No matter how familiar you are with the fact that first impression largely determines the success of your business, this article will tell you how to present yourself better than the competition and how to attract more clients guaranteed.
We always remember the first impression. It shapes our future thoughts.
The first contact with a certain company for 90% of the people are ads and the first thing they read is the headline. An isolated first sentence that briefly presents the offered service, introduces the product and the business behind it.
The headline is the first impression company makes.
Seems pretty important. Obviously, everyone knows the key role of the headline. They certainly put a lot of care and attention to make sure it's as good as possible.
Couldn't be further from the truth.
Why most headlines are terrible
I realized most businesses need help.
They often make a bad first impression with incredibly bad headlines. I'll show you exactly what I mean.
I worked with a married couple on improving marketing and sales for their business. They wanted more clients, but they didn't know what they were doing wrong.
The moment I saw the ad, everything became clear.
For months, the headline of the ad was: "For 1 Euro... ."
They were explaining to me how amazing the headline is.
I remember the sentence:
"The ad is extremely well designed and interesting, you just need to read the rest of the ad and everything will connect into one big masterpiece."
I have to admit, it was creative. And I haven't shorten the headline with three dots, it really looked like that.
The problem was that the headline itself is confusing and unclear. And in the business world, one of the rules is:
"A confused client does the worst thing possible. Nothing."
The ad was not successful. People would read the headline, got confused and wouldn't read the rest. They would just go on with their lives. The ad would be lost in a pile of other information they received during the day.
A book is judged by its cover
People immediately stop reading marketing messages or ads as soon as they notice the first obvious mistake. So do I.
You only have a split second to make a good first impression or they move on.
No one is holding a gun to their head forcing them to read.
The headline should attract attention. A key factor in every ad, website or a video. Even normal conversation.
The first few sentences on a phone call. How you walk into an office for a job interview, what you say and what you wear.
Everything is a headline.
You walk in scared, without greeting, wearing a stained white shirt. Even though you are the best candidate for the job, they will not choose you.
Same thing with an ad.
It can be the best ad in the world, but if the headline is bad... sorry to tell you, the ad won't work.
Just imagine the amount of money thrown on ads every day, and the people DON'T even READ them.
There are many ways of writting good headlines. Try choosing one, surely you will make a mistake.
Therefore, writing a headline is like playing lottery.
We need something better.
How to write the perfect headline
I had to find a solution.
I threw myself into analyses, comparisons, tests. Lots of trial and error. It took a lot of time and effort, but it was worth it.
I've come up with the perfect technique for writing the perfect headline.
Since this technique consists of many different parts, explaining each one would turn this article into a textbook. That's why I'll just give you the most simple explanation for writting a good headline that derives from this technique:
"If you put ONLY a headline in an ad with a response mechanism, would people respond to it?"
Create a headline that makes sense. That says what the potential client wants to hear. Put yourself in their shoes and tap into what interests them.
Think about it this way:
"Does the headline jump into the conversation that's already going on in their mind?"
That's how you attract attention.
Say goodbye to the bad first impression and wasted money. Now you have a great headline for your ad. Excellent first impression. The chances for your business to succeed skyrocketed.
And if we apply this test on the previously mentioned headline, I'm pretty sure it doesn't pass it.
But I solved that problem too.
When working with clients one of the first things I do is building a great first impression, coming up with the right headline and efficient ad.
This technique can be applied for each business in many ways. If you want to know how we can improve your business, contact us here.
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