Table of Contents
There are certain expressions and words that are sometimes referred to as power or trigger words that have a stronger impact on readers than the rest of the text. In marketing, such words are a great way to boost sales and improve such parameters as conversion rate, click-through rate, or even read-through rate.
A trigger is something that makes a person act. In marketing, this will be a click, a purchase, an app installation, etc. Bear in mind that the use of trigger words does not equal miracle outcomes and 100% ROI, it’s a tool that you need to master before it works for you.
Why it works
Power words do work because they trigger a sharp emotional response. There is another marketing technique that is associated with emotions — pain points. It goes beyond mere words in an attempt to trigger users’ emotions and lead them down the sales funnel. Power words can make your creatives stand out and render your brand or campaign memorable.
Trigger words draw users’ attention to what you have to say. The Internet is full of information and offers (some better than yours) nowadays. Users do have a choice, so you have to make them feel special. Let them see why they need to stick with you and what they will get out of it. Your copy or headline needs to answer these questions: why your product is worth their time and money? Using additional emotional incentives is a wise idea, even if your product is actually good and useful to the audience. A little extra persuasion does not hurt. These are some points your copy needs to address emotionally:
- Remind the audience that your product exists, spark curiosity.
- Tell what problem it solves.
- Make your offer urgent or time-specific.
- Give extra information on how to get your offer.
Types of power words
Power words trigger different emotions and are grouped accordingly. The main emotions marketers like to trigger are greed, fear, curiosity, anticipation, and trust. We will take a look at several major categories that are prominent in advertising campaigns.
Fear and anger
These two negative emotions have a powerful emotional (and often irrational) response from the audience. This response is rooted deep within human nature: we tend to give an immediate response to a threat or danger. By the way, for many people today the biggest fear is missing out or FOMO.
Of course, you don’t want people to feel negative about you, your campaign, or the product. Make them angry with a problem that your product solves.
Here are some fear/anger trigger words:
| Aggravate
Aggressive Agitated Agony Alienate Annihilate Apocalypse Appalled Assault Atrocious Backlash Beating Beware Blinded Blood Bomb Bumbling Catastrophe Caution Collapse Condemn Control Corrupt Crash Cripple Crisis Critical Damaging Danger Deadly Death Dejected Deplorable Desperate |
Demoralizing
Despicable Destroy Devastating Disadvantage Disastrous Disgusting Dread Drowning Dumb Eliminate Embarrass Enrage Envy Epidemic Exasperate Fail Feeble Fired Fooled Frantic Frightening Frustrating Furious Gullible Hack Harmful Harsh Havoc Hazardous Hoax Horrific Hurt Impatient |
Infuriate
Insidious Invade Jeopardy Loom Lunatic Lurk Malicious Meltdown Mired Nightmare Offense Ordeal Pain Panic Peril Pessimistic Plague Plummet Plunge Poison Powerless Precarious Provoke Pummel Rampant Rebel Recession Reckoning Refugee Repulsive Resent Retaliate Revenge |
Risk
Scandal Scares Scorn Scream Searing Seeth Shame Shatter Shocking Smash Spite Stupid Suck Suffer Survive Target Teetering Terror Torture Toxic Tragedy Trap Trauma Unjustified Unstable Venomous Victim Vindictive Violate Volatile Warning Wicked Wound |
Curiosity
Curiosity is a real engine when it comes to driving advertising, people click on ads, buy and try things because they are curious about them. This is another natural urge that is easy to satisfy. This emotion is what most email marketers use for their subject lines, and you can also see this in teaser advertising with “Nostradamus said that in 2022…” Also, the curiosity gap — when users see that some information is missing but it’s just a click away — is the basis for clickbait.
Examples of curiosity-triggering expressions:
| Agenda
Astonishing Backdoor Banned Be the first Bizarre Blacklisted Black market Bootleg Censored Class full Classified Closet Concealed Confession Confidential Controversial Covert Cover-up Crazy Cringeworthy Divulge Emerging Elusive Exclusive |
Extraordinary
Eye-opening First Forbidden Forgotten Fundamental Hidden Hilarious Hush-hush Illegal Illusive Insane Insider’s Scoop Intel Invitation only Key Limited Little-known Lost Members only Myths No one talks about Odd Off-limits Off-the-record |
Outlawed
Plot Priceless Private Privy Psychotic Rare Remote Restricted Reveal Ridiculous Secret Select Shh! Shocking Sly Smuggled Sneak-peek Spoiler Stealthy Stunning Super secret Taboo Top secret Trade secret |
Truth
Unadulterated Unauthorized Unbelievable Uncharted Unconventional Undercover Underground Under the table Under wraps Undiscovered Unexplained Unexplored Unheard of Unique Unlock Unseen Untapped Untold Unusual Wacky What no one tells you Withheld |
Anticipation
Anticipation is by definition an excitement about something that’s going to happen, usually something positive. In marketing, we can see this emotion in sales season campaigns, promotions, and product launches, for instance.
| Astonish
Avoid Awaiting Bonus Charming Craving Delayed Discovery Early |
Exclusive
Forgotten Hopeful Inspiration Limited Little-known Longing Mystery New |
Passion
Prediction Rush Surprise Teaser Tension Today Urge Yearn |
Trust
Trust is what advertises and brand owners strive for when it comes to customer relations. If there is no trust, there will be no conversions or sales. The tiny hiccup is — modern users tend to not trust advertising at all. So, simply saying “Hey, look at me, I’m so trustworthy” won’t make it. It is important to be subtle with this particular emotion, and maybe in time you’ll have a database full of the loyal audience that comes to your offers again and again.
These are some words and expressions that add to building trust:
| Absolutely
According to Accredited Accurate A cut above Adaptable Advantage Always Anonymous Approved Approving Assured Astonishing Astounded Authentic Authoritative Authority Backed Because Best Best-selling Bona fide Cancel anytime Case study Certain Certainly Certified |
Clarity
Confident Conscious Convenient Definitely Delighted Dependable Don’t worry Easy Ecstatic Effective Emphasize Endorsed Ensured Excellent Expert Extremely First ever Foolproof Freedom Fulfilled Fully refundable Genuine Guaranteed Highly effective Honest Honored |
Humility
Improved Instantly Introducing Investment Ironclad Lifetime Loved Never fails No obligation No risk No strings attached Official Pay zero Privacy Professional Protected Proven Recession-proof Recognized Refund Relaxed Reliable Research Responsible Results Rock-solid |
Safety
Scientifically proven Secure Self-sufficient Solid Stable Studies show Supported Supportive Sure Tested Track record Transparency Trusted Trusting Truthful Try before you buy Unconditional Verify Well respected Worldwide |
Greed
Greed is another human emotion that has been with us since the beginning of time, when humans still were fighting over a dead mammoth and tried to take the biggest chunk. Now for most people, there is no danger of starvation or even scarcity, we still can’t resist the temptation of free or really cheap things coming our way.
Power words related to greed that will tempt your audience:
| Bank
Bargain Before Best Big Billion Bonanza Bonus Cash Cheap Costly Deadline Discount Dollar Don’t miss out Double Economical Envy Exclusive Expires Explode Extra Fast Feast Final |
First
Fortune Free Freebie Frenzy Frugal Gift Giveaway Golden Greatest Guilt-free Hurry Immediately Imminently Inexpensive Instantly Instant Savings Jackpot Last chance Left behind Limited Lowest price Luxurious Magical Marked down |
Miracle
Missing Out Monetize Money More Most Important Nest egg Never again New Now Pay zero Premiere Present Price break Prize Profit Profitable Proven Quadruple Reduced Remarkable Results Revolutionary Rich Running out |
Safe
Sale ends soon Save Savings Seize Sensational Should Six-figure Skyrocket Special Startling Superb Superior Surge Treasure Tremendous Triple Truly Trustworthy Ultimate Value While they last Whopping Worthwhile Zero |
Conclusion
They’re just words, but look at this power. Use these words and expressions to drive more conversions, but remember that it’s not a psychological lifehack that will solve your own issues. It’s a means of talking to your audience in a way that spears to their emotions (sometimes bypassing their sensibility). Still, it’s an art to master this approach. But if you do, you will get unprecedented results that will surprise you and allow you to overcome the competitors you have been struggling with.
If you want to reach new GEOs and audiences, maybe it is all waiting for you on Telegram? We’ve prepared some material about Telegram audiences. What are the messenger’s users like this year? How old they are, what they do, and what they are interested in!
