Headlines Part Three: SEO
SEO, or search engine optimisation, is another factor that I haven’t mentioned when taking crafting headlines into account.
If you’re not interested in SEO, then this topic might not appeal. (Although, it’s an easy thing to get a handle of, so you should probably read anyway.)
What is SEO?
Search Engine Optimisation is the art and science of getting your webpage to be listed in search engine results.
There are over a hundred different factors that will affect the ranking of your site, but we’re only talking about headlines here.
Headlines are important for SEO, because people click on the title when they search. It’s in big blue letters, and that’s what they read.
If that sounds like a simplistic explanation, that’s because it is.
SEO is one of those straightforward things that doesn’t need to be mystified and made too complex, but is made so by people looking to make more money out of gullible folk.
SEO and Headlines
We talked before about what a headline needs to do:
- It needs to get people to read it.
- It needs to get them to click on the link if there is one, or…
- It needs to get people to read the first paragraph.
That’s all a headline has to do.
Writing headlines for SEO has two components:
- Fulfil the technical requirements of getting on that first page.
- Encourage People to do the above actions.
Again, that’s keeping it truthful and simple.
Technical Requirements of an SEO Headline
SEO Titles are based on keywords. So it follows that you need your title to include the keywords you want to rank for in the search engines.
“Jamie McSloy’s Website Review.”
“This Book Will Teach You How To Write Better Review.”
For the most part, that will be enough. You’re fulfilling the technical requirements doubly by having both “title” and “review” which means you’ll do ok. Most websites won’t be competing with those terms unless you are reviewing a Playstation 4 or something.
So those are the technical requirements for SEO in headlines.
Also, you’re going to get readers clicking if they’re the target market for the most part. If I’m looking for a review of a book and the title is “book review” then I know that’s what I’m looking for.
Making The Click More Enticing
Technical SEO headlines are taken care of above. Now we’ve just got to add an extra little incentive, without taking away the keywords.
It’s a bit of a juggling act, but it’s straightforward enough if you remember YOU JUST WANT THEM TO CLICK. Let the rest of the article do the talking.
Easy ways to get people to click:
- Fun
- Benefits
- Intrigue
By fun, I mean the tongue-in-cheek style we talked about in the last two articles on headlines.
“This Book Review Is Hilarious”
“This Gun Review Will Make You Want To Shoot Your Grandma”
“I Review A Product Which Made My Bathroom Sink Treble in Value”
“Product Review: My Girlfriend Loves Me Again.”
(I know, terrible examples again.)
Benefits are easy.
“Book Review: How To Make A Million Dollars With a $10 Book.”
“Use This Product Review To Get The Most Out Of Your Product.”
“This Review Will Tell You Why Product Is Going To Change Your Life.”
Then you have intrigue.
Have you ever seen a headline that goes something like:
“Don’t Buy This Product Until You Watch This Video.”
That’s building intrigue.
Whenever you see a headline like that, it isn’t particularly amusing. It isn’t particularly clever and it doesn’t give you any reason to buy the product. But it works.
It works because if you’re on the point of buying, or building an interest, you are alert to a potential scam.
The headline draws you in because of that, but almost always leaves you clicking the affiliate link because it’s handled your objections.
Intrigue can follow the same patterns as benefits, but bear in mind that your article needs to address the objections if you do this. For instance:
“Will Product Name Really Get Rid Of My Acne Forever? Our Review.”
“Is John Travolta Really using Our Product To Hide His Bald Spot?”
“Is Product X a Scam?”
“Don’t Buy Product X Before You Watch This video.”
“Why Get [X] When You Can Read Our Review And Get It Free?”
(Again, quick examples.)
These are headlines that would get you to click if you were strongly considering purchasing the product. The only caveat is that you’re going to have to address the intrigue somewhere in the article.
Closing Thoughts
That about wraps it up.
Writing headlines could spawn loads of topics. This is a bit of a dry one, but it’s something that needs to be thought about and it’s pretty easy once you get the hang of it.
For all those people who are sick of headline stuff, I’ll probably do something different tomorrow.
P.S.
We are 1/12th of the way through 2016.
I’ve also written over a post a day this month. If you’ve missed any, check the archives page where you can find every post on the website.