The first contact we have with something leads to a good or a bad first impression. Think of your blog post title as the first contact your readers have with the post. It does not matter how good and relevant the content of your post is, if the title is boring, its chances of being clicked are very low. So, the first step in creating an engaging blog post is creating a clickable title.
Here are 5 attributes of an appealing title:
- It is compelling – a good title is very clear and does not let the reader wonder about the topic of the post. If you are writing about a current topic, make a reference to it – it is highly effective.
- It is engaging – phrases like “where to find” and “how to” captivate the reader form the very beginning. If your blog post offers solutions, let your visitors know it from the title. Furthermore, try to include power words that activate the readers’ emotions, because emotions are an important part of the decision making process.
- It has names and numbers – always include the name of the person or location you are writing about. If you are giving tips or ideas on a certain matter, make sure you include the number of points in the title – the readers will know exactly how much to expect from your post.
- It has a keyword phrase – your article surely has a few keyword phrases, so that the people interested in the topic may find it faster. Include one of these phrases in the title, preferably in the beginning, so as to make the topic of the post even more obvious.
- It is not too long – Google has a 70 characters limit for search results. Try to stay within the limit, to avoid your title ending with “…”.
If you make sure your titles share all these five characteristics, there is no doubt they will be clicked and bring a lot of visitors to your blog.
