Are you looking to capture additional monthly recurring revenue (MRR) by selling your backup and

disaster recovery (BDR) solution to more clients? If so, you have to understand the overall sales
process and particularly, the Discovery phase, which is meant to help you identify the best candidates
for your BDR solution.

To identify those small-and-medium-sized businesses (SMBs) with the highest probability of adopting
your solution, begin by getting to know them. Uncover their needs by asking the following 10
questions.

Gather Preliminary Information

This first set of questions helps you establish a baseline regarding data management needs. Before
you can begin qualifying, you need to know what kind of IT environment you're working with. Are
there any constraints? What's the SMB's attitude toward BDR solutions, and do they have a history of
backing up data?

1. What type of customer records are you storing?

Examples: sales receipts/billing, contact information, private/confidential records

2. How are you currently storing that data?

Examples: physical copies, local laptop/desktop, local server, off-site storage

3. What regulations do you need to comply with?

Examples: HIPAA, PCI DSS, SOX, HITECH

4. What additional, non-customer related data are you storing on your machines?

Examples: proprietary information/documentation, marketing materials, primary research,

competitive data, vendor contracts
Gauge Their Disaster Readiness

At this point in the sales conversation, you should begin asking questions to qualify the prospect.
Getting the right answers is all about asking the right questions. What are the right answers? The
ones that indicate whether or not the prospect is the right fit for your IT services. You want to weed
out any unhealthy candidates that may stall your sales cycle or be "noisy," unprofitable clients down
the line. To do this, evaluate their level of disaster preparedness by asking questions that identify
whether the prospect needs a business continuity solution. Often, these questions are ones prospects
haven't even thought to ask and trigger that "aha!" moment you're looking for in order to close them
into clients later.

5. What problems have you faced in the past related to data loss or corruption?

Asking this question gives you historical context that can help you judge a prospect's disaster
readiness. It introduces any problems you may be walking into if you sign the client, and helps you
later cater your sales pitch or presentation toward real-life scenarios that the prospect can relate to.

6. What percentage of your standard business operations would be impacted if your records/data
were temporarily unavailable or deleted?

Asking hypothetical questions like this is a useful MSP sales tactic! By asking this question, you should
hope to have your prospect recognize the value of their data. At the same time, the answer they
provide can help you judge whether the SMB has a need you can fill and is therefore worth pursuing.

7. How long could you keep your business running without access to your data?

Again, the benefit here is twofold. You get the qualifying answer in discovering if the SMB will benefit
from your solution. And at the same time, you gain an opportunity to explain the typical, severe
repercussions of prolonged downtime after a disaster.

8. What is your current plan for protecting the integrity and security of your data?
Like the previous sales discovery question, this one helps you position your value proposition as your
clients' virtual CIO (vCIO). More often than not, the SMBs you talk to won't have any kind of business
continuity plan or disaster response procedure in place. They don't have the time or in-house
expertise to compile and manage such a framework. This is where you can really shine as their advisor.
If the prospect has no business continuity plan, you can explain the reasons for developing one,
walking them through the initial steps of creating and testing it. If the prospect has already
implemented a disaster recovery (DR) plan, listen as they provide the details. Don't discount
prospects that claim they already have a DR plan. They may be mistaken, it may not be in use or it
may require significant improvement that you can provide as their vCIO.

9. What are your top priorities as far as data backup and disaster recovery is concerned?

This is a general catch-all to help you understand a prospect’s general mindset about the value of BDR
and what they think you can provide. It's also a more direct question that can help you determine
whether a prospect has benefited from having a BDR solution in the past. Perhaps in expressing their
priorities, the prospect expresses dissatisfaction with a competitive service. This not only gives you a
leg up, but helps you tailor your proposal and eventual onboarding process to best serve the SMB.

Steer The Conversation Back Toward Purchase Intent

The best way to do this is to first ask the prospect what their previous purchases were and what the
return was. Notice the subtle difference between asking "Are you interested in buying from me?" and
this last, better question:

10. What investments have you made in hardware/storage over the last four to five years?

If the prospect has made recent investments in hardware or physical storage, this should signal to you
that they likely understand the value of data integrity/security and are willing to make investments
(such as cloud storage) to ensure that their data is safe. If they have not made recent investments in
this area, the SMB likely needs your BDR services. Now, while this is also a favorable outcome,
understand that they may need more convincing to see the overall value of your business continuity
services. As a result, your sales cycle may be extended.

When selling BDR, you have to get to know the prospect and their business needs first. Modern,
client-centric sales involves talking with, NOT talking at, SMBs. The ten discovery questions shared in
this post should help you start that dialogue, pinpoint worthwhile, high-close prospects and move
them further along through the MSP sales journey. Once you know who to target your sales
presentation and proposal to, you'll have all of the necessary information to personalize your offering
to their individual needs.

Need help strengthening your sales deck? Leverage key industry data captured in this chart depicting
the need for business continuity and data management!

And for additional BDR sales help, arm yourself with sales and marketing collateral like:

These questions are meant to assist your sales staff in customizing your own storyline that will help
you engender the trust a successful BDR engagement requires. In asking these questions, you may
find that your potential customers are in greater need for your services than they actually realize:

1. When was the last time you tested your backups?

Not just data backup, but a full system backup through to its ultimate recovery? The answer often
resembles something akin to “We don’t know.” With a sizeable percentage of companies that
experience a disaster and don’t recover, not knowing this answer should scare anyone.

2. How long did that test restore take to complete?

Or, more appropriately, how long did it take to return your last failed server to operations? Too often
companies don’t realize the externalities, neglecting to include the time required for finding tapes,
having them shipped and laying data over existing operating systems. With data recovery, the
externalities are everything.

3. How long can that server be inoperable before your business suffers an impact?

With their most critical server in mind, does the answer here mesh with the answer from question
two? If not, then their existing infrastructure and processes don’t meet their requirements.

Admittedly, mission-critical server losses don’t happen all that often, and employing the scare tactic
of their potential loss only gets you so far. Smaller disasters that happen every day, such as users
losing documents, servers, email or database entries, are more likely to get the attention of a
potential customer.

4. How much time do you need to restore a single file or folder during everyday activities?

Question four directs customer attention to their abilities in resolving regular nagging issues. The cost
for handling these issues can be substantial when all the factors and the actors are included.

5. How much data are you backing up?

 This may seem like a softball question, but its correct answer isn’t often known because of the
potential for data duplication that exists with some backup solutions enterprises employ. Tapes were
particularly notorious for this behavior, but even disk-based solutions can have an effect. Clients who
don’t follow best practices may discover that their sensitive data is more exposed than they expected,
which creates an entirely new form of exposure to risk.

6. Do you know how dynamic your data is?

That exposure risk is highlighted by the answer to this question. Some data changes all the time,
affecting backup operations, while other data that hasn’t been touched in years and costs the
company long past the lifecycle of its tangible value. A central value proposition you provide in the
outsourced BDR relationship is in bringing measurable control to that data.

7. Would outsourcing your backups improve your data protection posture while reducing the overall
costs?

Here is the punch line: Rare is the client that can definitively answer this question, so providing
quantitative data that shows the capital expenditure (CAPEX) to operational expenditure (OPEX)
conversion in making the move completes this conversation.

As I’ve previously stated, selling BDR services is all about selling trust. When customers trust you, your
practices and the technologies you bring, accomplishing the task is easy. When they don’t, that same
task is nearly impossible.

Finding the right technologies that support the MSP model is of primary importance in building your
BDR practice. Linking those technologies with failure-proof processes is its second step. Only then do
you have the trustable items in place that enable beginning those long and profitable relationships.

About the author

Greg Shields, MVP, vExpert, is a partner with Concentrated Technology. Get more of Greg's tips and
tricks at www.concentratedtech.com.

Continuing with our series on data backup and disaster recovery, today we’re answering
the top 5 questions businesses want to know about data backup and disaster recovery.
One of the most frequently asked questions we receive about data backup and disaster
recovery is cost. As you might expect, the cost of implementing a disaster recovery
system can vary greatly, based on a number of factors.
A better question to ask is “what should we budget for business continuity planning?”
When making this decision, consider the following questions:
 What type of backup do you need and how much storage is required?
 How many users and devices do you need to maintain, back up and support?
 How quickly do you need to recover the data?
 How much does downtime really cost your business?
 The last question is an important one
because it gives you a baseline number you can use to determine what your investment
should be in a disaster recovery plan.
A survey by CA Technologies revealed that on average, small businesses lost more than
$55,000 in revenue/year as a result of network downtime.
Midsize companies lost more than $91,000 and large companies experienced a loss of
more than $1,000,000 in revenue due to IT failures.
Think These Numbers Sound Shocking? Think Again
While these numbers may sound high, consider where the loss of revenue is coming from:
 How much are you paying idle employees during a network outage?
 Will employees need to be paid overtime to make up for lost productivity?
 How much revenue could have been generated during the period of downtime?
 Did the company experience a loss of customer goodwill that affected consumer
confidence and ultimately, your ongoing revenue stream?
 Did the company need to plan and execute campaigns to explain and apologize
for the outage?

Actual costs vary depending on the size

of the data you need to back up and the number of virtual machines your company needs
to replicate.
Costs might range from $50-$300 per month per server, but they will vary depending on
the MTD (maximum tolerable downtime) and the RTO (recovery time objective). These
variables need to be defined while developing a successful business continuity plan.
If your business can tolerate a couple hours of downtime, in many cases, you can set up a
data recovery plan for less than $1,000. Higher costs are driven from how quickly you
need the data to be recovered. Ultimately, no matter what your investment in a disaster
recovery plan, it’s going to be a lot cheaper than the cost to recover AFTER a disaster.
This depends on the type of backup you are considering.
 Local storage: With local
storage, data is stored locally onsite at the business. Some examples of this would include
backup to disk, tape or network attached storage. Software like Barracuda, Symantec,
Carbonite and Windows Backup can assist in restoring data quickly at the local level. The
drawback of local backup however, is in the event of an onsite disaster (building or
hardware damage) your backup would be jeopardized, so it’s important to have a
secondary backup system in place.
Cloud Backup: With cloud based backup, data is taken from the local backup or imaging
software and sent to an offsite data center that meets industry compliance standards in
terms of both security and privacy. If you don’t want a local backup, data can be sent
directly to the cloud. (A reliable internet connection is recommended for cloud backup.)
Offsite storage (data center or house): When servers are virtualized or NAS (Network
Attached Storage) devices are in place, replication software is used to replicate servers,
data and files to other devices that may be onsite, at an offsite location like a data center
or house. With replication, data can be restored in a matter of minutes, based on the
replication schedule.
Online backup uses advanced technology that minimizes the impact on your PC and
internet performance. This ensures you can continue to work effectively while the backup
is running. Most backups are scheduled late at night to further minimize the effect on your
day-to-day internet and PC use. In addition, bandwidth can be throttled during business
hours to minimize the impact of a large backup on your end users.
 First, it’s important to recognize data
backup is not the same as a disaster recovery plan. Disaster recovery (often referred to as
DR), is the process, policies and procedures related to preparing for recovery or
continuation of the technology infrastructure which are vital to an organization after a
disaster. Data backup, on the other hand, is simply the type of backup you have in place.
Essentially, the difference between your current backup and a disaster recovery plan is
you have not yet taken the time to put a plan into place that defines the process of
resuming business operations after a disruptive event.
Business continuity planning takes disaster recovery one-step further. This term is one
that business owners and executives often use interchangeably with disaster recovery,
but they actually have different meanings.
We’ve defined 5 simple steps to develop a successful business continuity plan to get you
started down the right path.
The answer to this question is two-fold.
First, a quick overview of several important disaster recovery benefits:
 Allows for simplified decision making when an event occurs
 Enables the company to be compliant with corporate, industry or governmental
legislation
 Creates awareness of ways to improve the company that would otherwise be
overlooked
 Protects the organization’s image, brand and reputation
 Prevents destruction of data and loss in the event of a disaster
 Manages costs through avoidance of expenses incurred from network downtime
Now for the second question – why is disaster recovery better than your current backup?
We now live in a world where we are heavily reliant on data.
Surprisingly, many businesses still assume tape backup is an adequate form of protecting
their data and files, when in reality; this could not be further from the truth.
Did you know tape backups have a 100% failure rate? It’s true. Between viruses,
mishandling and heat, it is not a matter of if, but WHEN will your backup fail if you are
solely relying on this type of backup.
The question then remains; what type of backup does your company have in place?
 Is your method of backup reliable?
 Has it been tested – recently?
 Does your backup system currently support the size of your data and speed at
which you need to recover the data in the event of a disaster?
 Can you confirm your backup system is in line with industry standards?
There are many other important questions to consider and without a clearly defined
disaster recovery plan in place, some questions may remain unanswered, unknown and
unaddressed…that is, until a disaster does take place.
According to National Cyber Security Alliance, 20% of all small businesses will be
hacked within one year.
Ontech Systems can work closely with you to help determine the best disaster recovery
plan based on your data backup procedures, offsite needs, critical network devices,
applications and of course your budget.

Ontech can serve as your

dedicated IT company or work in tandem with your in-house IT staff.
We offer a variety of data backup and recovery solutions, whether you need added
protection through encrypted backups, fail-safe measures in the event an employee
deletes an important file or any other industry specific requirement.
Call us today at (262) 522-8560 or send us a request online for a free Network
Discoverywhere we will conduct a comprehensive evaluation of how your business uses
technology.
During this no-obligation, free audit of your network, one of our experienced Network
Consultants will evaluate your entire network to look for security loopholes, potential
problems, spyware and hidden problems that might be causing problems now or down the
road. Request a free Network Discovery to get started.
Continuing with our data backup and recovery series, next up we’ll be sharing what every
business should know about their current backup system, so follow us on Facebook and
stay tuned!
Next up:
1. 7 Things Every Business Needs to Know About their Data Backup System
2. The Top 5 Common Mistakes that Put Company Data at Risk
3. The Simple Formula to Determine How Much Business You’ll Lose in the Event of
a Disaster

 


Between cyber threats, accidental damage and equipment failure, it is not a matter of if, but WHEN a
security threat will affect your business. Yet…statistics have shown that 29% (almost a third of
computer owners) have never backed up their computers while only 10% backup daily.

Think you have a solid data backup system in place for your business? Are you 100% confident your
business could recover in a matter of hours or minutes if a disaster struck your business tomorrow?

If you’re like most people, at some point in time, you’ve lost an hour of work on your computer. Now
imagine losing DAYS or even WEEKS of work. What would you do if you lost your client database, your
financial records and every file your company has ever produced?

If that wasn’t bad enough, what if your network went down for days and you couldn’t access
information on your PC or email? How would this very real scenario affect your business?

Data backup Milwaukee WIVery often, there are drastic differences between the backup and recovery
system you ‘think’ is in place for your business, versus what you actually have in place.

We see this all the time when Milwaukee area businesses bring us in for a Free Network Discovery.

Don’t make the all-too-common mistake of assuming your backup is secure simply because you
receive a daily email message stating the “job” was successful.

In reality, the “job” might only include SOME, but not all of your files. A complete backup should
include:

Operating system files

Software application files

Lesser used data files

All data files on every server (not just some servers)

A comprehensive backup is the path you need to take to ensure a complete recovery in the event of a
disaster.

What steps would you take to recover your files? What is your estimated recovery time? If you’re a
little ‘fuzzy’ on the answer to these questions, keep reading for the 6 key questions you need to ask
about your current backup system.

This might seem obvious, but this is one area of your business you don’t want to overlook, just
because you’ve paid an IT company come in and configure the backup process sometime in the not
too distant past.

When was the last time someone actually completed a full restore from your backup? More often
than you’d think, we come across situations where the backup is not working correctly (or not
working at all), and the business manager and owner have NO IDEA this is happening. This might be
the result of low disk space, backup software issues, user error, incorrect configurations, bad disks or
backup tapes or just plain inattentiveness.

Confirm that the IT company or individual responsible for managing your backups is watching for the
absence of success/failure messages. If your backup software stops working entirely and notifications
are sent only when a backup fails, they might assume everything is backing up as it should and remain
blissfully unaware that your company has NO backup system in place.
The best way to avoid this is to test your backups regularly and restore your data to ensure all files are
usable. If you manage your backups, you might want to restore a sample set of designated files every
so often. If an outside IT company handles your backups, ask them to show you the screen that
confirms backups are being successfully completed so you have evidence that your backups are
working properly.

After all, the LAST thing you want to do is spend money on solutions that APPEAR to be working,
when in reality, your business is seriously at risk of losing all your valuable data.

Data backup gone wrong

Don’t let this happen to you! Source: Gail Steinhart

With a growing number of data and devices, it’s an ongoing challenge for companies to keep track of
important data.

If it has been awhile since you have last evaluated your backup system, are there new sources of data
that are currently excluded from your backup?

You might have a shared drive where the company saves data, but have you also accounted for these
devices?

Tablets

Smart phones

Individual laptops

Cloud storage

Memory sticks

Company emails – both inboxes and sent items, company contacts, calendars, important files and
documents all need to be accounted for. If you haven’t clearly (and recently) defined the various
types of data you need to store, you might be excluding critical files from your backup.

Picture this: It’s 4pm and you need to send a file you’ve been working on all day, to a customer by
5pm. Suddenly, you make the tragic mistake of overwriting the file. You remember you have a backup
system in place and attempt to recover it only to find the last version you have on file is from 10pm
the previous night.

Ouch! THIS…is why this question is critical.

Today’s backup technologies allow for backup snapshots to be taken periodically throughout the day.
If your business relies on up-to-date data, but your backups are scheduled to run once a day or even
once per week, even daily backups are not sufficient for your business.

How Can You Avoid This From Happening?

To prevent this dreaded scenario from happening to you, your backup should allow for multiple
“restore points” throughout the day. In the IT industry, we refer to this as a Recovery Point Objective
or “RPO” – the point in time you need to be able to restore from. Automatic backups can be run every
30 minutes, once a day, week or month.

If your backup system was scheduled to run every 30 minutes, in the previous scenario, you could
have restored a backup from 3:30pm that day, saved yourself from a substantial amount of
aggravation – and still met your 5pm deadline.

Never rely on a single backup method. While online backups are convenient, you should always use
an alternative backup method because backups can fail too!
Are You Making This Mistake?

It’s a risky decision to store your backup data in your office. In the event of a fire or natural disaster,
your data would be lost forever. A better option is to store data off-site.

Remote or offsite backups allow you to store a secure copy of your data in a location other than your
office. This type of backup runs automatically after-hours, storing your data in a high security facility,
on a daily basis. With remote backups, you don’t need to manually rotate between disks or physical
tapes. By the time you arrive in the office each morning, a copy of the backup data is already stored
offsite in a secure facility – far away from your physical office location for safekeeping

A word of warning: While it’s good practice to use a remote backup solution, be sure you are using a
good provider so you don’t end up paying a lot of money only to find you can’t recover your data
within the amount of time you expect.

Take a backup of your backupAs an alternative to a second backup, small businesses can archive most
of their data on their own, but with large servers, an image of the server should be created to make a
backup of your saved data in case it can’t be retrieved immediately.

Remember…

Backups can fail, so this simple precaution is a good idea, particularly if your business stores large
amounts of data.

For many businesses, the ability to get their systems up and running quickly after a disaster is critical.
If you have a proper backup solution in place, you can recover your data in minutes. Time is obviously
a major factor in your backup plan but many business owners and managers are still unclear on how
much time it will actually take to recover their system.

Recovery time is based on the volume of data to be restored and the backup system you have in place.
If you are restoring an entire server, recovery time could range from one hour to as much as two
days.

Business Continuity is the planning process businesses map out with their IT company or in-house IT
person to ensure the business can continue to run in the event of a disaster or unexpected downtime.

Newer backup technologies now make it possible for businesses to run a recent backup image as a
temporary “virtual server” while replacement of damaged equipment or the full recovery process
runs in the background.

So what do you think?

Does your current data backup system have what it takes to restore your data backup correctly – and
in the timeframe required?

Not sure? No problem, we’ve got you covered.

Free Network DiscoveryRequest a no-obligation Free Network Discovery where we will evaluate your
current backup and recovery system to ensure your business is able to recover your critical data
quickly and easily in the event of a disaster.

All too often, there are simple, yet easily overlooked aspects of data recovery, security performance
and infrastructure that typically remain unnoticed – until disaster strikes.

Our Network Consultant will conduct a full audit of your network and discuss with you – minus
technical jargon – ways your business can fill in any gaps and resolve any vulnerabilities or loopholes
that might compromise your business and potentially cost you thousands of dollars down the road.
Call us today at (262) 522-8560 or send us a request online for a free Network Discovery to get
started.

We’re nearing the end of our data backup and recovery series, and next up we’ll be sharing “The 5
Common Mistakes Businesses Make that Put their Company Data at Risk”, so follow us on Facebook
and stay tuned!

Questions to Ask

Do you have a business continuity plan?

Do you have a technology DR plan today?

What kind of disaster is being anticipated that would require a recovery?

Does the organization have the ability to financially support a technology DR plan in their budget?

Are regular backups of data preformed at least daily?

Are regular backups of the applications and operating environment preformed at least daily?

Backups kept off-site?

Are at lease three versions being retained?

What backup technology is employed?

Has a complete local recovery of key services been tested?

Where is the DR site? Planned site?

What is the distance between the two locations?

What are the critical applications and services which would require DR?

What is the expected recovery time, the "Recovery Time Objective" for specific services?

What is an acceptable amount of data loss, the "Recovery Point Objective" for specific services?

What percentage of the application usage needs to be supported by the DR site?

What is the size of the disk storage that needs to be replicated?

What percentage of the data changes daily?

How often will the data need to be replicated?

How far out of date can the data be? 4 hours?, 8 hours? 24 hours?

How is the DR site funded?

Could the DR site be a co-location facility?

What type of access do you have to the DR site?

How do you get essential staff to the DR facility and sustain/support them while working there.
Will the DR facility allow access to your essential staff members? How is access determined/limited?

Can the existing networking and security infrastructure support the switchover or failover to a DR
site?

Can the existing client devices support the switchover or failover to a DR site?

Do written procedures for computer operation exist to bring up the DR site?

The Basic Components of a Disaster Recovery Plan

Define what is an acceptable loss both in terms of services provided as well as financially. Then look at
the potential costs to fund the development and implementation of a plan.

Everything needs to be backed up .How much of your electronic information is not being backed up
and why?

Organize the services and information by how critical it is to the organization. Determine their
priority. Determine how long the organization can live without them?

Protect against disasters. Most people think of natural disasters when creating a disaster recovery
plan. There are nine other types of disasters . Protect against all of them.

Document what you have done. Put it in writing. Have it reviewed by whomever you can get to read
it. Ensures that the documentation is available during and after a disaster. Review it frequently.

Repeatedly test you plan. Most DR plans are not successful because they have not been tested.
Start with a table top exercise. Think about that. Testing the plan without leaving your office.

Looking for a quick guide to headlines that make money? Here are some time-tested,
Caples-inspired headline approaches that get results:

1. Begin with "Introducing" or "Announcing."

Introducing a high-performance modem for just $49.95!

Announcing a whole new way to edit color images!

2. Start with "Now."

Now the hottest spreadsheet on the market is yours at half price!

Now you can try our brand new management tools risk free!

3. Start with "At last" or "Finally."

 At last! A presentation graphics program with all the features you've been
looking for!

Finally, remote access that actually works!

4. Start with "How to."

How to back up your hard disk in half the time.

How to slash the cost of managing your network.

5. Start with "Why."

Why you should call for a free Virus Alert Report.

Why our new software can double battery life!

6. Start with "Which."

Which monitor is really the best buy?

Which of these uninstallers can you trust with your precious data?

7. Start with "This."

This tiny chip can turn your 486 into a powerful Pentium.

This half-price upgrade is for DataKeep customers only!

8. Make a free offer.

FREE! A CD-ROM with over 650 typefaces!

Call now for free CAD software worth over $100!

9. Ask a question.

Are you making these five data storage mistakes?

Want to stop software pirates once and for all?

Here's the Words You've Been Waiting For!

1. Announcing
"Now announcing the secrets to acne treatment."

"Announcing: Going out of business sale!"

2. Secrets of

"How to Discover the Secrets to Better Intimacy."

"Order now, and Discover the Secrets of Success!"

3. New

"Now Announcing This New Secret That Everybody Is Talking About!"

"Discover New Secrets to Weight Loss!"

4. Now

"The Time To Buy Is Right Now."

"There Has Never Been a Time Like Right Now!"

5. Amazing

"Order Now for Your Amazing New Kit"

"Now Introducing the Most Amazing New Vacuum Cleaner"

6. Facts (You Should Know)

"Facts You Should Know About Healthcare"

"Facts You Should Know About Weight Loss"

7. Breakthrough

"Click Here For Your Breakthrough New Report"

"Now Announcing a Medical Breakthrough"

8. At Last

"At Last, an Easy Way to Make Money Online!"

"At Last, the Answers You Deserve!"

9. Advice to

"Advice to Lower Your Mortgage Payments by Half!"

"Advice on How to Stop Acne Before It Happens!"

10. Truth of

"Do You Want to Know the Truth of How to Lose Weight?"

"At Last, Learn the Truth of How to Live a Better Lifestyle"

11. Protect

"How to Protect Your Family Even When You Are Away From Home"
"At Last, a Secure Way to Protect Your Investments"

12. Life

"Here's How to Live the Life You've Always Dreamed About"

"Discover the Secrets to a Happy Love Life"

13. Here

"Here, You Will Find What You Have Been Looking For"

"If You Want to Get Rich Online, Start Here"

14. Discover

"Discover the Secret New Way to Protect Your Investment"

"Here is Where You Will Discover Secrets That Will Change Your Life"

15. Yes

"Yes, At Last, Your Search Is Over!"

"Yes, Send Me My Free Report!"

16. Bargain(s)

"Looking For a Bargain? Look No Further!"

"Now Introducing the Best Bargain You'll Ever Find Online"

17. Do You

"Do You Want to Discover Your True Potential?"

"Do You Want to Buy a Bargain?"

18. Love

"Here Is How to Protect The Family You Love While You Are Away From Home"

"Looking For a Bargain? You'll Love This!"

19. Hate

"Do You Hate Spam As Much As We Do? Read On!"

"How Much Do You Hate Your Sky-High Interest Rate?"

20. How Much

"You Have No Idea How Much This Will Change Your Life"

"How Much Is Too Much to Change Your Life?"

21. How Would

"How Would You Like to Lower Your Mortgage Payment?"

"How Would You Like to Win a Free Vacation to the Bahamas?"

22. This

"This Idea Can Change Your Life!"

"This Is Your Chance to Change Your Life"

23. Only

"Previously Only Shared to 200 People"

"Only You Can Decide to Change Your Life"

24. Sale

"Buy Now - This Is a One Time Sale!"

"Don't Walk Away From the Greatest Bargain Sale of Your Life!"

25. Free

"Download Your Free Report!"

"570 Free Sales Letters and Business Forms!"

26. You

"You Are the Only Person Who Can Change Your Life"

"You Must Act Now"

27. How to

"How to Make Money Online Fast"

"How to Design Your Own Golf Course"

Introducing: The 91 Awesome Headline Formulas

A Little Mistake That Cost a [Title of Avatar] [Painful Loss] a [Time] (i.e ‘A Little Mistake That Cost a
SaaS CEO $50,000 a Month’)

[Gain] Hiding In Your [Avatar’s Location] (i.e ‘5 Optimization Secrets Hiding In Your YouTube
Analytics’)

How I Made a [Gain] With a [Simple/Crazy/Wild Idea] (i.e ‘How I Got My Newborn to Sleep With a
Cherry Red Gibson Guitar’)

Are You Still [Painful/Embarrassing Things]? (i.e ‘Are You Still Biting Your Nails?’)

There Are Only/Always [Number] Types of [Avatar] You Ever Want To [Result] – Which Group Are You
In? (i.e ‘There Are Only 4 Types of Employees You Ever Want To Hire – Which Group Are Your
Employees In?’)

To People Who Want To [Avatar’s Action] – but Can’t Get Started (i.e ‘To Young Mothers Who Want
To Have Their Own Business While Raising Their Kids – But Can’t Get Started’)

The Crimes We Commit Against Our [Avatar] (i.e ‘The Food Crimes We Commit Against Our Body’ or
‘The Creativity Crimes We Commit Against Our Employees’)

These [Number] of [Avatar] Messed With [Product], See What Happened (i.e ‘These 5 New Piano
Players Messed With Piano-Hero, See What Happened’)

The Death of [Avatar’s Niche] (i.e ‘The Death of Old School Social Media’)

How One Word Can Get You [Avatar’s Worry] (i.e ‘How One Word Can Get You Fired’)

Add This One _____ To Your _____ To Get a [Wild Result] (i.e ‘Add This One Word In Your Menu To
Get Your Customers To Order It, Every Single Time)

The Greatest Reason in The World To Start [What Avatar Wants To Achieve] (i.e ‘The Greatest Reason
In The World To Start Playing Chess’)
The [Avatar] in the [Your Product/Service] (i.e ‘The WalMart Cashier in the Ferrari’)

How [Your Product] Is Making [Avatar’s Niche] History (i.e ‘How My Newest Court Case Is Making
Legal History’ or ‘How GM Dynamic Keyboards are Making PC History’)

How To [Crime in Avatar’s Niche] Legally (i.e ‘How To Get Cuban Cigars, Legally’)

A Startling Fact About [Avatar’s Desired Gain] (i.e ‘A Startling Fact About Your Doctors’ Success Rate’)

[Celebrity] Is a [What They’re a Celebrity For]. S/He’s Also [Your Niche]. See How [Your Niche/Product]
Helped Him/She Change The World (i.e ‘Mark Zuckerburg Founded Facebook. He’s Also a Taurus. See
How His Horoscope Helped Him Change The World’ or ‘Warren Buffet Is One of the Wealthiest People
Alive. He’s Also From Omaha. See How Growing Up In Omaha Helped Him Become So Successful’)

How To Write a [Avatar’s Needed Action] (i.e ‘How To Write a Resume’)

The Secrets of Making [Avatar’s Target Audience] [Gain Desired Benefit] (i.e ‘The Secrets of Making
The Dentists Office Fun Again’)

Advice to [Avatar] Whose [Avatar’s Challenging Person] Won’t [Avatar’s Needed Action] (i.e ‘Advice
To Single Mothers Whose Families Won’t Help Them’ or ‘Advice to CEO’s Whose Employees Won’t
Listen To Them.’)

How a New [Discovery/App] Made a Plain/Ugly [Avatar] [Avatar’s Desired Gain] (i.e ‘How My New
Software Made an Ugly Website Beautiful…In 24 Minutes’ or ‘How a New Organic Supplement Made
a Headache Disappear…Fast’)

How to Get/Win [Avatar’s Desired Benefit] and [Avatar’s Secondary Benefit] (i.e ‘How To Get Your
Child To Respect & Listen To You…And Still Be a Cool Parent’)

How to [Avatar’s Action] without [Avatar’s #1 Worry] (i.e How to Get a Flood of New Chiropractor
Clients Without Paying a Penny In Advertising)

Think [Avatar’s Niche] Is Just For _____? Meet This [Surprising Person] Who Might Disagree With You
On That (i.e ‘Think HTML Is Just For Young Coders? Meet This 82 Year Old Grandma Who Might Just
Disagree With You On That’)
A New Kind of [Avatar’s Niche] Encourages [Avatar] To [Desired Result] (i.e ‘A New Kind of Office
Design Encourages Employees To Stay Longer At Work’)

You Can Laugh at [Avatar’s Niche] Worries – if You Follow This Simple Plan (i.e ‘You Can Laugh at Your
Money Worries – If You Follow This Simple Plan’)

[Number] Known [X] Troubles – Which do You Want to Overcome? (i.e ’10 Known Health Troubles –
Which do you Want To Overcome?’)

How I Improved My [X] in One [Time] (i.e ‘How I Improved My Cooking Skills For My Family In One
Afternoon’)

Use/Do [Avatar’s Niche]? You Need This [Numbered Content] of [Avatar’s Resources] (i.e ‘Exercise
Much? You Need This List of 10 Post Workout Recipes’)

New Free [Resource] Tells You [Number] Secrets of Better [Benefit] (i.e ‘New Free Webinar Shows You
The 12 Secrets of Better Family Vacations’)

The Secret to Being [Avatar’s Desired Outcome] (i.e ‘The Secret To Being a Woman That Every Man
Wants’)

To [Avatar] Who Want to Quit [What Avatar Wants to Avoid] While [X] (i.e ‘To Loving Fathers Who
Want To Quit Their Cubicle-Job While Their Kids Are Still Young’)

Imagine [Avatar’s Big Desire] for/in [Short Amount of Time] (i.e ‘Imagine Being Able To Protect
Yourself Like Batman, In Just 62 Days’)

We Analyzed [Big Number] The Most Successful [Avatar’s Niche] of All Time & Discovered This Secret
to [Avatar’s Desired Result] (i.e ‘We Analyzed 174 of The Most Successful High Schools In American
History to Discover The Secret to Successful Education’)

Thousands Now [X] Who Never Thought They Could (i.e ‘Thousands of Senior Citizens Now Create
iPhone Apps – Who Never Thought They Could’)

[Avatar’s Desired Action] for [Short Amount of Time] Will [Achieve Desired Result]. Here’s How (i.e
‘Being Lazy for 45 Minutes a Day Will Make You More Productive. Here’s How’)

Get the Kind of [X] You Want (i.e ‘Get the Kind of S.A.T Score You Want’)
Why [Your Product Consumers] Live Better (i.e ‘Why Beer Drinkers Live Better’)

“Dear [Your Name Here]: You Saved My Life” (i.e ‘Dear Uber Driver: You Saved My Life’)

[Avatar]! Want Quick [X]? (i.e ‘English Teachers! Want Extra Income on the Side?’)

You May Be [Doing X] More [Avatar’s Enemy] Than You Should (i.e ‘You May Be Working Harder Than
You Should’)

Get Rid of That [Avatar’s Enemy]! (i.e ‘Get Rid of That Crack In Your iPhone’)

How You can Get a Quick [X] of [Desired Outcome] – By [Using Your Product] (i.e ‘How You Can Get
a Quick, Lasting Burst of Energy In Your Day – By Snacking on This Vegetable’)

Become a [Desired Benefit] [Avatar Title] With [Your Product/Resource] (i.e ‘Look Like James Bond
With These 5 Style Hacks’)

How To Get More [Desired Benefit] From The [X] You [Already Take This Action] (i.e ‘How To Get
More Money From The Job You Already Have’)

See How [Avatar]’s Life/Career Changed When They Started [Using Your Product] (i.e ‘See How One
Stylist’s Career Changed When They Started Using Johnson & Johnson’s New Conditioner)

Wow! [Celebrity Name] [Doing Surprising Action] In [Surprising Location/Publication] (i.e ‘Wow! Jack
Black Does Bikram Yoga On Set Before Any Shoot’)

See [Your Product] In Action (i.e ‘See #Slides In Action’)

How I [Achieved Result] in [Short Amount of Time] (i.e ‘How I Got a 6-Pack In 32 Days’)

You Can [Achieve Desired Result] Easily – Just Like [Person] (i.e ‘You Can Learn Spanish Easily – Just
Like David’)

Get Rid of [Avatar’s] Worries for Good (i.e ‘Get Rid of Blood Pressure Worries For Good’)
Keep Your [X] safe This [Current/Upcoming Season]! (i.e ‘Keep Your School Safe This Summer
Vacation’)

Free to [Avatar]. [Action] for [Major Media/Publications/Company] You Want. (i.e Free to Members of
our Gym. Be Featured In Any Fitness Magazine You Want’)

The [Avatar’s Tool] of the [Avatar’s Desired Title] (i.e ‘The Only Watch of YPO Presidents’)

For [Avatars] Who Don’t Have [Resource] for [X] (i.e ‘For Bloggers Who Don’t Have Time for SEO’)

How To Avoid [X] Hazards (i.e ‘How To Avoid Employee Lawsuits’)

Break Out/Stop of [Bad Habit]! (i.e ‘Stop Overeating’)

Free Yourself From [X] With [Number] of these [Avatar’s Niche] Secrets (i.e ‘Free Yourself From Anger
With 4 of these Meditation Techniques’)

What Sort of [Avatar] [Takes Action With Your Product]? (i.e ‘What Sort of Driver Reads Road &
Track’)

Will You Help me [X]? (i.e ‘Will You Help Me Rebuild Our Community?’)

Don’t Even Think About [X] Without Reading This Report! (i.e ‘Don’t Even Think About Suicide
Without First Reading This Letter’)

Why [Avatar] [Achieves Exciting Result] (i.e ‘Why Grammar School Teachers Live Longer’)

The Secret of Having [X] (i.e ‘The Secret of Having a Business That Runs Without You’)

How To [Benefit] by just [Doing Simple Actions] (i.e ‘How To Swim Like an Olympian By Just Doing This
One Stretch Before Going In The Pool’)

How To [Desired Outcome] Without [X] for [Minimal Output] (i.e ‘How To Write Perfect Headlines
Without Breaking Your Teeth In Just 90 Seconds’)

[Number] Steps to [Outcome] (i.e ‘4 Steps to a Passionate Marriage’)

How To [Action] a [Desired Outcome] and [Extra Benefit] (i.e How To Win at Poker & Make Extra
Money on The Side’)

Who is [Getting Desired Outcome] and How (i.e ‘Who Always Feels Like They’re In Zen At Work…and
How’)

How The Experts [Actions] (i.e ‘How The Experts Do Sit-Ups’)

Want to Be a [Avatar Title]? (i.e ‘Want To Be a Hand Model?’)

How To [Action] a Good [Outcome] (i.e ‘How To Cook a Great Dinner In Just 15 Minutes’)

But What if You Could [Desired Benefit]? (i.e ‘But What if You Could Get Dry Cleaning at Home?’)

Meet The [Avatar] Who [Achieved The Impossible] (i.e ‘Meet The Homeless Man Who Became an
Expert Investor’)

How To [Achieve Desired Result], Hour-by-Hour (i.e ‘How To Meditate Like a Buddhist Monk,
Minute-By-Minute’)

Is Your [Location] [‘X’] Poor? (i.e ‘Is Your Neighborhood Park-Benches Poor?’)

Why Some [Avatars] Almost Always [Achieve Desired Outcome] in [Location]? (i.e ‘Why These Salons
Almost Always Make More Money In Detroit’)

How Much is Your [Thing You Wish Was Gone] Costing Your [X]? (i.e ‘How Much Is Your Extra Fat
Costing Your Grocery Budget Every Month?’)

[Number] New Ways to a [X’s] Heart – in This fascinating Presentation/Report/Book/Review (i.e ’10
New Ways To a Man’s Heart – In This Fascinating Presentation’)

How To Give Your [Avatar] Extra [Desired Benefit] – 3 [Surprising Word] Ways (i.e ‘How To Give Your
Grandaughter Extra Savings For College – 3 Simple Ways’)
Little [Problem] That Keep [Avatars] [Pain] (i.e ‘Little WordPress Bugs That Keep Your Blog From Being
Found’)

This is a [Avatar] – [Action] To Her Death (i.e ‘This is a CEO – Working To Their Death’)

Take This One Minute Test!

Here Is a Quick way to [Remove Pain] (i.e ‘Here is a Quick Way to Relieve Stress’)

“I lost my [Pain] – and [Got Benefit] too!” (i.e ‘I got rid of all my debt – and made $42,000 too!’)

The Truth About Getting [Benefit] (i.e ‘The Truth About Owning Your Own Restaurant’)

What [Avatar] Owns His Own [Your Product]? (i.e ‘What Kind of Guy Wears Old Navy Jeans?’)

The Most [Pain] Mistake of Your Life (i.e ‘The Most Expensive Mistake of Your Life’)

[Number] ways to [X] Your [Thing Avatar is Avoiding] (i.e ’21 Ways to Kill Your Procrastination’)

Need More [Desired Outcome]? (i.e ‘Need More Passion In Your Marriage?’)

What Your [X] Doesn’t Want You to Know (i.e ‘What Your Bank Doesn’t Want You to Know’)

FINALLY! Here’s How To Get [Benefit A] & [Benefit B]…without [Pain] (i.e ‘FINALLY! Here’s How To Get
More Omega 3 & Calcium…Without Buying Expensive Supplements!’)

Bonus Round: Use These 11 Rocking Resources To Find Even More Explosive Headline Formulas

Here are a few resources to use along with this page to find winning headline formulas anytime you
need:

1. UpWorthy (Yes, it’s their headlines which took them viral, so pay close attention to them)
2. Swiped (Love Mike, he’s doing what no one else is doing. Check his site out for genius swipe files of
winning headlines)

3. Buffer (Here’s a great post they did on headline formulas)

4. CopyBlogger (Here’s their great post on headline formulas)

5. Unbounce + CopyHacker’s Joanna Weibe (This is advanced and awesome. Some ‘meta-strategies’
on headline formulas)

6. KISSmetrics (Love their ‘SHINE’ principle for headlines)

7. Digital Marketer (Russ Henneberry dedicated an entire post to headline formulas for social media.
And yes, notice his killer headline for it!)

8. Greatist – (An ultimate health and wellness website with a plethora of genius headlines to learn
from)

9. OkDork – (Noah Kagan founded AppSumo & SumoMe. He’s awesome. Here’s what was learned
after analyzing 1 Million Headlines)

10. Buffer Wins Again (Courtney Seiter from Buffer explains 8 winning headline formulas and the
psychology why they work)

11. QuickSprout (We love Neil Patel and so will you after reading his post on the ‘perfect headline
formula’)

1. Say it simply and directly.

The direct headline should be used far more often than it is. No cleverness. No jokes. No wordplay.
The direct headline gets right to the point. It works particularly well with strong offers, recognized
brand names, and product or service types with which the reader is familiar.

Pure silk blouses … 30% off

The Ultimate Tax Shelter

FREE subscription to BlogMaster

2. State the big benefit.

One of the first techniques you should always explore is transforming your major benefit into a
headline. After all, your number one selling point should be up front. It stands the best chance of
selecting the right audience and preparing them to respond. Plus, if they read nothing else, they have
at least seen the best selling point you have to offer. If you have trouble writing this kind of headline,
it’s a sure sign you need to think a bit more about your product or service.

Now! Moonlight Your Way to a Million Dollars.

Create your own cards, posters and banners in minutes!

Get a FREE vase when you buy a dozen roses.

3. Announce exciting news.

People read newspapers and magazines because they love news. It’s just basic human nature. We’re
curious. We not only want to know, we need to know. Casting your headline in a way that suggests
news, rather than advertising, can have the same powerful appeal of a feature story in the morning
paper. An important note: the product or service doesn’t necessarily have to be newly created to
qualify as news. It merely has to be news to your reader.

At Last, American Scientists Have Created the Perfect Alternative to a Mined Diamond!

Introducing the newest idea in cross-training. From NordicTrack.

Now program your DVR by simply speaking to the revolutionary DVR VOICE programmer.

4. Appeal to the “how-to” instinct.

The how-to headline appeals to the need most of us have to improve ourselves or our lives in some
way. The secret here is to focus on a need or want and promise to fulfill that need or want. Be careful,
though. The how-to must highlight the benefit or final result, not the process itself. Look at this
example:

How to make money working from home with your PC.

Suppose instead it read, “How to start a full-time computer business in your home.” This misses the
point, doesn’t it? It sounds like a lot of work. It says nothing about the real motivator, which is using a
computer you already own to make money easily. To write a how-to headline, begin with the words
“How to” or “How” then immediately fill in the benefit.

How to stop smoking in 30 days … or your money back.

How You Can Profit From the 3 Greatest Service Businesses of the Decade!

How to do Central America on $17 a day.

5. Pose a provocative question.

Asking a question directly involves your reader. However, your question cannot be random or clever.
It must relate directly and clearly to the major benefit of the product. It must also prod the reader to
answer “yes” or at least “I’m not sure, but I want to know more.”

Do You Make These Six Common Mistakes On Your Taxes?

Gotten a speeding ticket lately? Read this.

How do I know which mutual funds may be right for me?

6. Bark a command.

Sales copy often falls flat because it fails to tell the reader what to do. This headline type allows you
to be direct, provide a benefit, and take a commanding posture simultaneously. It’s not
conversational, it’s dictatorial — but in an acceptable way that readers have come to expect in clear
writing.

Become a famous blogger in 60 days.

Call anyone, anywhere, without a phone line for FREE!

Stop wasting money on Web design. Use InstaSite to create your own Web site in minutes.

7. Offer useful information.

Let me clue you in on a little secret. Most people don’t want information. I know you’ve always been
taught otherwise, but it’s true. People are drowning in facts. What people really want is a sense of
order and predictability in their lives. We want to feel a sense of power over our world. Therefore, we
seek out the secrets, tips, hints, laws, rules, and systems that promise to help us gain control and
make sense of things. Notice how these headlines promise information that does just this.

THE 20 MOST IMPORTANT STEPS YOU CAN TAKE TO LIVE LONGER.

FREE. The best kept secrets in America.

Free brochure shows you how to end your money worries for good.

8. Relay an honest, enthusiastic testimonial.

A testimonial headline can do two things for you. First, it presents your reader with a third party
endorsement of your product or service. Second, it capitalizes on the fact that people like to know
what other people say.
“Quite simply, the finest design software ever released.”

“This diet program worked for me. It can work for you, too!”

“It’s the first book on personal finance that really made sense to me.”

A variation of this strategy is to write a headline in the first person and put quotation marks around it.
This “virtual testimonial” gives you a more interesting headline and improves readership.

9. Authenticate your proposition with a little something extra.

People distrust sales copy. And for good reason. A lot of it proves inaccurate or downright dishonest.
To cut through this distrust, you can add a little something extra to your headline that seems out of
place, yet rings true. Look at the following headlines and notice how the words “Ohio man,”
“Obsolete,” and “Frustrated bartender” stand out. Their specificity or quirkiness adds a truthful aura
that traditional copy could never achieve.

Ohio man has 21-year tested formula to create multimillion dollar business from scratch, without
bank loans, venture capitalists or selling stock.

Small Company’s New Golf Ball Flies Too Far; Could Obsolete Many Golf Courses.

Frustrated bartender develops incredible device to clean and disinfect your entire home…

10 Questions to Ask about

your Disaster Recovery and
Backup Strategy
Certum are specialists in data protection. We have put together some
questions that any business should ask about their internal data
protection strategy.
Questions to ask about your backup and disaster recovery strategy:

1.Are your backup windows driving your DR strategy?

We can eliminate your back up windows – we can deliver a solution
that allows you to set your recovery point objectives based on
business need and not the limitations of your infrastructure.

2. Is testing your backup and recovery strategy

disruptive to your business?
We can automatically confirm the mountability of your backups. We
can also spin up your systems in a cloud VM proving your DR
strategy.

3. How quickly can you recover your business systems

in the event of a disaster?
We can have you back up and running in minutes.

4. What is your Recovery Time Objective (RTO)?

Most businesses need to guess at this. They need to order new
hardware, reinstall operating systems and updates, reinstall
applications and updates and then install the backed up data. We
can reduce RTO from days and hours to minutes. Our solution backs
up your Operating System, Applications and Data – we just spin
them up in a VM in our cloud.
5. Can you backup and recover your physical servers to
a virtual server and vice versa?
We can! Physical (P) to virtual (V) server, P to P, V to V, V to P.

6. Can you recover a single file?

We can recover a single file, email, etc within seconds. We provide full
granular recovery rather than having to recover entire backups.

7. Are your backups secure?

Most businesses now require offsite data backups for compliance or
insurance? Where are your tapes or external drives being stored? Are
you backing up to the cloud in the USA (NSA)? We secure your
backups in the cloud in our Scottish data centre.

8. Does your current backup strategy require

significant storage?
We can reduce your storage by up to 80% using the latest
deduplication technologies. Your backup is de-duplicated reducing
your storage requirements.

9. How reliable is your backup target?

Any mechanical target has a certain amount of risk. Tape backups
are slow, degrade and top the unreliability charts. External HDD are
single point of failures – if you backup at 5pm a HDD failure can cost
you two days business. We use 2-tier backup with an onsite backup
to disk replicated to our high availability cluster in the cloud.
10. Do you tell your customers about how good your
Data Protection strategy is?
Certum Cloud Continuity customers do! They value their data
protection strategy as a selling point to their customers.

If you answered these questions affirmatively then there is a good

chance that you are already a Certum Cloud Continuity customer.

10 Sure-Fire Headline Formulas That Work

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Magnetic Headline Formulas

So, you’re seeing too many of those “how to” and list headlines, and want to try a few different
angles?

Let’s move beyond those common headline formulas you see over and over, and add some new blood
to your attention-grabbing arsenal.

1. Who Else Wants [blank]?

Starting a headline with “Who Else Wants…” is a classic social proof strategy that implies an already
existing consensus desire. While overused in the Internet marketing arena, it still works like
gangbusters for other subject matter.

Who Else Wants a Great WordPress Theme?

Who Else Wants a Higher Paying Job?

Who Else Wants More Fun and Less Stress When on Vacation?

2. The Secret of [blank]

This one is used quite a bit, but that’s because it works. Share insider knowledge and translate it into
a benefit for the reader.

The Secret of Successful Podcasting

The Secret of Protecting Your Assets in Litigation

The Secret of Getting Your Home Loan Approved

3. Here is a Method That is Helping [blank] to [blank]

Simply identify your target audience and the benefit you can provide them, and fill in the blanks.

Here is a Method That is Helping Homeowners Save Hundreds on Insurance

Here is a Method That is Helping Children Learn to Read Sooner

Here is a Method That is Helping Bloggers Write Better Post Titles

4. Little Known Ways to [blank]

A more intriguing (and less common) way of accomplishing the same thing as “The Secret of…”
headline.

Little Known Ways to Save on Your Heating Bill

Little Known Ways to Hack Google’s Gmail

Little Known Ways to Lose Weight Quickly and Safely

5. Get Rid of [problem] Once and For All

A classic formula that identifies either a painful problem or an unfulfilled desire that the reader wants
to remedy.

Get Rid of Your Unproductive Work Habits Once and For All

Get Rid of That Carpet Stain Once and For All

Get Rid of That Lame Mullet Hairdo Once and For All

6. Here’s a Quick Way to [solve a problem]

People love quick and easy when it comes to solving a nagging problem.

Here’s a Quick Way to Get Over a Cold

Here’s a Quick Way to Potty Train Junior

Here’s a Quick Way to Backup Your Hard Drive

7. Now You Can Have [something desirable] [great circumstance]

The is the classic “have your cake and eat it too” headline — and who doesn’t like that?

Now You Can Quit Your Job and Make Even More Money

Now You Can Meet Sexy Singles Online Without Spending a Dime

Now You Can Own a Cool Mac and Still Run Windows

8. [Do something] like [world-class example]

Gatorade milked this one fully with the “Be Like Mike” campaign featuring Michael Jordan in the early
1990s.

Speak Spanish Like a Diplomat

Party Like Paris Hilton

Blog Like an A-Lister

9. Have a [or] Build a [blank] You Can Be Proud Of

Appeal to vanity, dissatisfaction, or shame. Enough said.

Build a Body You Can Be Proud Of

Have a Smile You Can Be Proud Of

Build a Blog Network You Can Be Proud Of

10. What Everybody Ought to Know About [blank]

Big curiosity draw with this type of headline, and it acts almost as a challenge to the reader to go
ahead and see if they are missing something.

What Everybody Ought to Know About ASP

What Everybody Ought to Know About Adjustable Rate Mortgages

What Everybody Ought to Know About Writing Great Headlines

Find these headline templates useful? Pick up our comprehensive ebook on Magnetic Headlines as
well as a full content marketing library … for free. You can click here to learn how.

About the Author: Brian Clark is founder

There’s no doubt that my previous two posts on headline formulas have been extremely popular. But
they’ve also caused me to take a lot of flak.

First off, you still have the doubters who wonder if 80-year-old headline structures can possibly work
in the modern social media environment. Truth is, I used one such structure for a post this summer
that received over 1,600 Diggs, while also making an appearance on just about every social media
news site around and bringing in over 70,000 unique visitors.

And I never had a doubt that it would work. Why?

Because Do You Make These Mistakes When You Write? and the original Do You Make These
Mistakes in English? are literally about the same thing—grammar. It was an absolute no brainer,
because Maxwell Sackheim did the work for me over 80 years ago, and his ad ran successfully for 40
years. But keep in mind that I and plenty of others have successfully used the “these mistakes”
template in many other contexts as well, because the specific promise contained in the headline
makes it irresistible if used properly.

That brings me to the other complaint I’m hearing—too many people are using the same formulas
over and over, badly. This is likely because people did not heed the warning about headline templates
that you’ll hear from any copywriter, which is to understand why they work before trying to use
them.

When you understand why the original headlines worked, you’ll be able to select an appropriate
structure, and you’ll be a better headline writer in general. If you don’t, you might not only write a
bad headline, you might come off looking bad in general.

So, here are 5 more headline templates that work, but use them at your own risk. If you don’t match
up an appropriate headline structure with your content, you might crash and burn worse than if you
just came up with a headline off the top of your head.

1. Warning: [blank].
If you’ve read this far, I guess it still works. Starting a headline with the word warning will almost
always catch attention, but it’s what you say next that will determine how well it works for your
particular content.

Warning: If You Depend on Google for Both Traffic and Advertising, You Pretty Much Work for Google

Warning: Two Out of Every Three People in Your Industry Will be Out of Work in 5 Years—Will You Be
One of Them?

Warning: Do You Recognize These 7 Early Warning Signs of Blogger Burnout?

2. How [blank] Made Me [blank].

Use this structure when relating a personal story. The key to the most effective use of this template is
for the two blanks to dramatically contrast, so that the curiosity factor goes way up and people feel
compelled to read more.

How a “Fool Stunt” Made Me a Star Salesman

How an Obvious Idea Made Me $3.5 Million

How Moving to Iowa Improved My Sex Life

3. Are You [blank]?

A nice use of the question headline, designed to catch attention with curiosity or a challenge to the
reader. Don’t be afraid to be bold with this one.

Are You Ashamed of Smells in Your House?

Are You Ready to Learn Chinese for Your Next Job?

Are You a Courageous Blogger?

4. [Blank] Ways to [blank].

One of the best list structures, because it’s really a “how to” headline enhanced by specificity that
either impresses the prospective reader with how many tips you’ve got, or at minimum let’s them
know exactly what to expect.

101 Ways to Cope With Stress

21 Ways to Live a Better Life With Less

5 Ways to Write Killer Headlines

5. If You’re [blank], You Can [blank].

Another great use of specificity, this headline addresses a particular type of person with the first blank,
and the beneficial promise to that person in the content or body copy with the second.

If You’re a Non-Smoker, You Can Save 33% on Life Insurance.

If You’re an Accountant, Our Frequent Flyer Program Really Adds Up

If You Love Scuba, You Can Dive Belize This Week Only for a Song!

About the Author: Brian Clark is founder of Copyblo