Headlines - how important are they for your business communication?

Vital!

Do you think that headlines are only used by advertisers trying
to sell something?

Well, forget the myth that people are only interested in
information and if you have great information then they will
read you. They won't if you don't give them a reason to. Which
is where headlines come in...

You have seven seconds ('seven' is a magic number for the brain)
to grab their attention, otherwise they move on. If you don't
give them a compelling reason to pay attention to your
communication then they won't. They'll move on and you would
have missed a great opportunity.

Even if you think you are not selling them anything, in reality
you are. You are selling them on you and your company; your
abilities, your experience, your knowledge, your potential to
help them solve their problems.

Make sure that you always offer your audience (be that audience
there 'in person', or being communicated to via the written
word) a compelling reason to pay attention. Otherwise they
won't. It doesn't have to be a 'highly charged' sales message.
But it does have to be enticing enough to get them to want to
pay more attention.

Don't use trickery, such as a headline about 'sex' that has
absolutely nothing to do with your content. This will only annoy
your guests (quite rightly so) and you'll never see them again.

Give them a reason to read and you'll find that the majority
will. Those that don't are probably not interested in the
subject anyway and you'd be unlikely to be doing business with
them at the moment.

40 great headlines
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Here's a collection of great published headlines that have
garnered for their authors considerable success.

* How would you spend an extra $200,000 - starting tomorrow?

* A good reason not to settle for a 10% return.

* Maintenance problems giving you a headache? (Aspirin attached)

* Toxic People: 10 ways to handle people who make your life
miserable.

* Supposed this happened to your car.

* Take one day to learn how to read men's minds.

* How to literally write any size pay cheque you like, as often
as you like.

* How to print all the money you want - legally!

* Advise and profit - how to create exceptional income as a
consultant.

* I know 97 specific 'tricks' to creating ads that reach out
and suck money right out of peoples' wallets like an
out-of-control vacuum cleaner 'monster' - how many of my tricks
would you like to know?

* What to write on a simple postcard mailing that will make
people flood into your business.

* Discover how to turn what you already known about your work,
hobby or personal interests into a million dollar information
products empire!

* How to rub your stomach away.

* Why do Chinese women have such an impossibly low rate of
breast cancer?

* The 7 critical things you must do to guarantee that your
athletes win under pressure

* Yes, YOU can learn to paint works of art that you can be
proud of and that others will admire.

* How a $7 investment can make you a celebrity and boost your
business by 367% or more!

* How to triple your income by doubling your energy.

* What's the key secret to increasing your income by 917%? If
you don't know, read on. You'll find out what it really takes to
pull more sales and profits from every ad or sales letter you
ever use.

* Solve all your money problems forever (with absolutely no
work whatsoever).

* How easy 'instant mail order' lets you quickly escape the
payday-to-payday rat race.

* Learn to make money like a millionaire

* How to make big money writing and selling booklets in the
next 30 days.

* 50 idiot-proof ways to make money on the internet.

* Think and grow rich this year and for the rest of your life!

* Ex Marketing Director of international publishing firm
REVEALS priceless 'trade secrets' that have been kept under
wraps for years!

* A surprising new discovery for those who've always suspected
they had the 'right stuff' to succeed in their own business...
but who haven't yet quite got going.

* Do fears hold you back?

* How to accomplish anything you want in life.

* How to be your 'possible self'

* To become financially independent, it helps to BE YOUR OWN
BOSS.

* Is your future worth ten dollars?

* Attention entrepreneurs: what would it take to make 1998 your
best year ever? Would an extra $100,000 help?

* Financial strategies for successful retirement.

* Here, at last, are the unspoken sexual health secrets you'll
never hear from your doctor. Your husband. Your wife. Or, heaven
forbid, your mother!

* It's ugly but it's beautiful [...for a Volkswagen, if you
are curious]

* The Post Office wouldn't let us mail you a cup of fresh, hot
coffee. Look inside for the next best thing.

* We can free the writer in you.

* What will your life be like in five years?

* How to recruit, interview and hire the right person. A
step-by-step system for selecting the best person for every job.

...and one more for luck: "My friends and family were convinced
I'd fail my exams. But when the results came through..."