Headline Lessons from the World of Financial Publications
Headlines.
Arguably the most important part of your sales message…
It’s the first and often only chance your copy gets at winning your prospects attention. The part of your message that forces them to sit up and succumb to your selling copy.
And if you’ve ever spent time coming up with one..you know finding a truly powerful response arresting headline…is a difficult and daunting task.
Today, I want to try and help solve.
I’m not claiming to have all the answers. Far from it.
I doubt I ever will…
But one group of creative minds comes incredibly close.
They find their home in of ruthless competition. And industry where the winners take home hordes of cash. Where like dogs to win customers. And plain ideas and “same old, same old” get spat out and cast to the gutter…
A place where the prospect is bombarded with advertising. With every company out there trying to win their favor
In this environment, headlines must arrest attention. They must create interest.
Otherwise, they are done.
… OK
Maybe I’m waxing poetic a little (it was fun to write!)…
But the message is true…
If you’ve been keeping up with me lately, then you’ll know I’m obviously talking about the Financial Copy industry.
And in that industry, their headlines have to get attention. Full stop. No questions asked.
Ideas flow in abundance in the industry. And only the best float to the top as prospects vote with their wallets.
And vote they do. Some headlines playing a major role in multi-million dollar sales messages. Hundreds of millions from nothing but words on a page (and a damn good offer of course.)
So with that in mind…there should be some lesson to learn right.
That’s what I’m going to do here.
And even if you haven’t a damn clue what a headline is…don’t worry.
You will after reading on.
In fact, it’s probably better. You’ll have a clear and unbiased mind that will soak up all the money-making nuggets I’m about to share.
So.
Let’s get to it.
First, some groundwork.
What is a “Headline”?
I thought it would be important to answer this first.
It gives us something to analyze our headlines against.
So. In my opinion, a headline is an appeal to a single primary desire or want, direct or indirect, that captures the prospect’s attention, piques interest, and entices them to read the next line of copy.
Bear in mind that is my opinion. I’m not claiming it to be the right answer. There are many other interpretations.
That said, I’m going off the teachings of legends Joe Sugarmann and Eugene Schwartz. So take it as you will.
Anyway…
Let’s break down what my opinion of a headline is, and I’ll argue why I think that’s correct.
“A headline is an appeal to a single desire or want”
This is straight from Schwartz himself.
Here’s how I see it.
Your headline must embody one key desire. One overarching ‘want’ that trumps all other wants and desires your prospect possesses. At that moment in time.
Without this, there is no emotional appeal to the prospect. Nothing pulling them in from their very core. Just empty words on a page.
Think of it this way.
If you’re captivated with the idea of becoming an admired musician… with people applauding you for your hard earned skill and finally recognizing you as a talented individual…truly meaning something in this world…then an appeal to that sense of admiration and status will resonate with you.
It’s all you think about.
But if you don’t, then the same message will be lost on you. It’ll pass by. Like water off a duck’s back.
Conversely, if all I told you was I had a book that taught you piano and it had 430 pages…would you be interested?
Unlikely. There’s no emotional connection. No expression of an opportunity to truly get what you desire. Nothing pulling you in.
An important point on this also… You’re trying to capture a desire or want. Not a need.
Try not to get this confused.
People need a car that gets them from A to B. But deep down some are burning for a flashy motor.
People need money, but they desire the status, freedom, power, the laziness it affords them, etc. that comes with it.
Remember above all that these desires and wants are emotional.
This will depend on your prospect. On what they want and what they desire.
This is why research is so important. To know my emotional chord to strike with your prospect that will get there attention.
Fail to do so and you’re shooting in the dark (and burning a fat hole in your pocket)
“, direct or indirect,”
Hat tip to Eugene’s Schwartz number 2 (he’s a genius in my mind)…
And his teachings on market awareness and how your headline changes accordingly.
I won’t go into detail on this, the scale itself is covered excellently here
However, dependent on where your prospect sits on this scale (your research should tell you), you’ll vary your headline.
Either way, your headline is direct (“Buy this for 30% off today!”) or indirect (“A tiny company sits at the center a market about to explode…”). You can’t get away from this, because you can’t choose both.
Trying to do so will potentially:
- Confuse your prospect
- Make them immediately skeptical (in a market bombarded with advertising)
- Or fly right over there head.
You have to choose one stage of Awareness and run with it.
(P.s. If you truly want master headlines, go buy this — that’s not an affiliate link btw.)
“that captures the prospect’s attention, piques interest, and entices them to read the next line of copy.”
Your headline is 9 times out of 10, the first thing people will look at (assuming you’re not using an image, etc.). It should arrest the prospect’s attention and force them to engage with your sales letter.
Your appeal to a desire or want should do a good bit of all of the above…
But it won’t get you all the way.
(Otherwise, big promise headlines appealing to those would work all day, right?)
So it’s important to pique interest and get them to read via other means.
Why?
Well if your headline doesn’t, they walk away. And you’ve lost all hope of making a sale.
Note also you must convert that attention into compelling interest. Enough to keep the prospect around.
Without interest, there’s nothing else motivating the reader to continue on.
Confused by what I mean? Check this classic example below.
Whilst we might all be interested in sex (which is why it gets out attention)…we may not be interested in hearing what Bart has to say.
So this, in my humble opinion is what a headline must do.
It must get attention and convert it into compelling interest. Compelling enough to get the reader to continue on.
How we do this… I can’t say in fine detail.
It is as much an art as it is a science.
Yes, we need what I’ve mentioned above. To appeal to a desire. To be direct/indirect and so on.
But how you do that. That’s entirely up to you. That is one of the joys of copy. You get to be creative and your work has tangible results.
…it can also be one of the great pains
See there’s far too much going on in a market. So much stuff that’s beyond our ability to control or interpret. Too many outside influences on the prospect and the market. What they’ve seen today that could have influenced their opinion. What the prospect has tried before that didn’t work.
All of that influences your market’s response. And when it doesn’t work, it can leave you at a dead end after trying numerous different headlines.
So it can be good to have a little guidance for when times get tough.
I’ve come across a few tips and checklists that I’ve learned from masters of copy, so I’ll list them off here.
They’ll come in useful when we’re checking out our headlines too.
“How to” headline tips
1 — A list of Emotional Appeals/Desires that have worked in the past
And you can be sure as hell that these appeals won’t change any time soon.
The wants of the human mind are almost as old as the hills.
They may shift as time goes by…but they’ll always be there (unless we all lose our basic human values…which ain’t gonna happen anytime soon.)
Use these as a start if you really don’t know what your prospect wants. But always try to understand your prospect first (i.e. talk to them if you can!)
I’ve taken these from the great Victor Schwab. A copywriter that often goes unsung but is revered by all the modern greats.
This list isn’t conclusive by any means. And if you want more, you should buy his book “How To Write a Good Advertisement”
- Money and a better job
- Security in old age
- Popularity
- Praise from others
- More comfort
- Social advancement
- Improved appearance
- Personal prestige
- Better health
- Increased enjoyment
If you take the time to break down headlines, 9 times out of 10, you’ll find an underlying promise that appeals to one of these emotional appeals.
2 — The 4 U’s
Coined by the excellent Michael Masterson, who has ran or consulted many multi-million dollar businesses around the world, the 4 U’s highlight 4 points that a great headline should look to include.
Note: You don’t have to use all of these, but from what I’ve seen, most rely on at least 2 or more at a time.
Here they are
- Unique
- Useful
- Urgent
- Ultra-specific
Also, I use this order in particular. Because in my eyes, they aren’t all equal.
Here’s why.
Above all, your headline should communicate something unique. Something new nobody has seen. Because if people can classify it as “something they’ve seen before”, they’ll dismiss it and walk away.
Second, it should be useful to them.
It should suggest something that is beneficial to them in achieving their key desire. Going back to what we said, if we fail to appeal to that emotional want, then what’s compelling them to read the whole thing? In Financial this is nearly always about making money.
Urgency comes third. But that does not mean it is not important.
Without a reason to act now, the prospect can postpone taking you up on your offer. They feel they can “get it later”. Which means they walk away, forget…and you lose your sale.
That said if what you convey in your headline is so unique, useful and interest, you may be able to leave urgency out of your headline.
Finally, your headline should aim to be ultra-specific. With numbers, it implies thorough research into a topic. Which conveys knowledge and trust. Think of it as the difference between saying “This will make you £321,750” vs. “This will make you over £300,000”. The first suggests you have studied the situation and your promise is more believable.
With words, the use of Who, What, Why, This, These etc. all imply something specific. A mechanism that is capable of providing a desire. A new reason why their desire can be achieved.
Ultra-specific is last on this list for me because I’ve seen plenty of headlines succeed without being specific at all.
3. Clayton Makepeace’s “Grab ’Em By The Eyeballs” technique
These are the first steps from legendary copywriter Clayton Makepeace’s 20 point sales letter checklist .
You can find that here.
I use the first 4 after learning it from Kyle Milligan as a way to break down successful leads (which your headline is part of).
The part that’s useful to us is here:
- Grab ’Em By The Eyeballs
- Call out your ideal prospect
- Stoke Curiosity
- Make a Big Promise
What does it mean?
To get someone’s attention we need to grab them by the eyeballs (as Clayton puts it).
That has 3 components in his view which I’ll break down.
- Calling out your ideal prospect — by conveying relevant topics, subtopics or directly addressing them.
I.e. A financial promo that uses the word “Stock”, or “make money” etc. uses a relevant topic to the ideal prospect. As does “Pot stock” or “royalty fee” as a subtopic. You could also use the word “investor” or “trader” to appeal to them directly.
2. Stoke Curiosity
Use ideas, the absence of information, and implication or other techniques to arouse curiosity in your prospect, compelling them to read on.
3. Make a Big Promise
This goes back to the big emotional appeal. Promise the prospect something they want, e.g. A financial promo may promise to reveal the steps behind collecting safe and predictable payments of $1,234, $3,758, and even $5,677, every month, without lifting a finger.
IMPORTANT STUFF BELOW!
I’ll also add that a latter part of Clayton’s 20 point checklist is to “Establish Credibility”. This is crucial in today’s world where people are highly sceptical.
Using credibility elements in your headline make your promise more believable and therefore more likely to turn their attention into interest (and sales!)
You’ll often see headlines carry some element of proof in them, so we’ll add this to our list too!
4. Kyle Milligan’s Emotional Stimulants
That’s absolutely not what he calls them, but that’s how I think of them.
Kyle studied copy for years and found 4 emotions consistently being expressed throughout the copy.
They do not outweigh the primary emotional appeal I’ve been talking about. That is still the message you’re trying to convey.
Instead, they amp it up. They make it sexy. Juicy. And damn near irresistible to the reader.
And since learning them, I’ve not seen a single high selling promotion that doesn’t include them.
What are they?
- New / Only Me
- Easy / Anybody
- Safe / Predictable
- Big / Fast
(If you want to learn more about Kyle (and I advise you do!) you can check out his channel here)
It’s far easier to explain these in an example, so it makes a great segway to our next section, which is checking out those financial promo headlines.
Before we do I just want to say…
I know all of his is a lot to take in. And it can seem daunting.
But the fastest and easiest way to ingrain them is to actively use them. Breakdown headlines and try to find these elements I’m alluding to. Have them next to you or in a different window as we continue or you do your own research.
Above all, think of it this way.
This is our definition. Our overarching idea:
“A headline is an appeal to a single primary desire or want, direct or indirect, that captures the prospect’s attention, piques interest, and entices them to read the next line of copy.”
How we do that. We get creative and produce ideas. We then run those ideas through these 4 filters to ensure we’ve milked it for every ounce of attention and interest we can possibly get..
- A list of successful emotional appeal
- The 4 Us
- Clayton’s Grab’em By the Eyeballs technique
- Kyle Milligan’s Emotional Stimulants
And then that’s it. From there on out, your market decides if it’s any good.
Alright. Now you know you have nearly everything you need to spot an ad and truly understand why it’s working.
Time to put it to work analyzing a “blockbuster success” of a financial promo.
Headline Example 1 — “I’m DONE with Stocks!”
From what I understand, this thing took off harder than Elon’s Falcon 9 rocket.
A sh*t ton of money it did make.
So why did it?
Well…let’s have a look.
Remember — “A headline is an appeal to a single primary desire or want, direct or indirect, that captures the prospect’s attention, piques interest, and entices them to read the next line of copy.”
O.K.
So what’s the primary desire? From our first filter — Money.
Other’s seeking More comfort or Security in Old Age may also be drawn to this Headline, only if they believe money can allow them that (which is fairly universal but not completely).
Next, is it direct or indirect?
Indirect. There is no offer being made or mentioned here in the headline.
Cool. So are we getting the prospect’s attention and piquing interest sufficient that they read to the next line.
Well if what I’ve heard is true…the answer is absolutely yes. But let’s run it through our remaining filters to see why.
For this, I’m going to draw on the image and save a ton of text.
OK, so this should make what I’ll discuss below a lot clearer.
Starting with the 4 U’s.
Is it unique?
…this is incredibly unique!
America’s #1 stock analyst is telling you he is done with stocks.
Something he’s become renowned for…he’s now completely abandoning.
Also, think about where the reader is. They are hit up every single day with stock tips and promotions. This cuts against everything everyone is saying. That’s really unique.
Another element: The analyst ’s also revealing a “new way” to make money. That’s unique too.
So seeing this bold headline, the reader asks “What? Why is he done with stocks?” And that’s all he needs to get the reader to engage with the next line of copy which nicely communicates that it is…
Useful?
Make money up to £11,00 a week — very much so.
Urgent?
Nothing here is communicating it.
Ultra-specific?
At face value. No. No specific numbers (up to 11,000 is a generic number)…
But you could argue that the idea of a single way to make money is specific. There’s only one.
I’ve left it off here, up to you to decide.
OK. So we’ve got Unique and Useful. 2 of the 4 U’s (the minimum we need), and two of the most appealing (in my opinion).
Let’s move to the next filter.
Clayton’s Grab’em By the Eyeballs technique
So…did the promotion…
1. Call out the ideal prospect?
Yep. The word stock/s and options are mentioned. That’s enough to convince me
2. Stoke Curiosity?
Absolutely!
The reader is racking their brain wondering…
“Why is he done with stocks?”
“How the hell can he make up to $11,000 a week without a single stock or option?!”
“Why after 8 years is he finally revealing this?”
The second one, I feel, is the real pull here. The first get attention. It cuts against everything the reader is seeing and hearing.
But the second — Just how the hell can he do it? That’s not supposed to be possible. That “How” really creates intrigue and interest to read on.
3. Big Promise?
Yes indeed.
Here it is: “A new way to make money in America — up to $11,00 a week — without touching a single stock or option again.”
$11,000 a week. That’s big. And the “without” section makes it even bigger….and adds to the curiosity!
Take note of the credibility elements also.
“America’s #1 stock analyst”. That’s some hefty credibility. So that’s a yes there too.
Alright. We’ve checked those off Clayton’s list.
Last filter.
Kyle Milligan’s Emotional Stimulants
I said I’d explain these here. So I’ll do it as I run through each.
Hopefully this will explain more of the WHY behind these ads. How they pull on the emotional heartstrings of the reader.
I know it really changed how I saw things once I noticed them.
Again. Kudos to Kyle.
New / Only Me
Similar to “Unique” in the 4 U’s, New is an emotional stimulant that plays on the human desire to seek out the new.
Victor Schwab made a point out of this. How humans, especially in the west see “New” as something better. Something improved. That will benefit you more.
That’s why we are drawn to it.
The only-me amplifies this further. If it’s something new, and appealing to the reader, and they can only get it from you (the stock guru in these examples), then it immediately forces them to pay attention you alone.
You have something that they believe can help them get what they want. So you have them for now.
Remember these are emotional stimulants. We are using the elements to perk up the emotions that ultimately lead the reader to buy
In this ad, there were two “New/Only Me” elements I noted down.
The word “new”.
And that Shah Gilani is revealing something the reader wants — that’s just one guy telling all. So that’s only him.
Easy / Anybody
Michael Masterson, creator of the 4 U’s says in his book Great Leads, that “making a solution is always a very good thing to do”.
Why?
I believe it appeals to the human tendency to avoid risk. If something seems easy, we are more likely to see the end result we desire.
Also, the majority of people are naturally lazy. They don’t want to have to put too much effort in. Being easy communicates that and appeals to laziness.
Now I haven’t noted these down on the image above (I didn’t even notice them…) but going back over it…
The idea of gaining a desired result ($11,000 per week) WITHOUT using stocks and options.
That’s a sort of easy appeal. Indirectly at least.
Using stocks and options…the reader knows these to be complicated. Difficult to understand. And not approachable to the average investor who probably doesn’t know how to use a brokerage platform.
If you can avoid using them…there’s potential for it to be easy.
Sort of easy appeal.
Safe / Predictable
Nobody wants to look a fool. To lose social standing or status. Neither do they want to lose money (that has elements of status in it too right)
So showing something is safe is a fantastic stimulant. It makes the reader far more receptive to your promise. Because they at least for now feel they aren’t putting anything on the line.
You can communicate something is safe as well by showing it is predictable. That it happens over and over. That it’s proven.
There weren’t many safe elements here.
Credibility elements are safe. They imply a trusted and respected source is confirming a promise to be true.
We have one here in the “brow copy” — the text above the large font headline.
“America’s #1 stock analyst” — well if this guy is America’s number one stock analyst, then what he has to say holds more truth than some dude off the street.
He’s inherently less risky through his status (he can’t get to America’s #1 if he doesn’t get results!). So less risk implies he is safe.
Big / Fast
Big in this context refers to the primary benefit. We’re communicating an answer to “How BIG is the result you’re promising?”
The bigger the better generally…as long as you can prove it.
Sometimes it helps to play your big promise down, as bigger and bigger promises lead to a more sceptical market overtime.
Anyway…
In this instance, we’re communicating a physical benefit. A fat stack of money. The bonus here is that it turns up the emotional benefits the reader will receive too.
They start to think about what they could do with $11,000.
How it could make them more comfortable. How they could live with less worry. How they could feel good about helping their grandchildren and so on.
This is what really motivates the reader, so it helps to play on big.
So…is this promo big?
$11,000. Yeh, that’s good money to the average reader for sure. That’s big. But not BIG.
That’s where fast comes in. It turns things up a notch.
Here Fast answers “How fast will I receive the benefit you’re promising?”
Up to $11,000 a week — that’s fast. I don’t know too many people that couldn’t wait a week for up to $11,000.
The fast element here helps make the opportunity seem BIG. $11,000 a week. The reader’s mind is like a Nascar track. Racing around thinking of all the things they could do with that money.
This is what truly gets people reading. They sell themselves on checking this whole thing out because of how it could better their lives.
— —
O.K. that’s just one headline down.
I’ll quickly run over another, but with fewer notes.
Here’s one I’ve seen around for a long time (i.e. it’s making a ton of cash):
Here are my notes
For clarity, I’ve placed apostrophes around the ultra-specific elements (which are also useful ones too!). It saves a lot of clutter.
Alright, let’s fly through this one.
Primary desire? From filter 1 — Make more money. Again, this will filter down into what the reader feels is their most primary emotional benefit — Peace of mind in old age etc.
Direct or Indirect — indirect. No mention of an offer. You’re just being shown how.
The 4 U’s.
Absolutely loaded and ticking off every single one! Look at the annotations to see what I found.
Notice to the take away/scarcity of “and you will NEVER see it again” adding the urgency.
If the reader is drawn in by the primary appeal…the idea it could go away will kick them into gear and read.
Clayton’s Grab’em By the Eyeballs technique
Again, we’re checking them all.
Using the word “trader” to call out the ideal prospect as well as using words like “richer” (that’s what they want, so it will call them out)
The curiosity here is primarily from the boldness of the claim.
Note again that the reader’s natural “HOW THE HELL!?” reaction is what will drive them to read on.
You’re also told “you’ve not seen anything like this” — this doesn’t hold anywhere near as much curiosity and pull as the claim, but it will intrigue some nonetheless!
The big promise? It’s implied in the word “watch” that you’ll get to see how he does it. How he makes that money so fast. That’s enough to pull the reader in.
Notice an almost identical line for credibility as well
Kyle Milligan’s Emotional Stimulants
Loads’a big…loads’a fast.
A touch of Only Me (that this one person will show you how it’s all done).
A smidge of New — you’ve never seen anything like it.
What’s interesting here is the implied safe and predictable. It more of a ‘show’ than a tell.
Here’s what I mean.
The copywriter here lists multiple trade results
$1,050 richer in 15 seconds…
$940 richer in 11 seconds…
And so on.
The fact there is more than one instance suggests it isn’t just a one-off. The process of getting that money is repeatable. It’s predictable.
And it’s happened several times before (you’re about to see the guy do it).
That makes things appear safe without coming out and saying.
And that’s powerful.
Why?
Because it allows the reader to arrive at that decision themselves. No coercion. No bully salesman tactics.
They sell themselves on the idea and keep reading.
Think about it — who is the reader going to trust more than themselves? It’s a powerful technique.
NB: I’m not sure if anyone has said this before, but I’m going to…
The greatest person to sell to you is yourself.
…
Alright, final one..but this time it’s on you.
And it’s for a good reason.
There is a lot to take in here.
Yet at a high level, there isn’t much to it…
We’ve gone over the definition of a headline, according to yours truly. (Our WHAT when it comes to headlines. What we are trying to aim for)
And then we dived into how we do it.
Coming up with an idea is on your and your research.
But the filters we went through…
- The list of emotional appeals
- The 4 U’s
- Clayton Makepeaces’s ‘Grab ’Em By the Eyeballs’
- Kyle Milligan’s Emotional Stimulants
…show us our HOW.
How to hone that idea into a truly compelling headline. What we need to hit to make our headline a winner and get a response.
Remember you don’t need to include all of these…
And like I’ve mentioned above so are more important than others.
But you should definitely try to include them in your workflow.
That’s a lot easier if you remember them.
And the best way to make something stick is to actively use it yourself.
Do it in your own time. Or feel free to post what you got in the comments below. I’ll let you know what I got if you do!
Anyway, here it is.
Best of luck.
James J Melling
