by Lucy Thornton of Perfect Balance Marketing
Warning: this article could drastically increase your blog readership
You have just 3 seconds to persuade a visitor to stay on your website. And you have less than 1 second to get them to open your email or read your blog post.
Your headline plays a key role in doing that. It needs to intrigue, excite and spark interest. If it doesn’t, then the hard work you put into writing the rest of the post is completely wasted.
So how can you make sure your finely crafted blog posts get the attention they truly deserve?
The secret to great headlines:
When I first started studying marketing, I has the pleasure of working with a fantastic lecturer who inspired me to aim for the top, work hard, and encouraged me to think a little bit differently about what marketing is all about (you know who you are – thank you).
One class that sticks in my mind is one he gave on writing headlines. Armed with a stack of glossy magazines provided by our literature-loving lecturer, we wrote over 100 headlines in less than 40 minutes. The secret to writing headlines that work was ours.
The secret? Study headlines written by the best (i.e. those that are printed on the front of Vogue, In Style and Cosmo).
Or …
Use some of the structures used most in the glossies and apply them to your own blog post. Just be prepared for the boost in blog traffic and the increased expectations of your followers.
What everyone needs to know about……
- What everyone needs to know about writing great press releases
- What everyone needs to know about Jessika from OMHG
- What everyone needs to know about SEO
Little known ways to…..
- Little known ways to increase sales
- Little known ways to lose ½ stone in a month
- Little known ways to find a bargain
[“Quote from a happy customer”]
- “I never knew how simple it would be to get instant results”
- “Since finding this website I’ve seen my blog traffic double”
- “My home has never looked so good”
The secret of/to…..
- The secret of great publicity
- The secret to a good night’s sleep
- The secret to more online sales
[Do something] like [someone great]
- Tweet like Kanye West
- Network like Obama
- Cook like Nigella
- Craft like Martha Stewart
Have/make a [something] you can be proud of
- Have a website you can be proud of
- Have a waistline you can be proud of
- Make a personalized gift to be proud of
How to [get a benefit]
- How to get into your little black dress for New Year’s Eve
- How to take great family photos this Christmas
- How to use Facebook to grow your business
10 ways to….
- 10 ways to boost your web traffic
- 10 ways to beat the Winter blues
- 10 ways to raise your online profile
5 of the best
- 5 of the best business blogs
- 5 of the best craft stores
- 5 of the best tummy-flattening exercises
- 5 of the best online advent calendars
Which is your favourite? And which email headlines get you clicking the ‘open’ button? Share in the comments below.
