How A-List copywriters cook up headlines
Published: Thu, 11/19/20
i.e., “The Kimpire”
In this part she talks more about research and even deconstructs one of her best and most profitable headlines right before your giant, eager eyeballs.
Here goes…
elBENBO: Can you tell us more about your research process?
THE KIMPIRE: I like to gather as much of my “start kit” as possible from my client, then I’ll dig up the rest myself.
Let’s say I’m writing a new promo for a supplement. I’ll get the list of ingredients (including the specific forms of each one and amounts). I’ll get any studies they have on hand. I’ll find any articles their spokesperson may have written about them. I’ll get any testimonials and customer surveys. Sometimes I’ll even get a list of repeat buyers of the product who I can call up and interview.
But I don’t stop there. I scour the NIH PubMed database for the best studies. I use Dr. Google for additional research, or to figure out what the heck those scientific terms mean that I come across in the studies. I go to online forums to see what my avatar is dealing with and to find out their biggest pain points are and what’s worked/what hasn’t.
I’ll interview the person who formulated the supplement to get more background on why those ingredients and specific forms were chosen, if they’re available. If there’s a doctor or spokesperson behind the product, I’ll interview him or her, too.
There’s more, but that’s generally how my research process goes. I take the same general approach with skin care, fitness products, financial newsletters, and other products as well.
elBENBO: What kind of questions do you ask a repeat buyer? How do you approach a repeat buyer to get them to let you interview them, and what kind of questions to you ask?
THE KIMPIRE: I always use my real name upfront, tell them I'm calling on behalf of XYZ company (whoever they bought the product from), and that I'm not selling anything. I just have a few questions and it will take no more than a few minutes. They will usually agree to talk once I've started off the call that way.
I then ask them why they ordered the product. Generally they don't recall the actual promo or what it was that "tipped them over the edge" into ordering. Where I get more valuable input is hearing about their experience of the problem, what they've tried before, and what their frustrations are with the alternative solutions and/or the problem.
I then will ask them about their experience with the product itself. Sometimes they are taking so many supplements it's hard for them to zero in on that one supplement. But assuming they can, I then ask them how quickly they noticed a difference, what kinds of improvements they've noticed, and whether they'd recommend it to someone else. In some cases I even get a great testimonial I can use in the promo.
elBENBO: What kind of questions do you ask product experts or the product creator when you interview them?
THE KIMPIRE: If it's for a supplement, I'll ask why they chose the specific ingredients in the formula, why each one is in there and what it does. I find out if they're using any unique forms or, if the ingredients are patented what makes them so special. I ask them about any specific studies that guided the formulation, as this can often lead me to the best ones or to proprietary studies I may not be able to find elsewhere.
As far as other products, I'll talk to the formulator (i.e., for skin care) or inventor (i.e., for an air purifier) or the "guru" behind the product (i.e., the editor of an investment newsletter). I'll try to dig out what's unique or special about how they designed or created the product, or their "system" or technique for getting better results.
elBENBO: What are some of your best headline writing tips?
THE KIMPIRE: I pay a lot of attention to coming up with new ways to say something that’s been said a million times before, so it stands out. This is something you should definitely apply to headlines, but should also use for email subject lines or other copy.
There’s so much NOISE you’re competing against as a copywriter, especially online (not as much in the mailbox these days, but you still have all the distractions in the typical household competing for the prospect’s attention).
Add to that you are often writing to a more mature market, and they’ve seen and heard it all before. They’ve probably tried a dozen different so-called solutions to their problem that haven’t worked. So they’re about as skeptical and cynical as they come.
You have to be able to CONVINCE them not just to read your copy by pulling them in by the eyeballs, you have to give them some kind of proof. You can’t just scream out a big promise in your headline and think they’re going to believe you.
Curiosity is also a big component of any successful headline or email subject line. There has to be something intriguing, some kind of loop opened up that needs to be closed, some kind of answer the prospect MUST find out by reading further. That is the sole job of your headline or email subject line: to get the next line of copy read.
elBENBO: Can you gives us an example of a headline you wrote that combined curiosity and proof?
THE KIMPIRE: I literally have dozens of examples of promo headlines I've written that combine curiosity and proof. There are other elements that are good to include, like "news" (sounding new or like something they haven't heard before), a speed of result promise, and/or a unique mechanism.
The promo I wrote for CircO2 that's been doing gangbusters the past 3 years has 2 different control headlines that have been used regularly in rotation. Both include curiosity and proof.
There's this one...it performs really well thanks to the curiosity about how to achieve that big claim, combined with the credibility of MIT scientists:
==
Confirmed by MIT scientists: Nitric oxide levels jump 200% higher in just 20 minutes
when you do this
==
Then there's this other one that's also done quite well, thanks to the curiosity of the question that's posed (a claim made more believable by posing it as a question), as well as the Nobel Prize proof and credibility; it also hints at a unique mechanism:
==
Why are people as old as their 80s and 90s acting like “youngsters” again? It’s due to a new twist on a Nobel Prize-winning breakthrough that makes you sharper, healthier, and more energized!
==
I break down both versions of this super-successful promo in detail in my Million-Dollar Control Breakdown Master Class.
Okay, that’s it for part 4.
Standby for part 5 - the grand finale of this interview - tomorrow.
In the meantime:
If you get Kim’s new “Million Dollar Controls” program by tomorrow, Friday November 20th at midnight EST, and if you email me your receipt by that deadline (not after), you will get a $200 discount, plus I will give you a special bonus:
“elBenbo’s Copywriting Capers: Season 2”
This 2+ hours of audio training contains dozens of insights, ideas, methods, and lessons I learned while working as a freelance copywriter for some of the most brilliant marketing minds on the planet. In many ways, these are some of the most valuable lessons I’ve ever learned.
And, I daresay you can’t even find a lot of this in any book or course.
Here are a few of the secrets inside this training:
* A 4-word question that can “close” more freelancing clients than any fancy one-liners, sales techniques, or manipulative tricks ever can. (Just say this at the start of every conversation you have with a client lead and watch what happens!)
* A market research secret invented by Frank Capra (one of the single most financially successful Hollywood movie directors who ever lived) to know whether your sales copy will be a hit or not before running even a single test.
* The (admittedly bizarre) “why I don’t shop at Walmart” secret for getting an insane level of engagement & sales from your email list, social media followers, & other online leads almost any time you want.
* How to turn a financially withering client dry spell into a book of high-paying clients who want to give you all the work you can stand.
* The 2 worst things you can do when it comes to doing market research for a freelance copywriting assignment. (I know this first hand after watching one of my best clients — who paid me a small fortune in fees — have to rewrite half of one of my sales letters. Embarrassing!)
* The single “ripest” & most profitable market for copywriters looking to do their own thing to get into. (I’ve sold in this niche twice and can assure you it’s rife with hopelessly inept marketers who only succeed because the market is so rabid to buy… and that’s why it probably won’t take much to clean up in it if you have even average copywriting skills.)
* Why (with rare exception) the single dumbest thing a copywriter can do is run their copy through a mastermind group for feedback. (And this is just as much the case if the group is full of savvy or even “world class” copywriters.)
* The one mistake even experienced freelancers make when it comes to so-called “handshake deals” with clients.
* elBenbo’s 2 rules for freelance copywriting success. (One is to never work for free — the other is something far less obvious but just as important to getting paid, getting paid on time, and getting paid the maximum amount you can command.)
* Why you should take any training, teaching, or advice from the early “Web 1.0” gurus from the 90’s and early 2000’s with a big, fat grain of salt. (Hint: when you see a lot of the stupid advice they still give to this day, you will realize a lot of those guys would have been dead in the water if they hadn’t gotten in early, when all you needed to do was have a decent sales letter and a circle jerk network of marketers all giving each other testimonials. This won’t be popular with a lot of goo-roo fanboys who hear it, but it’s for their own growth…)
* The only two people (other than myself, of course) I recommend learning email marketing or email copywriting from.
* The absolute BEST kind of JV partner to do business with if you want to use your copywriting skills to make a lot of money very quickly.
* Why all the stupid copywriter checklists you see floating around social media should be avoided like the bubonic plague if you want to make any real money as a copywriter.
* How to know if something you write about in an email is truly controversial (which is perfect for getting a ton of engagement and probably also a ton of sales, too) or you’re just pandering & virtue signaling for likes and ego boosts like your Facebook friends do all day long.
* A clever way to pump up your writing speed while also attracting more clients.
* How to be the only copywriter your clients won’t dare want to fire, get rid of, or displease. (And this has a lot less to do with talent, skill, or how effective you are than most would assume.)
* What to do with your pricing terms that can often attract nothing but the best clients while also making it far more likely they’ll run your ads without a bunch of pointless edits & changes.
* The “nothing special” copywriting secret I used to write a long-running control nobody could beat (all the way up until the day they retired the offer) in one of the most competitive & cutthroat markets on the internet.
* Why you should probably run from any client, JV partner, or anyone else you want to do with business with if they natter on about using or needing a “nurture sequence.”
All right, enough.
To get these bonuses along with a $200 discount off Kim’s Million Dollar Controls program, do this:
1. Buy it at the URL below by tomorrow, Friday Nov 20 at midnight EST
2. At the checkout use coupon code: BEN200
3. Forward your receipt to ben@bensettle.com by the above deadline — if you send me your receipt after that deadline, you will not get any bonuses
NOTE:
You will need a smart phone to access these bonus videos.
And it'll have to be newer than when Steve Jobs walked the earth.
Here’s the link:
https://www.EmailPlayers.com/ep-kim
Ben Settle