If your headline sucks, nobody will read the rest of your copy.

So, how do you come up with headlines that convert? Headlines that’ll get your people to stop scrolling?

Two words: fear and desire.

While studies of human psychology prove that all human action is driven by fear and desire, you really don’t have to be related to Einstein to know this without reading such studies.

After all, you’re human. I assume.

The good news is that the money is in the headline. The bad news? The money is in the headline.

You either make millions or go broke.

The key to a scroll-stopping headline is to tap into your audience emotionally, and I’m about to tell you how.

It’s not about you. It’s all about them

One deadly mistake you can make is assuming that your readers give a shit about you.

Headlines such as “how I went from living in a trailer to owning a penthouse” and “I launched a 7 figure business in 13 days” won’t give you the conversions you seek.

Care to guess why? Well…

You’re positioning yourself as the hero of the story, instead of your readers.

Your reader is the hero. Your headline should show your reader how they will experience pleasure or avoid pain.

They don’t want to know how you did it; they want to know how they can do it.

They want to know how they can launch a 7 figure business in 13 days.

Write your headline last

Here’s a little dirty copywriting secret: copy is assembled.

A pro copywriter never sits to write a high-converting landing page from top to bottom in one sitting. Plus, this process might not be linear at all.

This means that you don’t sit and write your copy in one shot. You write it piece by piece. Putting it together like a puzzle.

So, when do I like to write my headlines? When I’m done with my body copy.

That way, I’ll have a headline that flows with the rest of my copy without giving too much away but giving enough for my reader to get intrigued.

Plus, the body copy will have enough meat for me to go back to and get inspired for a catchy headline.

Use Headlines That Convert Formulas

A lot of pro copywriters also use formulas. Call it a strategic “fill in the blank” formula to help you come up with great headlines that convert. Fast.

Keeping fear and desire in mind (human motivators that lead to action), use these three formulas to get you started:

• How to [desire] even if [fear/objection].
• [odd number] ways to [desire] without [fear/objection].
• [desire] without [fear/objection] in [timeframe].

Example: How to sell out your book even if nobody knows who you are.

If you really want your reader to feel connected with your copy and to take action, you want your headline to either speak to their desire, fear, or both.

How can they get what they want while avoiding what they don’t want? THIS is what you want your headline to convey.

Use odd numbers

Go back to the formulas above. The second bullet point starts with “[odd number]”. That’s because people respond well to odd numbers and listicles.

So, if you can give them 7 ways to get what they want while avoiding what they don’t want, they will definitely be interested.

Test different headlines (A/B test)

Want more headlines that convert with endless possibilities? Do a split test.

If your current sales page is converting at 27%, do a split test with another headline and see which one converts more.

You’re not only testing headlines; you’re also testing the formats that your reader responds to best.

Emotions sell

The biggest key to headlines that convert is emotions.

If you refuse to add emotions to your copy because you think it’ll ruin your brand, then your brand is already ruined.