How “And” and “Even” Are Powerful Tools In Headline Writing

When I was little, I had a remote controlled car.

I'd put the batteries into the car; another set into my remote and I was guaranteed an afternoon of fun. This car—a yellow Lamborghini Countach—could go left, right, race ahead and reverse just as easily.

But what's good for a 12-year old isn't necessarily great when writing headlines

The greater the options you have when creating headlines, the easier it is to get confused. Which is why it’s important to keep the headline-writing elements as sparse as possible—while still getting great results.

So let’s assume our “headline car” can only go forward or in reverse

To go forward, we’ll use the term “AND”.
And to reverse, we’ll use “EVEN”.

And then we’ll add one more element—the parentheses

When laid out, the headline looks like this:
Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah (AND blah, blah, blah, blah, blah)

OR

Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah (EVEN blah, blah, blah, blah, blah)

The “”AND” moves the idea forward.
The “EVEN” takes it a step back—or provides contrast.

Let’s take a few examples of AND, shall we?

How to consistently raise prices (and still keep 95% of your clients)
How to tell amazing stories (and connect the stories to your business articles)

And then we move in reverse and use EVEN

How to consistently raise prices (even when clients are price-conscious)
How to consistently raise prices (even when the competition is offering discounts).

However, AND and EVEN only apply to the second part of the headline—what about the first part?

Good question. The first part of the headline needs to be a standalone headline, so that if some laser beam wiped out the second part, you'd still have a great headline.

So let's see how the first part of the headline plays its role

1. How to establish rapport with an angry client
2. How to write headlines that people will read
3. How to get the best deal on your next car
4. How to feel good about reading a bad review

And since the first part of the headline is already in place, we can put the parentheses. And then the AND and the EVEN to create a bit of added curiosity.

1. How to establish rapport with an angry client (even if they are yelling at you)
2. How to write headlines that people will read (and leave them wanting more)
3. How to get the best deal on your next car (even though the odds are stacked against you)
4. How to feel good about reading a bad review (even though you’re being attacked)

At this point, you can audit your headline by making sure you have all three elements

1) A great first part—a complete headline with curiosity.
2) The addition of “AND” and “EVEN”.
3) Additional facts that increase curiosity.

But do we have to stick to “AND” and “EVEN”?

No, you don't. You have several other options, but do you need those other options for now? Why complicate matters when you can create a string of great headlines with just a few elements?

It's those limited elements that enable us to create headlines quickly and effectively.

And that’s what we want to do, don’t we?

– “If you do your work diligently, great work will be created. If you make excuses diligently, great excuses will be created”.

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