Can subject lines affect size of average order? You bet!

You know testing subject lines is vital for on-line marketing. 

These tests can result in significant differences in open rates, click through rates and of course, orders.

         

But could they make difference in the size of the average order?  Yes!  And this can make a huge difference in your profitability.

         For a natural testosterone boosting product, I wrote two different subject lines:

         Subject: 3 reasons why most testosterone boosters fail

         Subject: Will the next great testosterone booster be unjustly banned?

The first subject line (3 reasons) was followed by an email that revealed that most testosterone boosters fail because they work too slowly…have only been tested on rats…or lack high enough dosages for fast results.

The second subject line (unjustly banned) was followed by an email that revealed that most every low testosterone solution has come under scrutiny by Big Government.  I then added that if history is any indication, the government may soon ban many legitimate natural testosterone boosters by lumping them in with steroids and unnatural hormones.  I then told readers that this new breakthrough T booster is perfect legal, over the counter, clinically tested and still available “at this writing.”

The results of this test?  Both subject lines produced similar open rates and click through rates.  But the average order of the “Unjustly banned” subject line was much higher—so it was the clear winner!

“Ultra Specificity” in Headlines Boost Response

When I write a headline, for a direct mail piece, a landing page or a video sales letter, one thing I have to ask is—is the headline specific enough to make it stand out?

“Ultra Specificity” is a term coined by American entrepreneur and writer Mark Ford.  It’s one part of the four “U”s he and his business partner Bill Bonner identified in studying successful headlines.

They discovered that all great headlines had a sense of Urgency…contained something Unique…offered something Useful…and were Ultra Specific.

So when I write a headline, I want to make sure it includes specific features and/or benefits, facts or statements that make it stand out among competing headlines and make it more authentic and more believable.

Here are three examples of very successful headlines…

For Reconnect, I came up with a headline that doesn’t just promise conquering hearing loss—but 5 types of hearing loss.  As the prospect reads on, he/she learns these include age-related hearing loss…blockage of normal sounds…vertigo (imbalance)...ringing in the ears…and noise-induced hearing loss. 

For Advanced Cell Rescue, I zeroed in on the secret of healthy 100-year-olds, not just healthy older people.  If these centenarians could escape major age-related health problems, I figured prospects would want to know their secret. 

And for Seanol I first asked the question if this rare sea plant was better than green tea.  Then wrote you’d have to “drink 200 glasses of green tea a day to get the antioxidant protection of a daily dose of this 62-cent extract.”

I always try to write headlines that single out a product or service, headlines that are “ultra specific.”  As the examples above show, these work like gangbusters.

Why testing is vital to keep a package alive

I must confess…it’s very easy to get “comfortable” when I write a winning promotion.

It’s easy to rest on your laurels—and let the package mail and mail, sometimes for years.

But I was recently reminded of an important lesson when it comes to successful direct marketing: 

You must always remember to TEST to keep a package alive and to boost response.

Case in point are two mailings that have been successful. 

The first is for a unique supplement that helps alleviate urinary incontinence and bladder control

problems.

The old control used a headline format that had worked well for the client.  I call it the “Never worry” headline.  In this case the client was using, 
“Never Worry About Urinary Incontinence Again…Guaranteed!”

This teaser copy was tested against a new headline I wrote, 
“Three biggest lies about urinary incontinence…exposed!”

The new package, which also included slight changes in the letter headline and lead-in and the

newsletter headline and lead in, beat the old control by 29%.

The second example is for a men’s prostate formula.

The old control used a headline the client wrote, 
“For Men Who Want Better Holding Power.  
Cash in on a Guaranteed Natural Solution.”

This teaser copy was tested against a new headline I wrote, 
“Startling new prostate warning from The Mayo Clinic for every man over 40…”

The new package, which also included slight changes in the letter headline and lead-in and the newsletter headline, walloped the only control by an eye-opening 64%!

These two examples once again prove that testing can often keep a package alive…kick-start

response…and bring in tens of thousands more dollars on each mailing.

No wonder advertising great David Olgilvy wrote, “The more you test, the more profitable your direct

mail will be.”

And direct marketing legend Claude Hopkins added, “Almost any question can be answered cheaply,

quickly and finally by a test campaign”…and “Let thousands decide what millions will do.”

Test, test, then test again.  Your pocketbook will thank you.

Writing Killer Subject Lines

I‘ve been fortunate to help my clients sell a gazillion dollars worth of on-line products and services—and that success starts with the Subject Line.

A great subject line has one and only one objective: To get a prospect to click and read your next message.

If you fail at this stage, your online promo will sink faster than the Titanic.

So what makes a killer subject line—one that the prospect must open?

I’ll answer that in a moment, but first, here are some subject lines for successful on-line promotions I’ve written:

Subj: Why Most Detoxes and Cleanses Fail

(for natural colon cleansing product)

Subj: Double Your Testosterone Without Shots or Gels

(for e-book on men’s sexual potency and health)

Subj: Why the Chinese Don’t Get Sick Like We Do

(for health newsletter on Chinese Healing Miracles)

Subj:  4 Surprising Forecasts for 2014

(for an investment newsletter on premier Blue Chip Growth stocks)

Subj: Reduce Nighttime Bathroom Trips by 64%

(for a special men’s prostate/urination health formula)

Subj: Rare Sea Plant Better Than Green Tea?

(for a unique natural health formula sourced from the sea)

Subj: The CoQ10 you don’t know

(for a special, more absorbable form of CoQ10)

Each of these subject lines was linked to an email ad that led to a landing page or video sales letter…or directly to the online promotion.

What do they have in common?  Ideally subject lines…

1. Are short, around 5-6 words
2. Make a controversial or contrarian statement
3. Tease, tease, tease
4. Ask an intriguing question
5. Reveal a unique promise or benefit—the more specific the better
6. Attract the ideal prospect
7. Make the reader stop—and click
8. Stand out from the ordinary

In many ways, a killer subject line is like a killer headline for an ad.  It must make the reader, stop, read and read on—or in this case, click.

###

If you’d like to see samples of my successful online promotions—landing pages and VSL (video sales letters)—just email me at kkomae@aol.com

The Secret to “Informational Marketing"

The best way I've found to sell through the mail or online is to combine valuable, little-known information and
a unique product or service.

People don’t just want to be sold something.  They want good reasons to buy something.  So if you can give
them information and a product or service that will make them richer or healthier…protect their nest egg or
well being…and ensure them a more comfortable, safer life—they are more apt to buy.

Another way to look at this is with the Left Brain/Right Brain example.

The Left Brain is the logical, analytical, objective side that responds to new facts and information.

The Right Brain is the intuitive, thoughtful and objective side that responds to emotions and benefits.

Strike both sides of the brain and you can get more sales.

Take for example a successful online promotion I wrote for Louis Navellier’s Blue Chip Growth newsletter.
  

As you can see by the screenshot, this Special Investor Alert featured “My 4 Surprising Forecasts for 2014.”

For marketing investment products like this one, hardly anything beats forecasts.  In this case,
Louis Navellier revealed four forecasts about the stock market and in particular, how to grow richer in
blue chip growth stocks. 

The copy went on to promise…

*How you can beat the market 3-to-1 in 2014, like Louis Navellier has been doing for his subscribers
for years

*How to get in now on 21 Lock and Load Stocks Ready to Skyrocket in 2014

*And how to make sure you don’t get wiped out by a bubble bursting under some popular stocks

Whether it was the timing of the initial promotion (in mid December) or the bullish stock market,
interest in these forecasts was very high.

The online promotion tested very well and is currently being rolled out.

The question: What kind of important information can you include in your promotions to drive up sales? 

What Makes a Great Headline?

This is a million dollar question.

First, how important is a headline? In his classic book, Breakthrough Advertising, the great Gene Schwartz writes,

“The headline is the bridge between your prospect and your product. It touches your prospect at the point of awareness that he has arrived today.

“If he is aware of your product, and realizes that it can satisfy his desire, your headline starts with your product.

“If he is not aware of your product, but only of the desire itself, your headline starts with the desire. Just as important, he writes,

“Your headline has only one job—to stop your prospect and compel him to read the second sentence of your ad.” 

Pure genius!

For me, some of my most successful headlines have applied these marketing secrets…PLUS, I’ve refined my own time-tested formula.

The best headlines seem to have all or most of these elements: NEWS… BENEFIT…CURIOSITY…and a TWIST. Take for example the prehead and headline I wrote for a new marine superfood promotion: Now, you can conquer 55 common health problems with…
The superfood that Americans rarely eat

The prehead focused on a key benefit/promise.

The first part of the headline focused on a growing awareness of the prime prospects about the healing power of superfoods.

And the prospects’ curiosity was piqued by the fact that this remarkable superfood is little-known in to Americans.

Of course the payoff inside is, 1,000 studies prove this age-erasing superfood is the missing link in the Americans diet.

The missing link is a little-known compound found almost exclusively in brown seaweed and consumed in large quantities by the longest living people on earth, the people of Okinawa, Japan.

Another example of a strong headline is one I wrote that focused on NEWS.

The prehead and headline read:

On July 20, 2012, a Good Morning America host predicted, 

  “Beet juice is going to very, very popular” 

…and she was right.

The copy went on to support this newsworthy quote with other quotes such as…
       “Many Olympians in London were juiced…with beet root juice”—New York Times 
       “A daily glass of beet juice can lower your blood pressure”—DailyMail.com 
       “Beet juice can increase blood flow to the brain in older adults”—Wake Forest University researchers  
       “Evidence suggests beet juice improves heart health”—Today’s Dietitian

The cover went on to tease about a delicious new Superfood, Super Beet drink that delivers up to 10 times the “beet power” than ordinary beets.

As you can see, using NEWS…BENEFIT…CURIOSITY…and a TWIST can help create some very intriguing, very unique headlines that get read and that keep the prospect reading!

Can You Pick the Winning Cover?

Testing is the lifeblood of any successful direct marketing campaign.

Why? Because it proves what works best, not based your opinions or those of your marketing team—but on the most important factor of them all: What buyers want.

In direct mail, one of the most important tests for any launch is a Front Cover Test. Ideally, you want to covers to take two completely different approaches.

Here are to sets of Front Cover Tests I recently conducted.

The first set is for a natural blood sugar balancing product, Gluco Harmony.
Here's Front Cover A:

Here’s Front Cover B: 

Which one do you think did better?

The second set is for a new natural sleep product, Vital Sleep.
Here’s Front Cover A: 

Here’s Front Cover B:

Which one do you think did better?

Results: In both cases, the B covers worked substantially better.

So when you test, make sure the variables are different enough to give you different and hopefully better results.