How to write headlines correctly?

Last updated Oct 1, 2022

The headline determines the success of the text by 80%. If a person liked the title, then most likely he will pay attention to the text itself. How to write headlines? Is it difficult to arouse the interest of the crowd? Let’s take a look at some examples of headlines that have been a real hit. We will also try to explain why they have such an effective effect on the reader.

How to create an effective headline?

First of all, I would like to point out the following. Really good headlines affect the human psyche. Namely, they contain the so-called psychohooks. The latter are used to increase activity in the human cerebral cortex. If the article does not contain such psycho-hooks, then the impact does not occur. It comes down to zero. And it can’t get the right result. The text is meaningless and useless.

Header Implementation Techniques

It’s time to look at the core of the problem. What is the title of the text? What methods are used for this? How to "hypnotize" the reader with one stroke of the pen? So…

1 question

The question in the title, even if it is rhetorical, makes any of us look for an answer to it. Consciously or unconsciously. Doesn’t matter. The thing is that in order to choose an answer, you need to comprehend this question. Pass through yourself. Thus, even if the reader initially did not want it, he will still pay attention to your text.

Question types: rhetorical, specific, abstract

All these questions have one thing in common. They directly or indirectly refer us to what is already contained in the text. To do this, you just need to read it carefully.

How to write headlines?

Why does your stomach hurt?
Why can’t you afford a holiday abroad?
How many hours a day do we spend procrastinating?
Where do crayfish hibernate?
How is your hour of work valued?

All questions elicit different responses. Therefore, they allow you to focus on certain semantic points.

2 Answer to the question

As you know, by nature, people are very lazy creatures. Naturally, we are speaking in general terms. When the opportunity arises to take advantage of a ready-made solution to a problem, most do just that. Here it is important for the copywriter to show his cunning in time. Select a problem. Then in the text give her solution. In addition, the title hints to the reader that the text should be read.

Header examples:

How to stop tormenting yourself over trifles?
How to make money fast?
How to get rid of joint pain?
Price for freedom

The most popular heading for a text is a heading that begins with the word "how". The general consensus is that behind the word "how" there is, by default, practical guidance on various issues. Therefore, readers have the maximum degree of trust in such headlines.

Let’s pay attention to the prevalence of search queries. How to learn to swim underwater. How to get a girl’s attention. How to wash dishes well at home, etc.

3 Personal experience

People are always more willing to trust those who have already achieved something. And not empty talk and advice on how to do something. Reasoning and results are completely different things. For example, let’s compare 2 headers:

1) How to earn 70 thousand in a month?

2) How did I earn 70 thousand a month?

Header examples:

How I lost 10 kg in just a week?
How did I work as an electrician in the State Duma?
How did a pack of cigarettes save me from gopniks?

The title can tell not only about the personal experience of the author. You can also tell the story in 3rd person. Moreover, the more popular the person, the more it inspires confidence in the reader. Let’s check.

Header examples:

How did Pavel Durov earn his first million?
What does Tyra Banks do to "smile with her eyes"?

4 Create intrigue

More mysteries, secrets and intrigues. This feeds our modern society. Often, due to other people’s secrets, people get certain advantages. Learn new information or assert themselves. Playing on human curiosity, attracting more and more readers – that’s what the true magic of the word is. So, how are selling headlines built?

Header examples:

Secrets of Louis XIV that made him great
The secret of getting double profit for entrepreneurs of St. Petersburg
Money that we walk on without noticing it

5 Numbers

The numbers in the headings are read as an indicator that a person is able to benefit from after reading the article. Remarkably. The higher this indicator, the more saturated the material appears. By bringing some clarity, you can easily manipulate the audience. Sometimes even combining useful information with commercial data.

Header examples:

1001 ways to find a job
5 ways to get out of depression
A book that will help you become the soul of the company in 20 days

6 Making accents

Accents exalt the text to a whole new level. As such, accents can represent ordinary words. But in combination with the title, they increase the effectiveness of the text. Always pointing to something, they make it unusual. Memorable and creative.

Examples of interesting titles:

Tens of thousands of 🪙 are lost every year because of THIS nuance
Buy THIS iPhone and you will be connected even in the field
Walking on SUCH a rake is not so bad

7 Instill fear

Fear has always been a strong motivating force. By putting fear into your headlines, you ignite audience interest in your writing. It works simply. Everyone instinctively tries to protect themselves from negative situations in advance. If there is even a hint of safety and salvation in the article, the reader will definitely read it. How to write titles for text?

Let’s look at examples of previously written headers:

Mixing These Ingredients Negatively Affects Stomach Health
What is it, the word that saves a marriage from destruction
You lose $400 annually without such a skill

8 Guarantees

As such, guarantees can be called derivatives of fear. Only filed at a different angle. If the reader feels secure, he is more reserved and tolerant of the text he is reading.

Header examples:

Your skin will glow in 48 hours. Otherwise, we will refund your money!
You will never think about lack of money!

9 Non-standard solution

The title of the article for many users is passed through the filters. Nothing is new anymore. And in our reality, it is quite difficult to surprise someone with interesting word combinations. Therefore, unusual solutions immediately attract attention.

Header examples:

Do not delve into what is written here.
Come already, finally, for your money!
I am watching you while you are reading this text.

10 Strong headlines

And finally, the most powerful and effective headlines are those that hit the most vulnerable spot of a person. Pride, pride, complexes. All this can become an actual problem for the reader. Here, the success of the headline usually exceeds 90%.

Header examples:

Tired of fighting dandruff?
How long are you going to rent a house from the "hostess"?
It’s time to forget about wrinkles forever.

5 Common Headline Mistakes

Sometimes even the most competent selling headlines, compiled according to all the rules, go unnoticed. Why does this happen? Let’s try to understand some of the intricacies of the issue.

First of all. 3 heading does not fit the needs of the target audience. To avoid such incidents, you should understand the psychology of your customers. If you are in the learning phase, feel free to test a wide variety of ad variations.
Secondly. There is no need to be overly creative in the title. Creativity is always good. However, at the same time, the meaning of the call should be clear to a wide audience.
Thirdly. A good headline does not contain boring and hackneyed quotes and metaphors. They do not grab the reader’s attention. The same can be said about abstract titles that do not reflect the essence of the publication.
Fourth. The emotional message of the title should correspond to the content of the text and the needs of the audience. If the title contains a lot of screaming epithets. But at the same time, the text is written in a neutral manner, most likely this will immediately repel the reader. If you run your own blog, then it is also better to write in your own individual style.
Fifth. Interesting headings do not contain complex concepts and abbreviations. Of course, with the exception of articles of some narrow focus. For example, when it comes to medicine, cars or IT technologies. Agree that as soon as we see complex unfamiliar words, we do not want to understand it. Put extra effort into reading new material.
At sixth. The text may get lost due to a title that is too long. The title on average should contain from 1 to 4 words. Everything else is perceived by consciousness as something complex. And in advance broadcasts the text in a negative way.

How to write headlines for SEO

SEO titles, or the keywords used in the title, do 2 important things:

First, attracting cheap traffic.
secondly, high-quality conversion of the audience.

That is why when creating texts for websites, adding keywords to the title plays such a significant role.

Selling headlines: the secrets of creation

In order to attract a potential buyer, you need to hook him with a selling headline. Selling headlines are built according to certain rules. There are a number of guidelines for writing them.

What are they, the “secret ingredients" of a selling headline?

Unique. Plagiarizing the title from your competitors is a bad idea. A huge number of offers on the market has created such a situation that the modern buyer is fed up. He’s fed up with templates. He wants to see something completely unusual and amazing. That is why you need to strive to add zest to the selling headline. Thus, emphasizing the difference between the product and what is presented on the rest of the market.
Specific. If it is difficult for the reader to understand what the text is about, he will probably stop reading it. For this reason, it is important to state in black and white what you are selling in the title. What are the benefits of your product. And why you should buy it from you. We refuse mystery and all sorts of vague statements.

How to Write Rush Headlines

A selling headline motivates a potential client to order your services. For efficiency, you can rush it. Say, in the ad set a time limit. Thus, the buyer will be afraid to miss the moment and will certainly rush to place an order.
Helpful. In order for the buyer to become interested in your offer and want to read the text, the title must inform about the usefulness of the product.
Purposeful. Be sure to consider who you are writing your texts for. Any target audience implies a special approach. This applies to the use of speech turns. Therefore, it is necessary to influence them differently. So, if you are addressing a younger target audience, it is acceptable to use various slang expressions. The most free style of expression is welcomed. For women in the title, you can use unusual turns. Men, as a rule, are interested in specific data.

What is better to avoid when writing a selling headline?

Don’t want your headline efforts to go to waste? Then avoid the following mistakes:

No need to try to give everything in the title at once. It is advisable to highlight the main idea and reduce it to a minimum. Obviously, short headlines are more effective and engaging for readers;
Keep your titles to a minimum of punctuation. To enhance the meaning, it is not recommended to use exclamation marks. This is perceived as "twisted" importance. And it can alienate a potential buyer;
You should not try to interest the reader with the help of well-known catchwords and expressions. Millions of people know them. Having stumbled upon a “hackneyed” quote for a long time, a person will simply leave your page as a result.

How to write headlines? Come up with 25 options

It is clear that you only need one. On the other hand, by composing 25 headlines, you increase the likelihood of coming up with a really high-quality headline.

This approach is good here. Firstly, it allows you to separate amateurs from real talented bloggers. Secondly, it becomes easier to generate more and more new options. Of course, it is possible, for example, to start writing not 25, but 10-15 headlines. It won’t take you long. In addition, the process itself is fascinating. And it will probably help you increase your 100% reads.

Offer the buyer something for free

It’s good when the buyer is offered a free service. Make the service not only interesting. But also useful.

For example, if hair removal wax is your main product, you can offer girls pantyhose as a gift. If you’re selling cars and winter is coming, give your customer a set of winter tires. Or – the opportunity to fill up with gasoline for a whole month absolutely free.

Think back to the moment you walked into the store. What products on the shelves usually attract your attention? Of course, these are stock items. On the part of the buyer, this is regarded as a grand gesture. And of course, in the future you return to the same store again and again. After all, you have already been taken care of, allowing you to save the money saved.

Focus on positive results

Usually selling headlines of this nature contain the results of using the product in the title. It is noteworthy that it is permissible to use specific numbers, terms, etc.

Examples of how to write headlines of this kind:

In 20 days you can say goodbye to 10 kg of excess weight
In a couple of applications, your teeth will become noticeably whiter.

Another important point – do not need to remind a person about his problem. For example, about crooked posture or falling hair. Above all, be positive. Talk about dreams. For example: "How to get a good figure?" Instead of "How to remove hanging sides?"

Conclusion

It is important to remember that people are always interested in their personal problems and needs. Therefore, if your headline is in any way in contact with these needs, then most likely a person will take up reading the main text. Therefore, everything is in order.

Naturally, in each case, the title will have its own distinctive features. However, the general principles of influencing the audience are always the same. In our article, we have analyzed the main ones. So boldly take on the implementation of your very ideas and ideas.

Create only bright unusual headlines.

Post source: kakzarabotat.net