What is it? A sit up, slap in the face, shut-up and listen headline.

Pretty tough language? You bet!

But you've only got about two seconds to convince someone they should stick around and hear what you've got to say. Blow it and you end up talking to an empty room.

How do you write that sit up, slap in the face, shut-up and listen headline?

Start with a big promise. A BIG-G-G-G promise.

"In six months, you can clean out your desk and go home...for good!"

"This exercise machine can turn your flabby stomach into a washboard in time for summer!"

BIG! Yeah. But also make sure it's true.

Don't exaggerate. Don't mislead. Play it big but straight.

If your big promise sounds too good to be true, tone it down...even if it is true. Perception is more important than truth. If prospects think you're playing loose and fancy with the facts, they'll be out the door faster than you can shout, 'Honest!' And that's probably the last you'll ever see of them.

Your BIG promise should also include a BIG benefit.

Maybe you think a big promise naturally includes a big benefit. Not necessarily so.

Example: 'This program is guaranteed to provide a hundredfold return.'

That's a big promise but not really a big benefit. Let's revise it.

'Retire early with the hundredfold return this program guarantees.'

That's much better but it still needs one more thing. The most important word you can use in a headline. 'YOU'. Let's try it again.

'You can retire early with the hundredfold return this progr

Now look at what we've got. A big promise...with a big benefit.

And don't overlook the action.

Our first headline had little action-power built into it.

So, we added the words 'retire early'. Now the headline has movement. And by adding the word 'you', we've related the action directly to the prospect.

Is all this word editing really necessary?

You bet. And I wouldn't stop with the last headline above. I'd continue to push it around a bit more to see if I could add even more benefit or action.

Just don't push too hard. I've seen more than one excellent headline edited into failure.

Remember, you are after the prospect's attention.

Anything less and you've got nothing.

Only when you have a prospect's attention can you begin the process of selling.