Headlines and Subject Lines
Headlines and Subject Lines
“We all need to attract our audience into our content. We might call this session ‘hooky headlines’ as we attempt to cut through the noise and entice our audience into our messages and stories.”
Examples of Headlines
Email subject line Advertising strap-lines Brand statements Blog titles Social memes et al
The Purpose of a Headline
To encourage a reader to pause for just long enough to gain their attention and entice them into an action: open post, click through, read further…
The Power of a Headline
Effective headlines must appeal to the head, the heart and the search engine
Step 1 – Identify the Pain, the Outcome, the Solution
Step 2 – Copy what others are doing for your persona
Step 3 – Call out your persona “Top Content Tips for Busy Marketers”
Step 4 – Use odd numbers “73% more….”
Step 5 – Promote Time, Money or Effort saving
Step 6 – Key words, “Tips, Tricks, Secret, Insider…”
Step 7 – Power words, “Free, Hurry, Effortless, Latest…”
Secret Headline Tip
“Including a single hyphen or colon in the headline increases click-through rate by 9%” Content Marketing Institute
What Do The Headline Pros Say?
Benefit from a title generator
Know your target audience
Be informative
Keep it simple
Implement keywords
Add interesting adjectives
Use the active voice
Make a specific promise
Provide accuracy
Align it with your content
Inspire curiosity
Incorporate numbers
Create urgency
Write diverse variations
Test it out
What Do The Headline Pros Say?
Include Numbers
“Social Media Marketing Mistakes” becomes “9 Social Media Marketing Mistakes”
Add an Adjective
“Formulae to Write a Catchy Headline” becomes “Simple Formulae to Write a Catchy Headline”
Call to Action
“Formulae to Write a Catchy Headline” becomes “Try This Formula to Quickly Write a Catchy Headline”
What Do The Headline Pros Say?
Be Descriptive not trendy and include a Call to Action
Keep it Short and no more than 9 words or 60 characters
Limit Punctuation to no more than 3 marks per headline to avoid spam filters
A/B Test your headlines
Emojis or Not?
“Use no more than 1 emoji at a time”
Top Headline Tip
“Answer the question of “Why bother?” or “So what?” with a compelling title that stops readers in their tracks. Remember: your audience’s time is valuable. Your headlines should promise a payoff in exchange for their click or tap-through.”
