What Are You Worth From the Neck Up?" - I.C.S. (Success Magazine, June 1907)
The pattern
This still is filed under Question headline.
Define
The first line is a question the reader was already asking, or one they cannot leave unanswered.
Mechanism
Open loop plus recognition. A good question is the reader's objection, spoken first by us.
Verdict
We know the real objection and can answer it in the next breath.
Why it works
The headline is a valuation question rather than a benefit claim, so the reader answers it about himself before deciding whether to read the ad, which is a commitment obtained for free. Splitting a man into neck-down and neck-up gives the argument a physical model he can carry around, and the vertical $2.00 printed over the figure makes the ceiling visible without a sentence of explanation. The checklist coupon reduces a life decision to one pencil stroke against a job title, which is a far smaller act than deciding to study. The March figure of 403 reported raises is odd and specific, which reads as a record being quoted rather than a number being invented.
Steal this when
You sell training, credentials or capability to people who already suspect they are underpaid. Open with a question that forces them to price themselves, give them a physical image of the ceiling, and let the reply device ask only which job they want next.