What Most Business Owners Never Learn About Selling with Words

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Today, we’re pulling the curtain back on the kind of advertising that actually sells (it’s a two part series).

Words that work, headlines that stop people mid-scroll, and simple tests that tell you exactly what’s bringing in money.

This isn’t theory. It’s the forgotten craft of turning ideas into revenue, pulled straight from Scientific Advertising and sharpened for the way business works now.

If you’ve ever wondered why some ads flop while others print cash, you’ll find the answer here.

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Most business owners treat advertising like a roll of the dice. They toss some money at Google, crank out a Facebook ad with a few trendy buzzwords, and hope for the best.

That’s not advertising. That’s gambling.

Claude Hopkins, the father of modern direct response, would’ve called it a crime against commerce. He believed that advertising should do what a great salesperson does: explain, persuade, and close. Not entertain. Not dazzle. Sell.

He wrote Scientific Advertising over 100 years ago. But every business owner reading this is still playing on his field. The problem? Most don’t know the rules.

Rule #1: Your Ad is a Salesman

Not a billboard. Not a brand awareness tool. A salesman.

Hopkins believed you should judge every word in an ad the same way you’d judge the pitch of a new salesperson. Is it clear? Does it speak directly to the prospect? Does it ask for the sale?

Every ad you run should be measured the same way you measure an employee:

• Is it bringing in money?

• Can it be trained (optimized)?

• Should it be fired (cut)?

You don’t throw up a logo and a nice slogan and expect results. You lead with a reason why someone should care.

Rule #2: People Don’t Care About You—They Care About Themselves

Read most small business ads and you’ll see a lot of this:

That’s not persuasive. That’s filler. People care about what’s in it for them.

Hopkins called this service. Your ad exists to serve the reader by showing them how you solve their problem. Period. Not by talking about yourself, but by connecting your product to their desire.

Take that family-run idea and say this instead:

See the difference? That’s service. That’s selling.

Rule #3: Test Everything

Hopkins wouldn’t have spent a dollar on ad creative without tracking the response. He split-tested before the term existed. He understood that the market is the final judge.

If you're running two different Facebook ads, the one with the higher conversion rate wins. The rest is noise. Don’t argue with your gut. Don’t guess. Test.

You’re not in the branding game. You’re in the selling game. Your job is to track what works and kill what doesn’t.

This is how to think like an ad scientist:

• Test two headlines.

• Track which one brings in more leads.

• Keep the winner, toss the loser.

• Repeat until your lead gen is printing money.

Rule #4: Be Specific. Always.

General claims kill trust.

Hopkins said, “Platitudes and generalities roll off the human understanding like water from a duck.”

If you want attention, say something concrete. Something that can’t be ignored.

Examples:

• “We cleaned 1,279 pools in Hood County last summer. Zero complaints.”

• “Every one of our websites loads in under 2 seconds or your first month is free.”

That’s the kind of language that builds trust and breaks down buyer hesitation.

Rule #5: The Headline is Everything

Hopkins said the headline is worth 80% of the ad. If it doesn’t stop the scroll, you’ve already lost.

Look at your headlines. Do they speak to a specific person about a specific benefit? Or are they fluff?

Don’t say: “Grow Your Business.” Say: “Double Your Weekly Leads Without Spending More on Ads.”

Don’t say: “We Do Custom Kitchens.” Say: “Get a Stunning Kitchen Remodel Without Paying for Things You Don’t Need.”

Your headline should be a flashing neon sign for the result they’re chasing. Nothing else matters until that’s right.

Bringing it All Together

Let’s say you’re a local business coach. Most would throw out an ad that says:

But if we apply Hopkins’ rules, you’d test something like:

That speaks to a pain. That promises a result. That asks for attention.

Take Action

Here’s your weekly assignment:

1. Look at your best-performing offer.

2. Rewrite the headline with a specific result.

3. Add one trust-building detail.

4. Ask for the response. (Click, book a call, whatever the next step is.)

5. Run it for a week and track the numbers.

You just ran your first scientific ad.

Most won’t do this. Most will keep boosting posts and hoping. But not you. You’re building a system.

That’s how real businesses grow. That’s how you win.