cosmo

When I’m standing in line to purchase groceries I always like to read the magazine headlines. Cosmopolitan is my favorite. With a picture of a svelte model in a low-cut gown and titles like “10 ways to please your man,” I feel that if I just read the magazine my life would be great. Magazines use some common formulas to turn people’s heads.

1. Numbers: “5 Fabulous Head-Turning Headlines.” I know it seems bland, but readers like numbers in their titles. Not every title, of course, but posts with numbers pull in more traffic! I’m serious. (See Sonia Simone’s article “8 Ways to Use Numbers in Headlines” for more information.)

2. Questions: “Do Questions work in Headlines?” Questions get people to think. They subconsciously answer the question in their own minds and read further to see if you have the same answer they have.

3. How To: “How to Write Great Headlines.” People love to learn and how to headlines teach them.

4. Commands: “Boost Your Readership with Great Headlines.” Take a great selling point of your service or product and put into a headline.

5. Testimonials: “Write Thoughts Headlines Got Me More Readers.” Third-party testimonials are gold. Let your customers do the speaking for you.

Headlines are like a hook on a fishing line. They lure the readers to your site and the copy on your site catches them and keeps them there. A combination of both great headlines and good copy will increase your sales. So turn some heads with great headlines today.

Permission Marketing : Turning Strangers Into Friends And Friends Into Customers
This is a great book that is very relevant to business today, even though it was published in 1999. The first three-quarters of the book are interesting and read quickly. The advice given is very pertinent to marketing. The second part is not quite as relevant because internet marketing has changed since 1999. This book is well worth your time to read, however. If you are new to marketing, it will give you a good basis for developing strong relationships with your customers. If you are an old-hand at marketing, it will refresh your views and cut through the advice clutter that exists on the internet today.

Godin notes that, “Technology has changed the world’s approach to advertising.” He then recounts the history of advertising and discusses that to have a bustling economy you need two things: scarcity and things people want. Advertising has changed because “consumers are now willing to pay handsomely to save time, while marketers are eager to pay bundles to get attention.”

Godin’s system does not produce instant results, like some interruption marketing campaigns. However, “permission marketing cuts through the clutter and allows a marketer to speak to prospects as friends, not strangers, “Godin says, “and is the most powerful trend in marketing for this decade.”