I always knew that writing a strong headline is
important, but I never thought that it deserves much more time and efforts that
I spent on that. Problogger offers some interesting statistics, based on the research:
On average, 8 out of 10 people will read
headline copy, but only 2 out of 10 will read the rest. This is the secret to
the power of the headline, and why it so highly determines the effectiveness of
the entire piece.
That means that the better the headline is, the better
your odds to get wide public attention. Definitely, writing a great headline
doesn’t guarantee the success of your writing. The benefit conveyed in the
headline still needs to be properly satisfied in the body copy, either with
your content or your offer. But great body content with a bad or even marginal
headline is doomed to go largely unread.
The proper parallel is a job interview. If your resume is
not good or appropriate, you will never get to the interview with prospective
employer, and it really does not matter how good you are, and how well you fit
to the advertised position. It is too, that if you do not match, if will not
pass the interview test, but at least you will have such a chance.
The copywriting trainers at American Writers & Artists
teach The Four U’s approach to
writing headlines. Headlines, subheads and bullets should:
* Be USEFUL to the reader,
* Provide him with a sense of URGENCY,
* Convey the idea that the main benefit is somehow
UNIQUE; and
* Do all of the above in an ULTRA-SPECIFIC way.
Coming from other direction, you title should follow
another set of rules, applicable for blog posts as well. Your Blog Title Should:
* Stimulate curiosity and create excitement
* Spell out the purpose of your article
* Give a reason to take immediate action
* Allow readers to find your post via keyword search
There are a few free tools online that can help point you
in the right direction if you’re genuinely stumped on what to call your
content. The following are some I’ve used before, and love:
In most cases, the topic you receive won’t necessarily be
perfectly ready to slap on your article. Some tweaking will probably be
required, but they’re pretty neat tools for breaking through a mental block.
Sources and
Additional Information:
