There’s a saying in the online writing community: “80 percent of your time should be spent on headlines, 20 percent on content.” That’s because a great headline is the only thing that will attract reader attention, whether it’s on story pages, search engines or social media.
Getting to know your audience is the first step to creating a killer headline. If you can understand what they care about, why they share things and what drives them to your site, the rest is easy. You can also get a lot of ideas from seeing what other people are doing — what works, what doesn’t and why.
For example, you might notice that certain headlines get more shares on one social platform versus another and try to copy the techniques that are working. It’s also helpful to look at the language your audience uses when they talk about a topic. You can find a wealth of information about what the community is talking about by looking at their comments, social media posts and tags.
Headlines should be short, snappy and based on information in the article. They should be written in present tense, and avoid articles (a, an and the) and verbs (to meet, to decide, to take). They should not be misleading; if it’s unclear what the story is about, readers will be turned off and will leave quickly. In addition, it’s best to avoid emotional triggers like anger or fear.
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