You’ll also notice that the title of this article states “15 Great Tips.” I didn’t have to use the number, but it was a strategic choice.
The numbers will tell your reader exactly what to expect from your article.
If you're writing a data-driven article, you can also use statistics, dollar figures, or percentage points in your headline. The numbers alone can surprise your readers and encourage them to click.
5. A strong statement
The headline “18 History Lessons Your Teacher Lied to You About” is a great example of a powerful statement. It grabs attention by challenging what people think they know.
Hawthorne quiz
Image via Reader's Digest
This headline arouses curiosity and even a bit of skepticism by suggesting that some of the things they learned in history class are not true. Readers will want to click to find out which lessons they were misled about and to see if their beliefs are being challenged.
Using bold and controversial statements can really draw readers in, but it’s important to know your audience. If your readers like exciting and surprising content, headlines like this can get a lot of clicks and shares.
6. Use targeted keywords in your headlines
We rarely write an article without including the keyword focus in the title. Why? Because it's the first thing Google sees.
If the title doesn't include our primary or targeted keyword, how will Google know where to rank our content in search results ?
In this article, we focused on the keyword “headline writing.” As you can see, it’s the first sentence in the headline. We also band database included the keyword “conversion” because we knew we wanted to talk about how headlines can inspire conversions.
7. Make it mysterious to grab people's attention
Make it mysterious to grab people's attention
Sometimes writing headlines boils down to asking a simple question:
What is the best way to clean carpet?
What is the best course of action when dealing with bedbugs?
These are all questions that people type into Google's search box every day. If they're related to your brand, you can answer them by creating a question in the title and an answer in the body text.
This title, for example, works well because it sparks curiosity by asking something that many people might be interested in. We know we are.