A Simple Trick To Write Better Headlines In 2022

This piece of advice comes from one of the best copywriting books of all time.

January 03, 2022

Good morning,

Did you know that the average time someone spends reading your email is 10 seconds?

This means that without a great headline, everything else in you write won’t matter because no one will read it.

Your headline is the hook and the words you choose determine how juicy of a worm you put on the end of that hook.

This is why you need to focus on ONE BIG IDEA.

I got this bit of advice from reading Great Leads: The Six Easiest Ways to Start Any Sales Message by Michael Masterson and John Forde. This book is considered to be one of the greatest sales copywriting books of all-time, and I am reading it for the second time so I can start 2022 off on the right foot.

The concept of writing about one big idea is straightforward in theory, but difficult to implement.

We tend to think more is more, not less is more.

As an example, many people would assume that if I titled this post “7 Simple Tricks To Write Better Headlines In 2022” that it’d have better engagement.

But as the legendary copywriters in Masterson and Forde’s book tell us, that’s just not true. The most memorable, high-converting copy almost always focuses on one idea.

Here’s an example of a brilliant sales letter from the book:

Dear Friend, 

There’s no product easier to create or sell online than a simple, straightforward instructional or how-to e-book. 

Why are e-books the perfect information product to sell on the Internet? 

• 100% profit margin. 

• No printing costs. 

• No inventory to store. 

• Quick and easy to update. 

• No shipping costs or delays. 

• Higher perceived value than regular books. 

•Quick, simple, and inexpensive to produce. 

My very first e-book has generated $20,727 in sales (so far). My total investment in producing it: just $175. Now, I want to show you how to make huge profits creating and selling simple e-books — in my new e-book “Writing E-Books for Fun & Profit.” 

Normally my e-books sell for anywhere from $29 to $79, and later this year, “Writing E-Books for Fun & Profit” will sell for $59. However, to make it affordable for you to get started in e-book publishing, I’m letting you have “Writing E-Books for Fun & Profit” for only $19 today — a savings of $40 off the cover price! 

For more information...or to order on a risk-free 90-day trial basis...just click here now. 

Sincerely, 

Bob Bly 

P.S. But, I urge you to hurry. This special $40 discount is for a limited time only. And once it expires, it may never be repeated again.

Here’s the anatomy of that sales letter and what makes it great.

  1. One good idea | “There’s no product easier to create or sell online than a simple, straightforward instructional or how-to e-book.”

  2. One core emotion | “It is simple! I bet I can do it!”

  3. One captivating story | Told brilliantly in 17 words: “Would you be interested in investing $175 to make $20,727? That’s exactly what Bob Bly just accomplished!”

  4. One single, desirable benefit | “Now, I want to show you how to make huge profits creating and selling simple e-books.”

  5. One inevitable response | The only way to get this book for $19 is to “click here now”.

That sales letter is captivating, clear, and to the point. There is no fluff. And dammit it’s a good offer!

So, when you’re working with clients this year, remember that it’s your obligation as a copywriter to cut through the noise and find that ONE BIG THING that’s going to move their audience towards a sale.

All the best this year,Andrew

P.S. I made a New Years Resolution to grow this email list to 1,000 subscribers by the end of the year. Could you help me get there by subscribing and/or forwarding this email to a friend who’d find this kind of information helpful? Thanks!