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Which of the two heasdline types performs better?

by Jomuli3
8 replies
The headline is a very important component of a sales letter. A persuasive copywriter would spent some time crafting a strong headline.

It must hook the reader and keep her attention.

If the headline fails to hook and keep the readers' attention then no matter how persuasive the rest of the content is, the conversion rate will be low.

There are different types of headlines. For the purpose of this discussion I would like to focus on ---

--- headlines which raise curiosity

--- headlines which convey benefits

Which of the two, from your experience, is stronger than the other and why?
#heasdline #performs #types
  • Profile picture of the author AstonCopy
    Why do you have to choose?

    You should be able to write a headline that raises curiosity AND conveys the benefit of the product. Check it out:

    "New Car Runs On Water"

    Curious...with a clear benefit. This has been split tested a bunch of times, by plenty of people. It's the age old question of being clever vs. being clear. They aren't mutually exclusive.

    Am I allowed to post links? Not my site, but this has good test results that'll help you answer yous question:

    The Great Copy Debate: Clear Vs. Clever | Copywriting by Copy HackersCopywriting by Copy Hackers
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    • Profile picture of the author Alex Cohen
      --- headlines which raise curiosity

      --- headlines which convey benefits

      Which of the two, from your experience, is stronger than the other and why?
      Curiosity-only headlines rarely work well.

      Benefit-only headlines do better, but on the internet, they're not the cat's meow.

      Headlines w/emotion and implied (or expressed) benefits work well.

      Alex
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      • Profile picture of the author Jomuli3
        What makes sales?

        Is it curiosity or benefits?

        Some research conducted indicate that benefit driven headlines scoop a whooping 75% of results.

        This leaves 25% for curiosity when the two are compared.

        Prospects buy when they see benefits.

        Emotions also help make sales.

        Curiosity will enable them go through the entire copy. In the process, when strong proof and psychological techniques are employed, conversions could be attained.

        A combination of curiosity and benefits in a headline, however, creates a strong hook. It also avails a good reason for a prospect to keep on reading --- until they're skillfully persuaded to buy.
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  • Profile picture of the author Jonwebb
    Depends, some markets are better off being eased into the offer through a story. Other times ( and this works more often then not on this forum.) the direct benefits driven headline/lead is the way to go.

    In choosing which too use. I found it best to ask myself on a scale of 1-5 how much will my target customer resist my offer. The lower the number the more direct I go, the higher the number the more "selling" I have to do
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  • Profile picture of the author Edwin Torres
    How about a curiosity headline with a benefit attached :-)?

    "Weird health trick doctors don't want to tell you that will trim your waistline 5 inches in under 2 weeks"

    ..maybe something like that.
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  • Profile picture of the author alvinchua91
    My opinion? A curiosity inducing headline which leads into something which directly appeals to the psychology of the reader works best.
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  • Profile picture of the author GforceSage
    Good is Good. If it's strong copy, I will check it out either way.
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  • Profile picture of the author website design
    Depends on the target market and product you're selling - what are the customers expectations? There is no one size fits all approach to headlines.

    Curiosity works when people are randomly browsing and have low involvement - you need to catch their attention!

    Benefits work better when the customer is searching for something specific or in the comparison search - they want the info asap.
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    no sig needed.
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