One direct marketing expert goes so far as to credit headline with 100% of success or failure of any ad or sales letter, because if headline fails to pull reader into main body of ad or sales copy, then there is no chance of success!

And they are both right! If your headline fails to perform its' function of getting reader to read further into your copy, then headline is fully responsible for failure of ad or sales letter.

However, if headline is successful, then other sales copy factors come into play, such as benefits presented, guarantee, offer, close, etc. Now they all share in effectiveness of sales copy as well. But if headline fails, they then play no part.

Think about how you read a newspaper or magazine. Do you start with first article and then read every word from front to back of publication?

Of course not!

Instead, you quickly scan headlines, looking for something that interests you, either because of curiosity or because there might be something in it for you. You skip over all rest!

Well, guess what. That's same way your readers view your ad, article, sales letter, or sales page.

So, here are three main reasons for headline failure.

1. You Fail To Grab Your Reader's Attention!

After all, it's headline that gets your reader to stop and read further into your sales copy. If headline fails, then entire ad or sale copy fails.

So with headline creation being of such importance, are you giving your headlines time and effort they are worth?

Writing good headlines is a skill that can be learned and mastered if you are willing to put time into studying good proven moneymaking headlines.

One way of learning how to write killer headlines is to study masters. Read works of past greats, such as Claude Hopkins, Robert Collier, John Caples, David Ogilvy, and Eugene Schwartz, among others. There works are available in libraries, used book stores, and in some cases there works have been reprinted and are still available on market.

A second method is to study headlines in super market tabloids and magazines that you find near check out counters. Tabloids such as 'The Globe', 'The Star', and 'The National Enquirer' or magazines such as Cosmopolitan, Redbook, Readers Digest, and Vanity Fair.

These publications are placed near cash registers for a reason. While you are standing in line waiting to check out, you scan their headlines and many people become interested and purchase these publications on impulse. And sell millions! They have some of highest circulations of any publications in country.