John Caples was one of the world’s best copywriters. He was an expert in measuring how well an advertisement worked. And I think he said it best in Tested Advertising Methods. He said that, in a print ad:

75% of the Buying Decisions
Are Made at the HEADLINE Alone

80% of the people who see a print ad will read the headline. Only 20% will read the actual ad. Therefore, you need a headline on your ad that will draw the reader in, make him want to read on.

The same applies to web copy. In fact, it applies even more to web copy. And especially landing page copy. Remember, when a visitor sees your landing page, you have less than 8 seconds to make an impression. That’s why your landing page headline needs to be dead on. It needs to enter the conversation going on inside his head. It must make him want to read on, to learn more about what you have to offer. It’s the single line that can make or break the deal.

Fortunately, there’s a lot you can do to write better headlines. The first thing is just to realize how important the headline is, and to put more time and effort into it. A great headline will make a promise, present proof, and induce curiosity. You see this in the headline templates in David Garfinkel’s ebook Advertising Headlines That Make You Rich.