Secret Formula to Grab Your Prospect by the Throat and Force Him to Read Your Ad

I know, I know, too aggressive, and I may have offended some flowerish folks.

I'm cool with that.

Cuz this is not cookie-cutter stuff to make you feel all good and positive while your ad sucks.

This is designed to give you actionable steps to make your advertising better, achieve higher returns, and eradicate guesswork.

But first off, have you ever heard this before:

"Beauty doesn't matter, I care about personality."

B.S.

Now obviously, personality is important, but let's be honest. Unless you've got something in common or were attracted physically to that person, the chances of discovering that phenomenal personality is pretty slim.

Seriously. How many folks do you know that hit on a Frankenstein-kinda-person in a bar "just in case" their personality was cool?

I personally know ZERO people who do that, lol.

And it's the same thing in business.

You can have an unparalleled offer that can make people line up to hand you money, but if you can't get their attention in the first place, then the offer is pretty much worthless.

Although there is a lot that goes into getting attention, first and foremost, headlines are the make-or-break of your promo.

If the headline doesn't get your prospect's blood flowing, heart beating, and an eager desire to read further, then "how great your offer is" is just irrelevant.

In this article, I'll share with you the 4 U's formula coined by Michael Masterson. It'll help you identify the weaknesses in your headline and take it up a notch.

Let's dive in.

First off, what do the 4 U's stand for?

• Unique
• Useful
• Ultra-specific
• Urgent

Hold on, I'll explain what each one means, and give you some examples.

1. Unique

Nowadays, no matter what market you're in, your prospect has probably heard all of the claims. He's skeptical, and unless you come up with something truly unique, you're unlikely to get his attention.

Here's a great example from one of my favorite copywriters, the most ripped-off copywriter alive, John Carlton:

Honestly, how likely is it that a golf enthusiast has read a headline like this? Probably never.

"Unheard of" and "never seen before" is what you should be shooting for when writing headlines.

2. Useful

Your headline should be useful for your prospect. In other words, there should be an implied benefit in reading your ad.

Look at this headline from the legendary copywriter Eugene Schwartz:

Who wouldn't want to "burn disease out of their body"? Because of this benefit, you'll naturally be intrigued and want to know more.

3. Ultra-specific

In his famous book Scientific Advertising, Claude Hopkins said:

"The weight of an argument may often be multiplied by making it specific."

Here's an example of that from John Carlton:

See how specific the headline is?

• "12-year-old kids" instead of "kids"
• "250 yards"
• "55-year-old" instead of "old man"
• "71 Lbs overweight" instead of "out of shape"

See how that works?

4. Urgent

Simply put, does your headline give a prospect a reason to read your ad right now?

This can be as direct as saying "offer ends today," or it can be an implied urgency like "7 blunders humiliating men in bed, and how to avoid them starting tonight."

Here's a classic example from Gary Halbert:

How to use the 4 U's formula

It's pretty straightforward:

1. Rate every "U" on a scale of 0 to 1.
2. Add all the ratings (for the 4 U's).
3. If the total is 3 or 4, your headline is good to go.
4. If the total is less than 3, identify which U scores 0 or 0.5 and strengthen it.

Conclusion

If you have a product or service that your prospect would benefit from, it's your duty to craft catchy headlines that'll stop your prospect and make him read.

Anytime you write a headline, use the 4 U's formula to assess whether it's even worth testing or not.