write at least 5 different headline versions using each formula. This will force your creative juices to flow and give you enough headlines to split-test in your marketing campaign.

1. The direct statement headline.
Examples:
a) The best chocolate cake you ever ate. (Ladies Home Journal)
b) 5 cents a minute anytime, night and day, to anywhere in America!

2. The question headline.
Examples:
a) Who else wants to know how to drive massive traffic to their website?
b) “Do you make these mistakes in English?” (Maxwell Sackheims)

3. The how-to headline.
Examples:
a) How to promote your website for maximum response.
b) How to grow big, ripe tomatoes quickly and easily.

4. The command headline.
Examples:
a) This is your window of opportunity. Open it.
b) Enroll now and learn how to play the piano in just 90 days.

5. The implicit benefit headline.
Examples:
a) 7 sure-fire ways to sell your products on eBay.
b) Sexy legs in 5 minutes a day.

6. The guarantee headline.
Examples:
a) “Triple your website hits in one month or I’ll pay you $500 cash!”
b) The “Art Of Negotiating” Guarantees To Make You A Better Negotiator.

7. The deep discount headline.
Examples:
a) “Buy 100,000 web visitors today and receive an extra 100,000 FREE!”
b) Get 12 DVD’s for just $4 (Plus S&H).

8. The personalized headline.
Examples:
a) “George, act fast… your special offer link expires on December 23”
b) Finally, here’s how you, Bob Delano, can become an expert chef in 15 days.

9. The “reasons why” headline.
Examples:
a) Here are 7 hard-hitting reasons to visit our website this week.
b) 3 Invigorating Reasons Why Using ‘PermaSoft’ Will Make Your Life Easy!

10. The short, punchy headline.
Examples:
a) “What if…”
b) “Oh My God!”