I still remember how it felt the first time I jumped in.

It was like being hugged with a bristle brush and a thousand frozen needles at the same time.

Muscles started to cramp up by the time my face rose above the water’s surface.

I’d just hurled myself from a 100 degree Texas summer afternoon into Barton Springs.

No warm bath water there. Just crisp, 68 degree spring-fed water all year round.

All I could think about was moving as fast as I could.

All I could think about was getting warm again.

That’s one of the reasons I love the place so much. There’s no better way to cool off on a scorching Austin day.

Dip in, and try not to scream.

Get out, and stretch out on the grass while the sun warms you.

I could do it all day…

Sometimes you just need to shock your system, you know?

The people you want to become customers aren’t any different. There are painful, frustrating things in their lives – some of them that you could solve – but they’re stuck in a rut. It’s easier to trudge along with their routine than take action and fix something.

There’s a reason why people who dip their toes in the water at Barton Springs tend to reconsider their decision to swim…

Most online copy is like this. It pulls people to the edge of the water and gets them to dip their toes in. It makes them just uncomfortable enough to go scrambling back to the status quo.

But you can’t afford to do this. You need to send them hurtling into the cold water like a rocket.

How?

By doing everything in your power to make a killer first impression. A headline that grabs them by the throat. A compelling opener that gets them hooked. Things like that.

But don’t just shock people for the fun of it.

Some “internet marketers” love red font, highlighted text, and ridiculous claims (“Lose 25 Pounds This Week… Eating Cookie Dough!!!”) They use gimmicks to get the shock factor, but they don’t back it up with a solid offer.

No one wants to get into the freezing water.

But another world opens when they do… as long as you’re offering a legit solution to their problems.

No more timidity with your first impression.

Throw them in right over the edge, and give them something to swim to with an irresistible offer.

Spring-fed sales, baby. Spring-fed sales.