One of the services I offer my clients is to create new ads and marketing materials, or improve upon ones they already use.
One of the first fixes that can have the biggest impact is the headline. Every ad or marketing piece should have a headline. And I don’t mean the company name or lame slogan. I mean a benefits-oriented headline that is going to make the viewer say “Hey, I want to look at this more.”
This is so important that it bears repeating.
Every ad or marketing piece should have a headline.
The headline is basically the commercial for your commercial. If you were a plumber, instead of the header for your ad being:
Joe Blow’s Plumbing
Family Owned Since 1966
It should instead say something like:
Got a Leaky Faucet?
Toilet Overflowing?
Call Us. We’ll Fix It Fast and Fix It Right!
Now, the first one is lame and gives a FEATURE, that they are a family owned company, but not real benefits.
The second one isn’t fabulous, but I thought of it in 8 seconds. The point is, if someone has a leaky faucet or bum toilet, it will catch his attention. It gives benefits, in that it claims that the problem will be solved quickly and correctly. And the reader will be compelled to read further, at which point the headline has done its job, and it is now time for the ad copy to take over.
Tune in next time for another exciting episode of . . . “The Ad Whisperer.”
Note: “Next time” may be tomorrow, may be next week, may be in 2 months. Just depends how I feel.
Brent Allan is the “Small Biz Marketing Wiz” who specializes in unconventional marketing methods for small businesses. He is the editor and head honcho for BizWarrior Online. At night, he dresses up in spandex and fights crime as the mysterious “Ad Whisperer.”
