Headlines – Do yours stand out? Read this for 7 stonking tips

Writing killer headlines is important. Did you know you have just a few seconds to catch your audience’s attention?

Headlines must convert your browsers to readers, if you can’t achieve this, you may as well shelve the rest of your advertising copy, blog article or any other written material, because unless you can get people past the headline nothing else gets read.

Headlines are used everywhere both online and offline. Every advert, every product brochure, every blog article and every social media update you write should have a headline to capture attention.

I’ve put together a list of my 7 top tips to ensure your headlines get read…

1. Avoid headlines written in capitals – This one is mainly for those online social media status updates, but can also apply to other written headlines. Please don’t shout at your readers; posting your headlines using all capitals is exactly that. If you shout, it’s likely that they won’t read or listen, and they certainly won’t click.
2. Ask a question – This will appeal to your reader’s emotions and pique their interest. You’re establishing a conversational tone from the outset.
3. Carry on that conversation and get personal – Use the words “You” and “Your(s)”.
4. Convey the benefits – Copywriting and content generation is all about your customers and prospects. It stands to reason that if you can convey those benefits in your written headlines (rather than focusing on your product’s or service’s features), your audience is more likely to read further. An example of a feature driven headline might be, “”Brand name” mattresses are “x” centimetres deep, and include an extra “x” percent more coils and “x” percent more springs than any other mattress”. By comparison a benefit driven headline would be “Banish back pain and get more sleep with a “brand name” mattress”.
5. Don’t use 24 words when 11 will do – Keep it short. The first of the two example headlines given in the bullet point above has 24 words and the second just 11. Concise headlines will always be more effective.
6. Save the best (your headlines) until last – Get all the other key points down first. Write the body copy, the offer, the call-to-action, and any other information you need to convey in your advert, editorial feature, blog article, status update or web copy. Once you have done that, reread everything you’ve written (at least ten times) this is often how you will come up with a killer headline that relays your message succinctly.
7. Use odd numbers in your headlines – There’s no denying that everybody loves a listicle… But did you know that odd number list posts generate more traffic? Take a look at this article… I think I’ll stop there!

CopyKate is the KateCoote. sister website, under this umbrella we focus solely on copywriting. At CopyKate we write headlines everyday. If you’re struggling with your marketing headlines, why not contact us or complete the online enquiry form. We can provide your business with killer headlines that increase your sales.