The headline and the first paragraph must work hand-in-hand to convince the reader to fully read your sales letter. The headline's purpose was to grab attention and get the prospect to read the first paragraph. The first paragraph, then, has to funnel the reader into the body of the sales letter.

If this is not handled correctly, the reader will click away from your page and be lost forever.

I will show you  how avoid that.

The first paragraph must immediately describe what's in it for the prospect. You have to tell them exactly what they stand to gain by reading your letter, then eventually buying your product. It doesn't have to be long. In fact, the first paragraph could just be a sentence or two. Length is not important - effect is important.

There are many types of first paragraphs, and they often parallel the types of headlines. But rather than describing benefits and an intruiging hook, you want to speak more directly to the reader's self interest. Here are some types of first paragraphs and some examples

The If...Then introduction

* If you want a life that’s free of job hassle, with plenty of money and the time to enjoy it, then this will be the most amazing message you will ever read.
* If you’d love to astonish your friends by driving a golf ball 300 yards dead center down the fairway, with the accuracy of a guided missile. . then you will want hear what I recently learned.
* If you’d like the inside deal on how to get hold of a 500 series Mercedes Benz for half what everybody else has to pay (quite legally). . . then this will be the most astonishing message you have ever read!

Ask a question

Keep the question open ended. Don't worry if your headline is also a question.

* Could you use an extra $1,000 a week? Then this may be the most startling news about your future you will ever read!
* When was the last time you enjoyed filling out your income tax form? Then...

State Your Case

* My name is John Smith and I’m the dude who recently beat the IRS to a pulp in a recent court case. Here’s what my victory proved about paying your taxes . . .
* With your permission, I’m going to send you a copy of a unique Navy Seals training DVD, showing vicious hand to hand combat, that was smuggled out – at great risk – from their top secret training center. . .

The Prediction

* Can you imagine just how much your world will change, when gas hits $5 – which could happen sooner than you might think.
* Stock market "experts" are selling everything they have...but the smart investors have realized that now is the time to buy. This could be your chance to make a killing.

The Story

Showing whats-in-it-for-me from you own personal point of view.

* I got the call around dawn. I knew it would mean driving all day through the blistering desert heat. It didn’t matter, because . . .
* Last year, I made a serious mistake that cost me a lot of money

Directly State the Benefit

* It’s easy to become a skilled guitar player – surprisingly easy . . . because
* Yes! You really can get a better deal over your car servicing . . . and here’s why.

State the Problem

The problem indirectly leads to the benefit.

* Do you realize, if you only take an hour to get to work each day, that adds up to – even with four weeks holiday - an amazing 480 hours a year?
* When you approach thirty, the opportunity of meeting interesting people who are neither married, nor with the emotional baggage of a bitter divorce, is increasingly difficult.

Admitting a problem

As long as its really not a problem but a benefit.

* We are not a big company, but that keeps our prices low and we pass the savings on to you
* 73% of artists make a mistake that causes their art to be dull and uninspiring. Here's what it is...
* For years, I was making the same mistake that was actually driving customers away.

Personal Information about the Reader

* According to papers filed in Smith County, you are facing the threat of foreclosure on your trailer. I can help.

The Imagination Opening

Try to get the reader to picture his/her life after using the product. A twist on his idea is to get the reader to think back to a better time, a previous moment when they did not have their current problems.

* Picture yourself
* Can you imagine
* Picture yourself five years from now
* Just picture
* Just imagine
* Remember when you were in high school
* Remember how good it was when...
* Imagine what it would be like if
* Wouldnt it be amazing if
* Remember the smell of
* Do you remember hearing
* Can you recall what a ... feels like?

What Comes Next?

After you've demonstrated what life could be like with your product, it's time to transition into the body of your sales letter.

In the second paragraph, some copywriters like to highlight life would be like without using your product. Sort of a reversal of the positive world depicted in the first paragraph. But I like Joe Vitale's approach. He wrote a book called Hypnotic Writing, which describes a very interesting technique that puts your prospect into a receptive mood for reading the rest of your sales letter. Here's what he recommends:

Embedding a subtle hypnotic command in the first line of your next paragraph. That command tells your audience what they should do, and how they should feel, as they read your copy.

Here are a few examples...

* As you start reading the beginning of this article, you find yourself ...
* As you sit there and read the beginning of this report you start to feel relieved that help may be just around the corner
* As you read every word of this report you will become (amazed, stunned, etc) at
* As you analyize each word of this document, you will shortly feel a sense of (calmness, joy, etc)
* As you scan every word of this web page, you will begin to discover new ways off
* After you have read this short article, you will feel


In subsequent paragraphs, you introduce yourself and build your own credibility, introduce your product, and engage the consumer with your eloquent arguments. In fact, keeping the reader interested and mentally engaged with the rest of your letter is the subject of the next chapter: Engagement.