Whether you’re publishing a news article with Express CMS or posting a video clip with Express Video, a headline can make or break your click rate. In addition to publishing on your site, sharing a link to your content on networks like Facebook or LinkedIn will automatically include the headline in the social post. To help boost your potential for higher content consumption, we’ve pulled together below five characteristics shared by the most successful headlines on the web. Consider the following traits when crafting titles for your future videos, blog posts, and news articles.
Brief
According to Nielson Norman Group, research shows that the average site visitor will only remain on a web page for up to approximately 20 seconds. A short headline can make an impact in that small window of time, enticing your audience to stay a while longer and view your full video or article.
Informative
The best-performing headlines in the digital space are rich in information, clearly summarizing their target articles. Increase your potential for clicks by including the most important details of your content within the title.
For news content specifically, consider including information about the location within the headline. For example, instead of using “Local Man Arrested for Robbery”, try “Oneida County Man Arrested in Boston Bank Heist”.
Front-loaded
In an eye-tracking study, experts at Google found the majority of users don’t scan past the first few items on a list or page. Maximize the impact of your headlines and keep site visitors reading by packing your most important keywords up front.
For example, tweak the words in a headline such as “5 Recipes for Dinner that are both Healthy and Easy” to say “Dinner Recipes: 5 Easy, Healthy Meal Ideas”.
Precise
Headlines often appear around the web without the article they reference. For example, a user could come across your piece’s title via a search engine, on social media, or in an email from a friend or colleague. It’s imperative that your headline is easy to understand out of context so that, if a potential site visitor in one of the above scenarios were to view your title only, he or she would be able to easily discern the focus of the full piece of content.
Predictable
Just as your headline should convey a clear picture of the associated content, it should also set realistic expectations. People don’t typically return to sites that promise more than they deliver, so be up front about what they’ll encounter in your article, video, or blog post.
Below are several examples from around the web to use for inspiration as you craft your own brief, informative headlines:
- California boat fire: Coast Guard warns about charging phone batteries (from USA Today)
- Landmark paternity case challenges Japan’s work culture (from CNN)
- Chipotle Is Being Sued in New York, Faces Big Fines (from MSN)
- Mexican Independence Day: History, Quotes, How to Celebrate (from Newsweek)
| Did one of your recent headlines skyrocket your click rates? Do you have a suggestion for another helpful support blog topic? We’d love to hear all about it! Contact the Frankly Media Content Team to share your success stories or ideas for future support articles and resources. |
