Your article headline is the first, and sometimes only, impression you make on a prospective reader. Without a compelling promise that turns a browser into a reader, the rest of your words may as well not even exist.
Here is an interesting statistic:
On average, 8 out of 10 people will read headline copy, but only 2 out of 10 will read the rest.
Here are some tips from marketing pros and use these 5 easy tips to start writing better headlines!
1. Write your headline first
Before you start to write, you of course, have a basic idea for your subject matter. So, simply take that basic idea and craft an awesome headline before you write a single word of the body content.
Why?
Your headline is a promise to readers. Its job is to clearly communicate the benefit you'll provide to the reader in exchange for their valuable time.
Promises tend to be made before being fulfilled. Turn it around the other way and you have the benefit of expressly fulfilling the compelling promise you made with the headline, which ultimately helps to keep your content crisp and well-structured.
Trying to fulfill a promise you haven't created yet is tough, and often results in a marginal headline.
2. Put Your Keyword First
While you want your headline to read and flow really well, nobody is going to find your article if you are not targeting a highly searched keyword. Assuming you've already done some research on the valuable keywords in your niche, you already have a good idea of the keywords you're going to build your articles around.
To boost your articles SEO and get more people to find your article, place your keyword at the beginning of your title. Good SEO helps the search engines rank your article higher up on their search, while the keyword in the headline confirms to a human that the article is indeed about what they were searching for.
3. Use "Buzz Words"
You know those catchy titles on the front of magazines in the supermarket checkout stands? Why do you think they catch your interest so much? Examples:
"What Celebrities Really Look Like Without Makeup"
"5 Red Hot Moves To Use On Your Man Tonight"
"How To Get Rid Of Belly Fat Fast!"
What words do you notice when you read those titles? "Really," "Red Hot," "Tonight," "Fast." These are known as "buzz words" and are very effective at grabbing people's attention and motivating them to read something. Other buzz words might be "Killer," "Super," "Easy," "Simple," or "Awesome."
Try to combine a buzz word or two into each of your articles' headlines. Understand that consumers love things that are easy, fast and now. Well placed, high converting buzz words will in fact improve the readability and flow of your headline!
4. Tell People Something They Don't Know
People today like to find out things they don't already know. If your headline says something like, "Puppy Training Tricks You've Never Heard" you find yourself enticing people since everybody would like to discover what they don't understand or what they've never learned before.
The trick here is to will make good on your promise. It is crucial that you really deliver. Get some tidbits of real information that aren't already public knowledge, or offer your own unique way of performing something.
5. Use Number Headlines
Number headlines are also very powerful. Many people like to skim articles (especially online) and number headlines and articles are by far the easiest to skim. A good number headline might read, "6 Ways" "5 Things To" "7 Tips" and so on. People love to be able to skim an article and come away with "X" number of tidbits of information without having to read an entire article.
When you write your numbered article, construct subheadings for every point you would like to render and summarize the tip in the subheading, with a paragraph underneath each one to explain the purpose in a more inclusive manner. Make it possible for anyone to read just the subheadings of your article but still come away with the gist of it. People who choose to read more into the text can get all the more from it.
Here is an interesting statistic:
On average, 8 out of 10 people will read headline copy, but only 2 out of 10 will read the rest.
Here are some tips from marketing pros and use these 5 easy tips to start writing better headlines!
1. Write your headline first
Before you start to write, you of course, have a basic idea for your subject matter. So, simply take that basic idea and craft an awesome headline before you write a single word of the body content.
Why?
Your headline is a promise to readers. Its job is to clearly communicate the benefit you'll provide to the reader in exchange for their valuable time.
Promises tend to be made before being fulfilled. Turn it around the other way and you have the benefit of expressly fulfilling the compelling promise you made with the headline, which ultimately helps to keep your content crisp and well-structured.
Trying to fulfill a promise you haven't created yet is tough, and often results in a marginal headline.
2. Put Your Keyword First
While you want your headline to read and flow really well, nobody is going to find your article if you are not targeting a highly searched keyword. Assuming you've already done some research on the valuable keywords in your niche, you already have a good idea of the keywords you're going to build your articles around.
To boost your articles SEO and get more people to find your article, place your keyword at the beginning of your title. Good SEO helps the search engines rank your article higher up on their search, while the keyword in the headline confirms to a human that the article is indeed about what they were searching for.
3. Use "Buzz Words"
You know those catchy titles on the front of magazines in the supermarket checkout stands? Why do you think they catch your interest so much? Examples:
"What Celebrities Really Look Like Without Makeup"
"5 Red Hot Moves To Use On Your Man Tonight"
"How To Get Rid Of Belly Fat Fast!"
What words do you notice when you read those titles? "Really," "Red Hot," "Tonight," "Fast." These are known as "buzz words" and are very effective at grabbing people's attention and motivating them to read something. Other buzz words might be "Killer," "Super," "Easy," "Simple," or "Awesome."
Try to combine a buzz word or two into each of your articles' headlines. Understand that consumers love things that are easy, fast and now. Well placed, high converting buzz words will in fact improve the readability and flow of your headline!
4. Tell People Something They Don't Know
People today like to find out things they don't already know. If your headline says something like, "Puppy Training Tricks You've Never Heard" you find yourself enticing people since everybody would like to discover what they don't understand or what they've never learned before.
The trick here is to will make good on your promise. It is crucial that you really deliver. Get some tidbits of real information that aren't already public knowledge, or offer your own unique way of performing something.
5. Use Number Headlines
Number headlines are also very powerful. Many people like to skim articles (especially online) and number headlines and articles are by far the easiest to skim. A good number headline might read, "6 Ways" "5 Things To" "7 Tips" and so on. People love to be able to skim an article and come away with "X" number of tidbits of information without having to read an entire article.
When you write your numbered article, construct subheadings for every point you would like to render and summarize the tip in the subheading, with a paragraph underneath each one to explain the purpose in a more inclusive manner. Make it possible for anyone to read just the subheadings of your article but still come away with the gist of it. People who choose to read more into the text can get all the more from it.
About the Author:
Scott & Heidi Shimberg are Serial Entrepreneurs who are keenly studying business opportunities in the online/offline marketplace. Share with Scott and Heidi their lessons in "nuggets". Know Numis, and tell your friends, family and begin to have Hope too.
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