The Three Cs of Writing an Excellent all Purpose Headline

Since the headline is the first contact your readers have
with your message, it must reach out to them. Promise them
a benefit. Tell them how they will be better off if they
read the rest of the ad. Use action verbs. Save ten dollars
is a stronger heading than Savings of ten dollars because of
the verb.

Headlines can be classified into the following five basic
types; effective headlines frequently combine two or more
of these kinds.

News Headlines

This form tells the reader something he or she did not know
before. Using the word news does not make it a news headline.
"Now - a copy machine that copies in color" is an example of
this type headline.

Advice and Promise Headline

Here you are promising something if the reader follows the
advice in your ad. "Switch to Amoco premium, no-lead gasoline,
and your car will stop pinging."

Selective Headline

This headline limits the audience to a specific group. For
example: "To all gray-haired men over forty." Caution! Be
absolutely sure you do not eliminate potential customers with
this type of headline.

Curiosity Headline

The intent here is to arouse the reader's interest enough to
make him or her read the ad. The danger is that this headline
often appears "cute" or "clever" and fails in its mission. An
example: "Do you have trouble going to sleep at night?"

Command or Demand Headline

Watch out for this one as most people resist pushiness, especially
in advertising. "Do it now!" or "Buy this today!" This headline
generally can be improved by changing to less obtrusive wording
such as: "Call for your key to success!"

One common misconception about headlines is that they must be
short and easy to understand. This is not always true. Here is
a headline that was used extensively in print ads by Ogilvy and
Mather for one of their clients: At 60 miles an hour, the loudest
noise in this Rolls-Royce comes from the electric clock.

Illustrations

There are three primary reasons for using illustrations in
an advertisement.

- To attract attention to the ad.
- To illustrate the item being featured.
- To create a mood in the mind of the reader.

Everyone has heard, A picture is worth a thousand words; in
advertising, the illustration frequently helps the reader
visualize the benefits promised. You can almost feel the warmth
of the tropical sun when you see the photos in January travel
ads. Cost and practicality may dictate whether your ad uses
photographs, artists' drawings or merely canned artwork. Any of
these can make the ad more appealing to the reader's eye.

Copy

If you follow the three principles of good copy, your ads will
be effective:

- Good copy should be clear.
- Good copy should be crisp.
- Good copy should be concise.

Clear, crisp and concise . . . the three Cs of copy writing
suggest that the words in your advertising message merely do
a good job of communicating. Do not use big words when small
words can make your meaning clear. Use colorful, descriptive
terms. Use the number of words necessary to make your meaning
clear and no more-but also no less! Selecting the right words
is critical to the success of the ads. Recent research conducted
at Yale University found that the following 12 words are the most
personal and persuasive words in our language.

You Discovery Safety
Money Proven Results
Love Guarantee Save
New Easy Health

Notice the overused word free is not on the list.

REMEMBER THAT WHEN YOUR MESSAGE IS PRINTED IN ALL CAPITAL
LETTERS INSTEAD OF UPPER- AND LOWERCASE LETTERS, IT IS FAR
MORE DIFFICULT FOR THE READER TO FOLLOW AND REMAIN INTERESTED.
EVEN IN HEADLINES ALL CAPITAL LETTERS SHOULD BE AVOIDED.