This is Part 2 on how to use your local newspaper to make money. Part 1 provided an overview of newspaper advertising and explained how to generate newspaper contacts. This part will help you design headlines for your ads and show you what to write to cause readers to act! Part 3 will identify what you absolutely MUST include that almost forces the customer to contact you. If you missed Part 1, go to http://www.tulenko.com and click on ‘Success Tip Of The Week!’ Your editor did NOT pay me to write this series!

THE ‘GRABBER’ HEADLINE EDITOR
Hidden way back deep into the backroom of your newspaper office (somewhere behind the cooler) is a man or woman with a title something like: ‘Editor In Charge of Writing A ‘Grabber’ Headline That Says Everything About The Story And Then Fitting That Headline Into The Space The Editor In Chief Allows’. In small papers this person may be the Editor; but chances are it is NOT the person who wrote the story! Here’s why you need to know this person.

He or she has the uncanny ability to condense a story about Jimmy King breaking up a fight in his front yard between his dog ‘Prince’ and the neighbor’s cat ‘Princess’ by hitting the dog with his hockey stick and condensing that story into a ‘grabber’ something like: “KING CROWNS PRINCE! PRINCESS ANGRY!” which is just enticing enough to cause you to read the story so you can figure out what happened! In a nutshell, that’s what a ‘Headline Writer’ does. He or she writes headlines that make you want to read the story.

YOUR ‘GRABBER’ HEADLINE
Now back to your ad. You need a headline that ‘grabs’ the person skimming through the paper. Free doesn’t make it, so forget that one. Discount Special doesn’t work either. What does? I don’t know, but a person who has the talent to write a ‘grabber’ headline does, and that headline is absolutely necessary if you want viewers to read your ad! For example, 6 BASS IN ONE HOUR! could be a great ‘grabber’ for a new fishing lure on the Sports page. Of course you need a story to prove that in your ad… maybe something like…”I didn’t believe it myself until I tried this new lure down at Jones’ Pond. In only one hour I had landed six of the biggest Bass I’ve seen in years!” (Continue with the story in your ad.)

LOCATING A ‘GRABBER’ HEADLINE WRITER
First ask your local newspaper contact (the one you made using last week’s column) if the paper offers this service (for a fee), and if they don’t, ask if you could be introduced to the paper’s headline writer. Offer them the opportunity to do the work. If you strike out there, your contact may be able to name several people in the community who could do the job. CAUTION! You do NOT want a ‘great graphic artist’; you want someone who can write ‘grabber’ headlines! Wannabe authors sometimes have the skills (they write chapter headers), so check your local writer’s club (the town or school librarian can often point you to this group).

DO IT YOURSELF
Of course you can! Do this week’s homework, and then work through your product or service offer to see if you can come up with a ‘grabber’. Don’t worry if your first examples don’t make the grade, you can only get better! Points to keep in mind: It must be short enough to fit in the column width you select (1,2,3,etc.) with no more than three lines of very large bold type (2 is better). It must tempt or tantalize the reader to want to know more. It must directly tie into your offer.

‘ALSO OFFER’ HOMEWORK
This week’s homework is to read ads in lots of newspapers and magazines. Look for the ‘grabber’ then carefully note the offer. In the better ads you will note that something else is always offered for prompt action. I call this the ‘Also Offer’ Note these! Clip them and next week we will go over how to use the ‘Also Offer’ to get your reader to DO SOMETHING NOW! Wow! This will work!

(NOTE TO EDITORS: PLEASE INCLUDE THE FOLLOWING.)
Paul Tulenko is an International Small Business Success Consultant based in New Mexico, USA. Additional tips and suggestions are available at www.tulenko.com or call (toll-free) 1-866-TULENKO.