Make More Money with Killer Headlines

When writing a piece for online publishing or for any hardcopy print mediums, it is of the utmost importance that your headline be effective. In today's highly over inundated society, advertisements find their way into an average person's life in more ways than ever. That means, each person has more streams of media to disseminate every single day. We are all subjected to TONS of advertisements on a daily basis and the mind can only handle so much of it. So, what does that mean for you? If you want your stuff to get read by other people, you have to first get their attention with your headline.

The headline is so important, in fact, you should probably spend the same amount of time concocting your perfect headline as you do with all the actual content writing for the piece on which you're working. In other words, if it takes you an hour to write a 500 word article then you probably should spend an hour making sure the headline will do it justice. In David Ogilvy's book Confessions of an Advertising Man, he states,
"On average, five times as many people read the headline as read the body copy."

It's definitely true. I have witnessed this phenomenon first hand working in the advertising business for so long. So, it's important to know that the headline will determine if the person will continue to read the body of your article or not.

So what makes a good headline? Let's talk about that...

The way to make sure your headline will be effective is to make sure you talk directly to the person you want to target. All people want to know "what's in it for me?" or "why is this important to me?" If you don't give your reader a reason to read your content, then they surely won't. Give the reader a reason to stop and read your article.

Headlines that offer something to the reader are a sure-fire way to get and keep readers interested in what you have to say. Classics such as "How to" or "Top 5 Reasons You Can't Live Without" or "Best Kept Secrets" or "Introducing the New" are used over and over because they are some of the most effective headlines ever created. They offer something to the reader that makes them want to learn more.

When working on your headline, try to remember what it is you're offering to the reader. What's in it for them? One thing that many writers overlook when they write is the features vs. benefits rule. Features are all fine and good, but the benefit to the reader is what you need to focus on. When you think from the reader's perspective, find the elements in your article (features) and relate to the reader by showing what the feature can do for them. For example, if you are writing a story about adding fiber to your diet, you can use the benefits of adding fiber to your diet in your headline: "Lose Weight and Enjoy Life More with Healthy Fiber Choices." Simple. Just show the reader what the feature will do for them. Don't focus so much on the features...highlight what the features can do to improve their lives.

When talking about what makes a great headline, it's also important to point out what isn't a good headline. I love cute, catchy, funny, witty wordplay, but there's no room for that in writing effective headlines.You want to appeal to the reader, not your ego. Leave the cute witty wordplay for other fun-time activities because they will not get you the readership you want.

When writing headlines keep in mind that the object of the headline is to get the reader interested enough to read your content. The purpose of any headline should be to draw in the reader. If your headline doesn't do that, then it's just not effective. You must get the attention of the reader. You do this by relating to them. In order to relate to them, you have to make sure you know who you're talking to. Don't be too generic or vague with your audience. If you are targeting teens, then make sure your headline is talking to them. If you are talking to middle-aged housewives, then don't use slang lingo. You get the picture.

According to The Copywriter's Handbook by Robert Bly, there are eight different types of headlines.

1. Direct Headlines
2. Indirect Headlines
3. News Headlines
4. How-to Headlines
5. Question Headlines
6. Command Headlines
7. Reason-Why Headlines
8. Testimonial Headlines

If you want to have more people read your work and make more money writing online, using these types of headlines will ensure your success.

Happy writing...