Chris Mentillo on Writing - Great Headline Writing Tips To Drive Traffic & Clicks

Wondering how to write a headline that drives traffic and more clicks? The best headlines are:

1.) Extremely relevant to the content.

2.) Contain a keyword.

3.) Generate interests.

4.) There’s plenty of room to be creative and demonstrate value, right off the bat.

5.) While there is no exact science to writing a headline, there is useful headline writing tips that will help you whip up brilliant headlines.

Discover ways to write a good headline:

Let Keywords Drive You.

If you’re writing a piece of evergreen content, always do keyword research to find out what people are actually searching for.

A slight difference in wording can make a huge impact on traffic.

Let us take this content, for example:

As with all content, I did keyword research beforehand to pinpoint what people are actually searching for. I narrowed it down to these keyword phrases, based on their monthly search volume:

1.) Headline writing tips:

2.) How to write a headline:

3.) Great headlines:

4.) How to write a good headline:

By choosing a relevant keyword phrase with the most search volume, I can boost the ROI of the content.

Accordingly, I chose “headline writing tips” as my main keyword and, of course, I can use the others as supporting keywords. As you can see, the headline on this content is “ Great Headline Writing Tips to Drive Traffic and Clicks.” 

It’s keyword-rich, relevant, and hopefully demonstrates value. Nevertheless, "the more you do of anything, the better you become."

Come up with Multiple Headlines:

If you find yourself with a bout of writer’s block, and can’t come up with a headline that really strikes your fancy, try writing a bunch.

The act of brainstorming multiple headlines will really get your creative juices flowing, and you’ll land on something great eventually. Know that Sometimes Short and Sweet is A-OK. Sometimes we need to get straight to the point.

Not every headline needs to be lengthy – sometimes being punchy and straightforward is a better approach, so do not automatically disregard a potential headline just because it’s short.

Pull a Quote from the Article:

Another option for coming up with a good headline is pulling a quote from the content. A quote, especially from a celebrity or influencer, can be an excellent fodder for a headline. The quote, of course, should be on-topic with the article as a whole. Here’s one technical issue to keep in mind: unlike body copy, quotes in headlines should always appear in single quotations, according to Style.

Leverage a Compelling Statistic:

Considering popping a powerful statistic right into the headline. That’s what a writer did in this article for SEJ: “% of Brands are Moving Toward In-House Digital Marketing.”

Look at Competitors’ Headlines:

If you are stuck, and can’t come up with a good headline, look to your competitor’s content for inspiration. You can look at what your successful competitors do to get some ideas, and then you can create your own variations on that theme.

Put a Word in All Caps:

Very occasionally, you can put a word in all caps. This will immediately give your headline, a sense of immediacy and urgency. I like to use this occasion to punch a headline up. Use this sparingly, however – it is not for every article -- every time.

Use a Question:

What questions does your article answer? The question itself can sometimes make for a good headline. If you are writing a guide on the algorithm, a headline like “What is the Algorithm? Things You Need to Know” would be perfect. Potential readers will know, upfront, exactly what question your content is going to answer, which is valuable.

Don’t Forget a Call to Action:

Whenever you can, add a call to action in the headline. Use terms like discover, learn, find out, understand, etc. to make your reader feel like they’re making an empowered choice when they click through to your content.

Use a Number:

Studies have shown including a number in your headline drives clicks. Note: the states that headlines beginning with a number should spell out the number. You are also supposed to spell out numbers one through nine, including nine. Online, however, where attention spans are short and space is precious, numerals rather than spelled out numbers tend to perform better. It is still good to know the rule, though, even if you’re going to break it.

Test Out the Headline – Would You Click It?

Unsure of whether or not the headline is good?

Use this simple test: would you click it? Put yourself in the readers’ shoes and consider whether or not you’d be intrigued by your headline. If you are, great – you’ve found a winner. If not, keep brainstorming – get back to this list of headline writing tips and consult it whenever you’re feeling stuck.

Anyway, I hope this material helps to improve your headline skills. I chose this topic to speak about in specific because I know many writers who professionally write, can implement these useful tools in article writing, like here on FolksPaper.com. 

"Never write for yourself, write for your audience." Until next week, have a prosperous rest of your week and keep on keeping on." -- Chris Mentillo