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The purpose of the headlines must be to convey a message to people who read headlines, then decide whether or not they will look at the copy.

John Caples

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John Caples
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More quotes by John Caples

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Even today you can look through almost any consumer or professional publication and find headlines that possess not a single one of the necessary qualities, such as self-interest, news, or curiosity.
John Caples
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A good headline can make an advertisement good even if the picture is poor.
John Caples
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Every copywriter knows what it is to struggle with a copy for hours, for days - fixing it, polishing it, rearranging it. We have all been quilty of leaving the headline until the last and the spending half and hour on it - or perhaps only ten minutes.
John Caples
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Unsuccessful headlines were not written without a strong appeal, but it was the wrong appeal for that product and that audience.
John Caples
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The success of an entire advertising campaign may stand or fall on what is said in the headlines of the individual advertisements.
John Caples
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The best headlines are those that appeal to the reader's self-interest, that is, headlines based on reader benefits. They offer readers something they want - and get from you.
John Caples
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To impress your offer on the mind of the reader or listener, it is necessary to put it into brief, simple language...No farfetched or obscure statement will stop them. You have got to hit them where they live in the heart or in the head. You have got to catch their eyes or ears with something simple, something direct, something they want.
John Caples
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Remember that the headline and the appeals are ONE AND THE SAME. In successful ads, the appeal is almost always expressed in the headline.
John Caples
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Now I spend hours on headlines - days if necessary. And when I get a good headline, I know that my task is nearly finished.
John Caples
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The business of judging a headline AFTER you read the copy is wrong. It takes for granted that everybody reads the copy.
John Caples
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What good is all the painstaking work on copy if the headline isn't right? If the headline doesn't stop people, the copy might as well be written in Greek.
John Caples
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For every curiosity headline that succeed in getting results, a dozen will fail.
John Caples
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A long headline that really says something is more effective than a brief heading that says nothing.
John Caples
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Readers know what the copy is going to say.
John Caples
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An advertisement will be a good one - that is if the headline is really a stopper.
John Caples
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Don't underestimate the value of beginning a headline by naming the people you want to reach.
John Caples
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You can write a 1st paragraph that continues the same thought you expressed in your headline. If you stop a reader with a headline about house paint, you can be sure of at least one thing about that reader: He wants more info about house paint. You will not lose him as long as you continue to give him what he wants.
John Caples
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Remember that the reader's attention is yours for only a single instant. They will not use up their valuable time trying to figure out what you mean.
John Caples
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In striving to produce an attractive headline, the copywriter should not emphasize the quick, easy way to such an extent that the headline becomes unbelievable.
John Caples
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If you use a poor headline, it does not matter how hard you labor over your copy because your copy will not be read.
John Caples