Five Tips for Writing to Emphasize Urgency

Alan Harris reports:

"Whether you’re writing an irresistible email subject line, drafting up a promo, creating an email invitation, or writing a social post, here are five ways to grab the attention of your audience, and ignite them into action...Nothing conveys a sense of urgency quite like a deadline. Reinforce the deadline in your email subject line or headline, [in] the body copy and in the call-to-action...Use time-sensitive phrasing and wording...especially in tandem with a deadline...If you don’t want to use a hard deadline or expiration date, you can still use time-sensitive language in a general way, e.g. 'limited-time offer.' You can also employ a countdown clock in your emails and across social media channels to reinforce the sense of urgency. Sending a last reminder in the final hours of an offer can also be effective...An alternative way to communicate urgency to your readers without relying on deadlines is to emphasize or create a sense of scarcity...Whether you’re selling tickets to a fundraiser, or new merchandise, reminding your audience that you only have a finite and rapidly dwindling supply of something can help push those fence-sitters over the edge. Also be honest about the limited supply of your product or service as well. If people rush to buy a 'flying off the shelves' ticket only to see there are plenty more a week later, you’ll have angry customers on your hands...Once you entice readers, don’t overwhelm them with a mountain of text, because the average reader doesn’t have the attention for it. Instead, keep the body of your message brief so readers focus on your headline, key points and call-to-action...It doesn’t matter how well[-]written your email, blog or social post is if your readers don’t know what you want them to do. Make it obvious with a direct and easy[-]to[-]understand CTA, or call-to-action. Whether you want them to make a phone call or click-through to your website, make your CTA a highly visible link or button with action-oriented wording."