The Most Important Part Of Your Advertising

When it comes to advertising, there is one part of your ad that I would consider falling under the “80/20” category.

Meaning, it’s the 20% of your ad that drives 80% of the result.

A massive lever to “pull” when it comes to your ads.

And that part of the ad is the headline.

Why is the headline so critical?

Well, think about it…

What would make someone decide to read the entirety of your ad in the first place?

On the other side of the coin, what would prevent them from reading your ad altogether?

And here’s the simple answer:

The first line of your ad.

Does it resonate with them?

No?

Then they move on and read something that does catch their attention.

Does it resonate?

Great.

Then they move to the next line of your ad.

By the way, this doesn’t just apply to text based advertising.

It applies just the same to video, and audio.

What is the “headline” in an audio based ad?

Really the first sentence of what you say.

The fundamentals stay exactly the same.

What should the headline be?

Well, there’s TONS of different structures and concepts you can apply when it comes to creating winning headlines (check out the book “tested advertising methods”, the 4th edition by John Caples if you want to go deep on this topic), but here’s the basic premise…

You want your headline to clearly call out the market you are going after.

The headline should really resonate with the specific audience you are interested in, and should be “background noise” to everyone else.

The exact opposite of trying to be “everything to everyone”.

Instead, you’re focused on trying to be exclusive to a specific group of people, to the point where when they read (or hear, or see) your ad, they think…

“Interesting. It’s like this ad was created just for me. Let me check this out”.

A term that I heard before that I thought was fitting for the idea of the headline being ultra specific to a specific group of people was a term called “dog whistle copy”.

Meaning, just like how only dogs can pick up the sound of a dog whistle, your headline should only be “heard” by the specific audience you are targeting, and should be imperceptible by everyone else.

That’s the concept.

Your headline is clearly calling out your target market.

In the words of Claude Hopkins….

“The purpose of a headline is to pick out people you can interest. You wish to talk to someone in a crowd. So the first thing you say is, ‘Hey there, Bill Jones’ to get the right person's attention”.

He continues with…

“So in an advertisement. What you have will interest certain people only. And for certain reasons. You care only for those people. Then create a headline which will hail those people only”.

And lastly, he talks about the massive importance of headlines when he refers to himself in the following quote…

“The writer of this chapter spends far more time on headlines than on writing. He often spends hours on a single headline. Often scores of headlines are discarded before the right one is selected. For the entire return from an ad depends on attracting the right sort of readers. The best salesmanship has no chance whatever unless we get a hearing”.

So, when it comes to your advertising, spend a majority of your time working on (and testing) your headlines. (assuming your offer has already been validated).

That’s where you are going to drive the most “bang for your buck” when it comes to your results.

Find (and test) the headline that appeals the most to your target audience.

And by the way, here’s a quick formula you can test for your business when it comes to creating headlines.

I’ve used it, and continue to use it all of the time.

In fact, you may have filled out a form from an ad I was running that used this type of headline formula.

By the way, I didn’t create it.

But here it is…

“If you’re a [describe who they are], looking to [whatever they are interested in], then you might be interested in checking out [your offer]”.

So, if you run a roofing company and if you’re promoting some sort of free roofing pricing guide or report, a headline for your business might look something like…

“If you’re a homeowner in Dallas looking to see how much it would cost to get your roof replaced without having a roofing salesperson come over to try and sell you a roof, then you might be interested in checking out our free 2025 Dallas Homeowners Roof Replacement Pricing Report.”

Yes, the headline is long.

And that’s okay.

Remember, the market that fits that category (that is interested) will read the whole thing.

Those who don’t fit that category will move on.

So spend time working on your headlines.

That’s where you’ll get the most impact with your advertising.

Hope this was helpful!

Until next time,
Colin