We often come across stories that, even though they are compelling – have weak headlines. The headline is the first thing a viewer sees and it determines if they will click through to read the article or not. That’s why it is important to put the time in and make sure your headline is powerful.
Ideally, you will have several headline options for each story. This allows you to test out the effectiveness of different titles and choose the best one. Many of the top headlines have a number in them – a fact or statistic that grabs a reader’s attention. They also include a hook and use alliteration (like “The Girl Glided” or “Boy Brought Bananas”). A headline should also be clear and succinct.
A good rule of thumb is to keep the words in your head under 100 (as it will be truncated for search engine purposes). Then add as much punch as possible. The longer headline will work for social media posts and
Another tip is to write lots of headlines and then vet them before choosing the final one. It can be helpful to have a colleague or editor help. Often, editors will create a few different headlines for each story and then discuss them out loud to get feedback. They can help with the structure of the headline and even offer suggestions on words to avoid or ones to use.
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