Imagine this: you publish a blog post that you’ve worked for a full week on. You wrote it, re-wrote it, edited it, and fine-tuned it and now you’re ready to share it with the world.
Naturally, you send a proud announcement to your email list. Only to find that just a few of them even open it, and far fewer of them read it.
It’s a disappointing cycle.
According to research, however, this is actually a likely scenario in online copywriting. As a general rule, only 2-3% of email subscribers will click-through to read something in an email you send them, according to MailChimp stats. So what’s the point of working so hard on them, anyway?
Fortunately – the problem isn’t your writing. It’s the words you’re choosing to use.
30 Trigger Words You Should be Using in Your Online Writing for Bigger, Better Results
Luckily for you, there is a virtual treasure chest of so-called “trigger” words you can use in your online copywriting for better results. Here are thirty of my favorites – in a graphic you can save, and listed below.
1. Personalized Words: Your Reader’s Name
If you’re sending out a promotional email, you might want to consider playing the name game. According to MarketingSherpa, simply adding a customer’s name to a marketing email can increase your open rate by 137%. Those are odds most marketers are eager to take. The reason adding a customer’s name to an email headline is so effective is that it triggers a portion of the brain that handles recognition.
People love hearing their own names and appealing to this in your email marketing is one unique way to boost your click-through rates. In order to include your customers’ names in your marketing email, you’ll need to collect their names during sign-up. Once you’ve done that, ensure you’re using the name in the subject line of the email but also within the body content and the CTA.
2. Affirmative Words: “Yes”
For people looking to learn a new skill, develop a new connection, or start a new venture, “Yes” signifies possibility and affirmation. Because of this, including the word “Yes” in your email marketing copywriting can be just what you need to help your customers take the extra step and click on your CTA link. So, yes, you can boost your open rates. You simply need the word “Yes.”
3. Attention-Grabbing Words: “You”
If you’re going to talk to your followers like friends, which you should be doing, you need to reach out to them personally. While using their name is one way to do this, addressing them directly is another. The word “you” grabs a reader’s attention and helps them feel like you’ve created this marketing email specifically for their benefit. Additionally, the word “you” is conversational enough that it helps readers relate to your content and engage with your message.
4. Reason Words – “Because”
Your readers are smart. They need a reason to believe what you’re saying and to take the action you’re asking them to take. Because of this (See what I did there?), using the word “Because” in your online copywriting can be an effective way to lay out cause-and-effect scenarios and inspire confidence.
5. Novelty Words – “New”
People love new things, and making it clear to your readers that something contained within your email or online copywriting is “new” can drive them crazy with excitement. Humans are programmed for novelty and the prospect of something new and exciting is a great way to boost engagement. Additionally, promising something new and exciting can help your marketing email stand out from the dozens your customers are inevitably seeing in their inbox on a daily basis.
6. Wonder Words – “Discover,” “Unlock”
“Discover” is a word that’s sweetly reminiscent of childhood. It reminds the reader what it feels like to be filled with awe and excitement about something. Because of this, it can be a hugely effective tool for your email marketing. Adding the words “Discover” or “Unlock” to your email headlines can help excite readers about the prospect of your content and give them a reason to click.
7. Bargain Words – “Free”
Nearly everyone loves a good deal. By including the word “Free” in your online copywriting, you can appeal to your readers’ sense of economy and assure them that what you’re offering truly is a bargain. Additionally, promising something for free is a great way to grab attention and promote engagement.
8. High-ROI Words – “Amazing”
Readers get a ton of email on a daily basis, and they don’t want to click something that’s not going to deliver groundbreaking content. Because of this, using words that promise a high ROI for their clicks (“Amazing,” “Astounding,” “Incredible,” for example) can help your content get read more often.
9. Immediate Response Words – “Act now”
Customers respond to a demand for immediacy, and including words like “Now,” “Today,” or “Limited time” in your online copywriting – especially your CTAs – can go a long way toward earning you more engagement.
10. One-stop-shop Words – “Everything”
Today, people want expansive content that offers them knowledge, context, and relevance all in one place. By assuring them that a blog post teaches them “Everything they need to know” about a topic or a news story, you can appeal to a reader’s sense of efficiency.
11. Minimal Risk Words – “Guarantee”
In addition to being savvy and economical, customers are also risk-adverse, which means they’re more likely to click a headline or CTA that offers them a guarantee.
12. Simple Words – “Easy”
Nobody wants to click a headline that reads “The top 10 most impossible secrets for making it big in content marketing.” Instead, people want content that promises them an easy experience. By using words like “Simple,” “Easy,” and “Streamlined” in your content, you can do just this.
13. Reliable Words – “Proven”
Again, customers want a sure thing. Remind them that your content is backed up by statistics and research by using the word “proven” in your marketing.
14. Absolute Solution Words – “The”
Customers don’t want just any five solutions for B2B content creation, they want the five solutions for B2B content creation.
15. Solution Words – “How to”
A how-to article is an easily recognizable format. Customers understand that reading it will help them learn something new, so they’re very inclined to click a headline that includes the promise of a solution.
16. Quality Words – “Premium”
The word “Premium” lets customers know that your product is the best in the industry, which encourages consumer confidence and inspires trust in your brand.
17. Low-obligation Words – “No obligation”
In addition to being risk-adverse, customers are also commitment-phobes. Because of this, ensuring that they don’t have to commit to anything to enjoy your product, good, or service can be a great way to get them to click.
18. Abundant Words – “More”
Customers want to know that they’re making a smart decision by working with your company. Because of this, using the word “more” in your online copywriting helps ensure your customers that they’re making a good decision by working with you instead of your competition.
19. Money-back Words – “100% Money-Back Guarantee”
Appeal to your customers’ sense of thrift and fear of obligation by assuring them that they can get their money back if they’re not satisfied with your services.
20. VIP Words – “Elite”
Let your customers know that they’re part of an exclusive club by using words like “Elite” or “VIP” in your marketing. In addition to helping customers feel special, these words also signify the quality and rarity of your product.
21. Coveted Information Words – “Secret”
Let your customers know they’re gaining access to something coveted by providing your top five “Secret” tips or exposing them to the “Secrets” of the pros. In addition to inspiring a sense of wonder, the word “Secret” ensures readers they’re accessing high-quality information.
22. Immediate Reward Words – “Instant”
Providing your customers instant access to something can help them feel more inclined to click right now rather than later on. This, in turn, can help improve your company’s click-through rates and boost reader engagement.
23. Hypothetical Words – “If”
Hypothetical scenarios trigger a reader’s sense of wonder and excitement. What if your reader chose to make this decision? How would their life change if? Adding the word “If” to your online copywriting can have a huge impact on its overall success. Especially when used in the context of “If this, then that.”
24. Fear-inducing Words – “Worse”
If you ensure people things will get worse if they don’t click, read, act, or convert, you can bet they’re going to click, read, act, and convert. Nobody wants anything to get worse, and appealing to this very basic fear and promising a solution for it can go a long way toward enhancing the success of your web content.
25. Short Timeframe Words – “Today”
The concept of “Today” is something that virtually everyone can put their hands on. By letting customers in to an offer that lasts for today only or telling them about a webinar scheduled for today, you can easily boost your conversion rates and encourage a sense of immediacy in your readers.
26. Herd Mentality Words – “Everyone”
It only takes a minority of 5% to influence the direction of a crowd. In light of this, ensuring your readers that “everyone” is clicking or telling them exactly how many subscribers have already converted, you can appeal to the human herd mentality and ensure your readers that taking the desired action is what any reasonable person would do.
Tim Ferriss is a great example of this, in his podcast CTA from iTunes:
27. Real-life Words – “Real World Solutions”
Customers want simple things they can get their hands on, so giving them real-world advice or actionable solutions is a great way to pique their curiosity and get them to click. Not all customers are experts and not everyone is going to understand incredible high-level topics, so be sure to keep your real-world advice simple.
28. Negative Benefit Words – “Never”
“Never make X mistake again,” “Never overpay for X.” These headlines appeal to a person’s sense of a negative benefit. If a reader understands that clicking on your content can help them avoid something undesirable, they’re more likely to do so.
29. Desire-focused Words – “Want”
“Do you want to learn more about AdWords?” “Do you want to get more done with less stress?” Of course customers want these things. They have a desire for them, so they’ll click the content that helps them understand how to get the things they’re looking for.
30. Add-on Words – “P.S.”
Adding a simple P.S. or post-script to your emails can be a great way to help your customers feel like they’re getting an added goodie at the end of your content. Many popular bloggers, including Mark Manson, practice this in their marketing content. P.S. pieces are especially effective when you have something extra to offer or are extending a benefit only available to your email subscribers.
The Case for Trigger Words
While none of these words may shock or awe you on their own, they can transform your content when used correctly.
From making your headlines more irresistibly click-worthy to helping your readers develop confidence and excitement about your brand, these 30 trigger words are the secret weapons of many successful marketers throughout the industry.
Begin using them in your content and watch how your conversion and engagement rates improve!
Image credits
Feature image (c) Julia McCoy
Infographic image (c) Express Writers & Julia McCoy
