how to be a click magnet: tips for great headlines
DESCRIPTION
Adweek's social editor shares tips for engaging headlines that have helped fuel the magazine's huge traffic growth.TRANSCRIPT
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(And no, we're not here to praise clickbait.)
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The old thinking:
A good headline is short and SEO-driven.
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The new reality:
A good headline is a shareable headline.
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Today, effective social media begins and ends with effective headlines.
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When readers share your content, they're most often sharing your headline.
(Art is super important too, but not always shared.)
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So what makes a great headline?
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A great headline…
Is personal and insightful
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A great headline…
Should stop you in your tracks
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A great headline…
Should be provocative without being salacious
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A great headline…
Isn't clickbait
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Clickbait is a false promise. It's a tease with no substance. It's an entire post that could exist in a single tweet.
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And Facebook is cracking down.
"When we asked people in an initial survey what type of content they preferred to see in their News Feeds, 80% of the time people preferred headlines that helped them decide if they wanted to read the full article before they had to click through." - Facebook Newsroom, Aug. 25, 2014
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Yes, a headline should be intriguing, but it must also be honest and informative.
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A great headline…
Presents a mystery that can only be solved by reading further
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A great headline…
Makes you emotionally curious
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A great headline…
Is conversational
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A great headline…
Is rarely written alone
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Don't go it alone
Even if you think you have a great headline, it never hurts to ask a writer or editor you trust for feedback and see if it can be improved.
Keep a network of your fellow headline aficionados and turn to them often.
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A great headline…
Is as long as it needs to be
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Our Top Stories of 2014 (So Far)
24 People Who Applied for the World's Toughest Job Were In for Quite a SurpriseGirl Fakes Getting Her Period, and Pays the Price, in Hilarious New Ad From Hello FloTrained Dancers Are Completely Appalled by This Ballet Ad for Free People ClothingCoca-Cola Invents 16 Crazy Caps to Turn Empty Bottles Into Useful ObjectsDiGiorno Is Really, Really Sorry About Its Tweet Accidentally Making Light of Domestic ViolenceAd of the Day: Peyton Manning and Cam Newton Prank Store Customers for GatoradeAd of the Day: Guinness Has Made the Only Ad You Need to See This Fourth of JulyPerfect Match: Brazilian Kids Learn English by Video Chatting With Lonely Elderly AmericansDid Beats by Dre Just Out-Nike Nike With This Incredible World Cup Ad?Budweiser Set to Charm the World With Its 'Puppy Love' Super Bowl Ad
Avg. # of words: 14 | Avg. # of characters: 80 | Avg. impressions: 2.6 million
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A great headline…
Is one that works
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If you come up with a headline that goes against every piece of advice in this presentation, GREAT.
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Always question. Always experiment. Always measure.
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Questions to Ask About Your Headlines
● Is it accurate?● Does it oversell?● Does it undersell?● Is it short enough to tweet?● Is it long enough to make sense?● Is this how I would explain this article to a friend?● Is it clear what's in it for the reader?● Would I click it if I didn't write it?
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Thanks for your time.
David GrinerTwitter: @Griner | @Adweek | @AdFreakInstagram: @DavidGriner | @AdweekAdweek.com