The first words a person sees or hears in your ad, article, brochure, direct mail piece or web page are hugely important.

This is the point where you get the person’s interest. Or not.

This is the second huge barrier you have to overcome to achieve effective marketing (the first is getting noticed at all). If you get the person’s interest, they are going to read or listen to the next line. If you don’t, they are gone.

You know this from your own experience. The average American is exposed to over 3,000 marketing messages per day. How many of them do you pay attention to? A handful at most I’m sure.

And which ones are they? The ones that say something to indicate this is or might be of interest or importance TO YOU.

Here are some types of headlines:

1. Benefit Headline — “What’s in it for me? What benefit or advantage will I get by responding to your ad?”
   

   “Earn Extra Money At Home… In Your Spare Time”
   “Reduce Fat”
   “Protect Your Property”
   “Get Better Gas Mileage”

   Overall, benefit headlines are the best.

2. News Headline — This gives news about a new product or announces a sale or the latest model, etc.
   

   “At last! Our ‘2002 Models Are Here!”
   “Announcing … A Car Battery That Lasts A Lifetime!”
   “New UFO Evidence! — Abductees Take Their Case To Court”

3. Storytelling Headline — This can intrigue people because it promises to lead them into a story. Stories are interesting.
   

   “How I Went From Bankruptcy To Financial Security In Less Than Two Years.”

   This headline also has an implied benefit: financial security.

4. Advice Headline — The heading of this report is an advice headline. It gives tips or advice. Another example:
   

   “7 Tips For Lowering Your Fuel Bill.”

   (Also has a benefit).

5. Curiosity Headline —
   

   “Do You Make These Mistakes With Your Employees?”

   Curiosity article titles with numbers in them work especially well:

   “Top 10 Ways To Increase Brain-Power.”

6. Testimonial Headline — These can be very powerful. They have the added credibility of a third-party endorsement.
   

   “I earned $40,000 in six months using your wealth-building techniques!”

How do you learn to write headlines or opening lines? Study what others are doing. Also there are many books on the subject.

Be wary of older articles and books: This is the sort of thing that changes over time. Not 100%, as some things are timeless. But look at ads from the 1950’s and you’ll see what I mean.

Also this is very dependent on culture and language. A good headline in the U.S. might be a complete bust in Venezuela.

Try out different headlines and see what actually works for you. You might be amazed how even a one word change in a headline can improve your response.