Beyond Headlines: How to Get Your Audience to Read Every Word

Whether you’re trying to get on the front page of Digg or just angling for a sale, writing magnetic headlines that grab your readers’ attention is everything.

But once you have their attention, you need them to read every word that you write.

You need to craft an opening made up of an enticing string of sentences that whet your readers’ appetites, set up a need, and prime them for action.

Easier said than done, right?

Well here’s a step-by-step tutorial on how to do it:

Establish rapport with an “agreeable” opening

People naturally lend their attention (and loyalty) towards those with similar tastes, whether it’s a matter of liking the same sports team, driving the same model of car, or sharing a political or ideological stance. If you can communicate an insight that your reader can agree with, you’ve elevated your chances of capturing their ongoing attention.

You’ll see many writers use this approach with opening paragraphs like:

• “I’m sure we all can agree that eating well is critical to good health . . .”
• “As bloggers, we know how important a reliable, affordable web host is . . .”
• “All savvy car buyers know that paying sticker price is for suckers . . .”

Agreement-based openings can make readers feel smarter when they see that their own opinions are being positioned as widely accepted fact (which will make them more likely to want to continue reading).

If you lead in with an “agreeable” statement that sets up your content, you’re starting out strong.

Set up a need with your next sentence

Once you’ve coaxed a bit of a agreement from your reader, you can trigger a sense of need that compels them to keep reading.

The simplest way to do that is with a statement that establishes that what they just agreed on isn’t enough, or isn’t the final answer . . . and that they’re going to miss out if they don’t keep reading.

This isn’t hard to do and you’ve no doubt seen it before:

• “But a healthy diet alone isn’t enough to prevent heart disease . . .”
• “Choosing the right web host is only the first step to building your blog . . .”
• “Even if you know the MSRP of that new car, you’re only halfway ready to negotiate . . .”

Set up the need, and you can be sure that people will continue to read, if only to see if they already know what you’re about to reveal.

Prime them for action with a promise

Your winning headline should have set up a promise of valuable information. This is your opportunity to reinforce the benefit they’ll receive when they read every word that you’ve written.

A good closing sentence for your first paragraph puts them into “forward-looking” mode, where they can envision themselves using the information to gain some immediate benefit (the more immediate, the better).

Once you’re aware of how copywriters use this pattern, you’ll notice it everywhere:

• “. . . you’ll have 3 ways to reduce your risk of heart disease that you can use right now.”
• “. . . you’ll be ready to build a blog that’s popular and profitable from day one.”
• “. . . you’ll know exactly how to get the lowest price on your next new car — today.”

Once you’ve established a connection with them, convinced them of their need and given them assurance of an immediate take-away, the stage is set for them to read down to the very last word.

Now it’s your turn: How do you start off with a bang?

These three steps are a sure-fire way to keep people reading what you write — but they’re not the final word on the subject.

Got a favorite “pull-them-in” opening strategy? Let us know in the comments below.