Smart Working – Writing Effective Blog Headlines
August 4, 2009 :: Steve FisherThere are so many great bloggers out there and many of them get a quick glance from a random search result and then that potential subscriber is gone. Even if you are able to catch that new subscriber, they put you in their feedreader and along with their other 50-1000 feeds (I am more in the 85 range now but I used to subscribe to 450) so your chance of getting noticed with your great writing comes down to one major thing – HEADLINES THAT ROCK!
Easier said than done, headlines are an art all their own. I try desperately to write good ones but some times mine are on the verge of clinical because I want to tell exactly what you are about to read (SERIES X Part #Y – THIS IS REALLY COOL AND I THINK YOU SHOULD REAL IT BUT THIS IS TOO LONG FOR YOUR READER, SO PLEASE CLICK) but get caught up in it all resulting in an epic FAIL. Other writers on our team have this trick down to a science. Joe and Ken are masters at this and have a combination of funny, quirky, SEO bait and “gotta read this” rolled into one.
So what is one to do if they are “headline deficient” or “title impaired”? Consult with the masters, of course.
Two of those masters are ProBlogger and CopyBlogger who blog about blogging and show you how to be effective and actually make money with this skillset. Dean Rieck over a CopyBlogger recently wrote a killer article with a killer title – “9 Proven Headline Folmulas that Sell Like Crazy“. I am going to disect them and see how they apply practically to your own blog.
1. ) Say it simply and directly – I like this because you get right to the point and people know what to expect. It needs to be short. This is a hard one. Difficulty – 7 out of 10
2. ) State the big benefit – Usually involves the word “Free” or some time benefit. This is a moderate one. Difficulty – 5 out of 10
3.) Announce Exciting News – People love the news especially when it is timely or exclusive. Difficulty – 3 out of 10
4.) Appeal to the “How-To” Instinct – I have to admit that I am a sucker for hacks that can improve my life and getting advice from the experts. Difficulty – 6 out of 10
5.) Pose a Provocative Question – Bloggers like to think they are controversial when most times they are just annoying. This is one of the most challenging types of headlines but if you get it right, traffic, trackbacks and comments are yours for the taking. Difficulty – 9 out of 10
6.) Bark a Command – Now we don’t mean be a dictator or be a jerk but having a strong command will give attention to what you are asking them to do. If it is compelling they will click. Difficulty – 7 out of 10
7.) Other Useful Information – Sometimes this just useless information to fill up your brain or be used once in a board game but I gotta tell you men and women both love the lists. 10 of this or 10 of that or 9 types of blog headlines. Difficulty – 4 out of 10
8.) Honest enthusiastic testimonials – Readers love real people and those testimonials that are real ring true but also hear what other people like them say about it. Difficulty – 4 out of 10
9.) Authenticate your statement with something that makes it more real – The more real the more compelling and the more click through. Easy to try but hard to make work. Difficulty – 8 out of 10
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