Say the Secret Word and Win Customers

There are words that excite customers, draw them into your message, and cause them to buy. Using these powerful words in your marketing communications, especially in headlines, can increase the response you receive to advertising, direct mail campaigns, e-mail and Web offers and anywhere you use the written word to communicate with potential buyers.

What these words all have in common is that they promise benefits. Your headline should always pull customers in to read the rest of your copy, whether it is the headline on an article, a Web page, or an advertisement. Each line of copy should encourage them to read the next line. Benefits do that by suggesting the answer to the question, “What’s in it for me?”

So what are these secret words? Of course, one obvious choice is free. Who doesn’t like to get things at no cost? Bonus, win and gift can have the same effect. Along the same line, sale, bargain, discount, special and save promise reduced cost.

Customers like a guarantee. It reduces the risk you are asking them to take. At no risk, no-risk trial, and send no money are also effective.

Discover, new, at last, announcing, first time ever, just arrived, breakthrough and never before let customers know that they may be learning something that others do not know. We also like how to, secret(s of), unknown, hidden, facts, and the truth about as they imply that we are getting inside information.

Other benefits include easy (to use), unique, valuable, amazing, instantly, premium, miracle, improved, opportunity, priority and revolutionary. Create urgency with hurry, only, last chance, rush, limited, today, and now.

Questions can cause the reader to pause and think of an answer. Once they do that, they will keep reading. Use how much, how would, how will, do you and other questions to get them involved.

Words with a strong emotional connection include you, love, hate, protect, life, and yes.

Pay attention to advertising copy you see in publications, in your mail and online. What words and phrases grab your attention and get you to continue reading? Which ones turn you off? Which ones move you to buy?

Remember that your customers will not necessarily respond the same way you do, so consider what is important to them. What do they want (rather than need)? What do they want to avoid? What are the hot buttons that will cause them to buy? Test to determine which words and phrases draw the best results from your target market.

Make your claims credible. People are wise to marketers who simply throw a bunch of adjectives and promises around. Use testimonials and other documentation to back up the headline, and show that you can deliver on the promised benefits.

Use words to paint a picture of something that would please your customers, then show how you (or your product) help them achieve that. These “secret words” will engage your customers’ imaginations and allow them to visualize how they benefit from doing business with you.


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