He said consider three things when writing powerful headlines:
1) Focus on creating a “how-to” or “why” or “number (#) series” while adding value and/or providing entertainment elements. He says, “The how-to is very powerful because it engages the prospect on a deeper psychological level. It’s self-centered and most of us pay more attention when we hear how-to and whatever follows after it.”
2) Write for your audience in mind – Do you know who your audience is? Identify who your ideal reader is and ask them what they want to learn more about. I do this through my social media accounts all the time; last week I received 20 article ideas! My audience gives me direction for what they want to hear and who is paying attention to my articles.
3) Base it off your experience – Why are you the one to write this? For example, it might be strange if I wrote an article called “How to win a basketball game if you are under six feet tall.” Not only do I know nothing about basketball, my audience knows I don’t play the game and I can’t speak for those under six feet! Write about what you know with those in mind you want to reach!
Moving forward when you are writing an article for your blog or a chapter in your book, think of these formulas to catch your readers attention and get them to click on what you just wrote!
Powerful Headline Formulas include:
“How to (eliminate pain) (without more pain)”
“How to get (specific result) (in short amount of time) (with very little risk)”
“Why (common-sense approach) doesn’t work… and what to do about it).”
I can say first hand these have worked for me. Starting out blogging I would spend hours on one article and find very little engagement after I hit publish. Other articles I would spend five minutes writing and boom my stats soar for the day! Why? When I look back at the articles, the content nor my writing was better, what the main problem seemed to be was the title in which I used to grab the readers attention. People will not click to read your article if it does not click with what interests or grabs their attention!
What sounds more powerful and more intriguing to read?
How to get more clients without sounding to pushy? – OR – Lessons I learned from an encounter with a recent client!
If I used the same content for the body of the article and used those different titles I guarantee I would have a larger open rate on the “how-to” compared to the “lessons learned.” I mean which one would you most likely open? Plus, in the first one I have considered my focus, my audience and my experience!
Take Matt’s advice and start writing powerful headlines so your writing gets into the hands of more people. Your stories, message and insight matter and if you are taking the time to add value to people’s life, take the time to write engaging headlines! Keep using your voice to make a difference and remember to always…
Dream BIG,
Ryan
Question for comments below: Who is your favorite blogger? Why?
P.S. Have an idea for an article you would like me to write? Send me an email to ryan@averytoday.com! Thanks and if you enjoyed this article remember to share it with those you know on Facebook, Twitter or email by pressing one of the buttons below!
This is great, Mr. Avery. It was comforting to read what you wrote about your stats soaring on a post that you didn’t spend as much time on. I wrote a post that I nearly didn’t even publish a week or so ago and my stats soared, but this week I put a great deal of effort into a post only to see my stats crawl. Frustrating. I need to spend some time working on my headlines, and it’ll be easier now after reading your article.
Great to hear Chase. You wrote a great article. I have to work on this also but don’t judge the success of your article by how many people read it but by how many people’s lives are better because if it. I would rather help 10 people learn how to be better writers for life than make 100 people laugh for only a couple minutes. Keep up the great work and use your voice to make a difference.
Ryan-
Thank you for the post. Your blog has been very valuable to me. I appreciate your mission of helping leaders become better communicators.
Right now, I help manage a website that brings in 175K-250K views a month. There is definitely a noticeable difference when using a powerful headline.
Thanks for the post, Ryan!
-Matt
Thanks Matt. Glad to hear my articles are helpful. I will keep writing as long as people keep enjoying them 🙂 Sounds like you have a very important job. What are other tips you have for readers when it comes to getting better views to your site?
Ryan, I would recommend the book, “Jab, Jab, Jab, Right Hook” by Gary Vaynerchuk to anyone who wants to build better viewership on their sites. Learning how to properly use Social Networks is critical for building an audience.
-Matt
Awesome book Matt. Thanks for sharing!
Great post, Ryan. Thanks for sharing these very helpful tips.