Headlines That Grab the Reader

In social media marketing, you have only 3 seconds to grab the readers’ attention and to make them want to keep reading. You do that through your headline. The headline either makes or breaks the success of your article.

You need to be very careful about the first impression that you make on your readers. Your headline needs to be appealing and unique. Just like when a person is browsing through a magazine at a magazine stand, your readers will browse through the headlines on your online articles. The readers will know right away if they want to continue reading.

It is not enough that those people reading your new headlines have been interested in your articles in the past. You need to entice them all over again with each new article and each new headline.

The following sample headlines demonstrate some of the most popular strategies for grabbing the reader:

The How To: “How to improve your chess game”
These types of headlines work very well because people are constantly striving to learn new things. The most important issue to focus on in these types of headlines is to state how your readers will benefit from learning a new strategy, system, or technique.

The Question: “Are you worried about your future because of the recession?”
This question appeals to a very wide range of readers because the subject is on everyone’s mind. Everyone is worried in this current economy. You need to determine exactly what specific information your audience is looking for and post an article that gives them that information.

The Command: “Learn how to define and understand Search Engine Optimization (SEO)”
Command headlines have twofold benefits: 1) they allow you, as the writer, to connect with a current trend and 2) they elevate you to the position of a subject matter expert. When you are doing the research before you actually write the headline and the article, identify a trend that you think the reader will identify with and create your headline from that.

The Direct Headline: “Free instruction manual on blog writing”
Direct headlines don’t dance around the subject. They get straight to the point. A direct headline clearly states what the business is offering to give away (with the ultimate goal of selling goods and/or services.
 
The Indirect Headline: “Healthcare reform and unemployment rates”
Indirect headlines are much more subtle than direct headlines. Indirect headlines pique the curiosity of the reader just enough to make them want to read more. They may wonder what the connection is between our healthcare system and unemployment and how it might impact their lives.

The News Headline: “The exclusive story on corruption among New Jersey politicians”
News headlines give you a clear idea of what the article is about, as long is the story really is news worthy. The headline entices the reader to want to read the entire story. Once they get to the story, they aren’t disappointment with the promise that the headline made about how interesting the story itself is.

The List: “10 Symptoms of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)”
Lists appeal to readers and they are very simple to create. If your headline is a list message, in other words, the message in your headline states that concise and valuable tips will follow in the actual article; your readers will want to keep reading.

The Testimonial: “CompuKol Communications was a great help to our burgeoning business.”
Testimonials are effective because your clients actually write the headline for you. They appeal to readers because they are written by independent, objective people. It is a wonderful way to prove the success of your business without your having to say a word.

With the tips that have been discussed here, you should have everything that you need to write amazing headlines that lure the reader to eating up every word of the article and wanting more after that.

To learn more how we can help you with effective writing, please visit us at CompuKol Communications.