A Simple Formula to Write a Magnetic Blog Title
Blog title is the first thing that people read, and perhaps the only thing if they are not interested to peruse further, based on the information given in the title. For that reason, title could be one of the most important components of your blog content.
Many bloggers agree that blog titles are comparable to headlines in sales copy or newspaper. Although usually blog titles are shorter, they serve the same purposes:
- They grab the readers’ attention. With so many posts and links on a web page, what makes the readers click and choose your blog post to read?
- They make the readers continue reading. If the readers are curious enough, or they feel they will get something from the blog post, they will start reading.
The body content may be the best piece of the entire blog post that the readers seek after. However, the title is like the advertisement to the blog post. Unless the title drives the audience in, the rest of your words may as well be an exercise in futility.
Unless you write for a group of people who know your work very well, chances are they won’t read the blog content unless the headline triggers their curiosity. Moreover, some news readers only display headlines, so it is obvious the blog title has to draw the readers in effectively.
Start Collecting Winning Blog Titles (Swipe Files)
In copywriting, swipe files can be a helpful source for inspiration for everything from headlines to hooks, offers, guarantee and price statements, etc. Usually copywriting and advertising professionals collect examples of good copy, but bloggers can certainly make use of the same thing, especially for blog title.
There is more than one way to collect winning blog titles. Perhaps the most obvious one is to use simple text editor or spreadsheet software.
I’ve seen others use micro blogging tools to keep their own personal collection of swipe files too. Choose whatever you are familiar with and stick with it.
Understanding Why Headlines Work
The problem with using swipe files is not obvious, but it certainly exists. When you model certain title but it doesn’t work as you expect it to be, chances are the problem is not in the title.
Understanding why a particular title works is critical before you can model it completely. Just by substituting several key words from a title to suit your need doesn’t mean you also keep the psychological part intact.
Using swipe files can help you get inspiration and idea, but it is not the formula to a winning blog title.
Creating a Formula That Works
The later post in this series will show you some tested blog title templates. It is important to realize there are more possibilities than I can list in this blog, so it can be useful that you develop your own favorite formula and add to your arsenal gradually.
Just for illustration, a collection of giant headline swipe file that I bought for less than $20 contains more than 1,000 published headlines. That certainly allows me to take shortcut to the title writing process. But remember, those are examples, not formulas.
The best way to show this is by using an example.
Example of Blog Title Formula
A formula should be systematic and practical. For most bloggers, creating long title can be a struggle, so dividing it into bite-size chunks will often help.
Here are a simple formula to writing magnetic blog title:
- Know your readers. Every formula should start with this. Not every headlines work for all industries. Understanding your readers is the first thing bloggers should do. Usually in a blog post, you are targeting a small segment of your target market. For instance, this blog post is only for bloggers who are interested in improving their blog title.
- Identify the purpose. Including a purpose in your blog title is important. The benefits are twofold. First, the headline shows a promise about what is coming to the readers. Through the headline you communicate the value of the post so the prospective readers will continue reading. The second benefit is to keep yourself focus on the outcome. While obviously you can rewrite the title after finishing the content, you are more likely to fulfill the purpose if you have it written upfront.
- Clarity of purpose. “3 Blog Promotion Tactics”. The blog title is quite clear. Your readers should expect to read about how to promote their blogs. If this topic is a concern to them, they might read further. Of course, the title is not strong enough and doesn’t have much in it for the readers. Do I need to promote my blog? What can I get from that? Although the title doesn’t communicate benefits, still it should get the attention of the readers who realize the value of the topic in question.
- Include benefits. … to Get More Traffic and Readers. Suddenly the title is now better because not only it communicates what the content is about but also what the readers is going to get if they read and do what the blog post suggests. Other powerful words such as “easy” and “simple” could help increase anticipation, as long as they are honest.
Review
While you can create a blog title by using fill-in-the-blank templates, a formula helps you see why those templates work.
Of course, you still need to do your homework. The first step in above formula may only come through experience or extensive research.
Return to Blog Content — How to Write Great Content and Where to Get Them.
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