avatarDeni Sahaya

Summary

The article provides guidance on crafting effective headlines to improve content visibility and earnings, emphasizing the importance of headlines and offering tools for headline analysis.

Abstract

The article "How to write headlines that bring great results" emphasizes the critical role of headlines in attracting readers and monetizing content. It suggests that while headlines are responsible for 80% of content success, many writers struggle with creating impactful ones. The author offers insights into common mistakes, the psychology behind reader engagement, and the elements of compelling headlines. The piece introduces three free headline analyzer tools—Headline Studio, Sharethrough, and Monster Insights Headline Analyzer—to aid writers in refining their headlines for better traction. By addressing subconscious reader questions and utilizing these tools, writers can enhance their headline-writing skills and increase the likelihood of their stories being read and shared.

Opinions

  • The author believes that most advice on headline writing is vague and leads to repetitive, unsuccessful attempts.
  • There is a strong emphasis on the idea that no one owes you attention; it must be earned through effective headline writing.
  • The article conveys that while numbers and urgency in headlines can be effective, they can also be overused or dismissed as clickbait.
  • The author suggests that a good headline must command attention, hook readers, and prioritize capturing and sustaining interest, rather than just educating.
  • Trust in the content provider is seen as a crucial factor in the effectiveness of a headline.
  • The author advocates for the use of free headline analyzer tools but also cautions writers to apply their judgment and not rely solely on scores from these tools.

How to write headlines that bring great results

Get Ahead of 99% of Writers and Improve Your Chances of Earning More

Image: Canva

Everyone tells you that your headlines are the most important thing when it comes to attracting eyeballs to your stories.

Research says, that headlines are responsible for 80% of your content’s success.

And of course, we all know that eyeballs = Cha-Ching! 😜

The next thing these kind-hearted souls do:

  • give you no proper guidance & instructions
  • give you vague ideas about what a headline should look like
  • you see no measurable results if any at all (as a consequence, you get disheartened and depressed)
  • as a result, you’re forced to make all of the avoidable mistakes and get stuck (& earn peanuts 🐿️)
  • then you likely go and read some crappy, outdated guide on Google
  • you write another story, only to repeat the process
  • and the results Suck! 😭

Sadly, no one is reading your amazing story, and even worse, because of your headline, you can’t even repurpose it.

Today, I want to help you super-talented writers achieve one thing — to get NOTICED! And earn some💰.

Through this quick guide, I’ll share the 3 Best and Free Headline Analysing Sites on the Internet. (If you’re not using them yet, you are missing out big time my friend!)

I’ll combine this with a little intro into how you can expand and iterate on your headlines so that your masterpiece gets better traction.

Let’s get started.

#1. HEADLINES! No one owes you anything — you have to earn attention!

The reality is that no one owes us anything.

You don’t owe me your time.

I don’t owe you my time. But I’m a good person — and I love to help, so I’ll do anything in my power to help you out.

But what about Good Headlines? Well, they all seem to have these things in common:

(This is where you start taking notes by the way)

  1. They ‘Command Attention’
  2. Pull and hook’ the readers
  3. Prioritize capturing & sustaining attention
  4. They do not necessarily educate
  5. Grab attention

#2. How to capture your readers’ attention?

1. Numbers in headlines — overused method, but that’s because it works

2. Clear vs Clever — If the benefit is unclear, readers are unlikely to click & read

3. Urgency — sometimes it works, other times it doesn’t (clickbait ruined this for us honest writers)

4. Using Images — Humans have immediate responses to images, use them wisely

Before I go any further, I want to take you behind the scenes and show you the things that will take you from writing good headlines to writing outstanding ones! (subheadings included)

#3. The 5 Subconscious Questions To Answer

If your headline can answer these 5 subconscious questions every reader subconsciously asks themselves when skimming through the hundreds of headlines on Medium, you’re in for a treat!

Questions:

  1. How is this relevant to me?
  2. Why shouldn’t I categorize this as something I already know?
  3. Does it tell me clearly what benefits I will gain?
  4. Do I understand how these benefits will be delivered to me?
  5. Do I trust the person sharing this information?

#4. The 3 BEST and Free Headline Analyzer tools you should start using right now

Hopefully, by now, you understand what your headline needs to do to grab readers’ attention.

Luckily, you can move on from the guessing game. With the help of these free headline analyzing tools, you can get ahead of 99% of writers.

There are other free tools available on the market, but these are the 3 I use daily.

  1. Headline Studio — CoSchedule’s Headline Studio is a free headline-analyzing site that you can use to check your headline’s score. Let’s have a look at an example:

By adding some power words like ‘ultimate’ (to emphasize) and ‘great’, the score has shot up dramatically. Screenshot by author

The free version will help you score your headline; however, if you want to make use of Power Words and Seo Score, consider the paid version.

2. Sharethrough another free, and great tool to help you analyze your headlines. Let’s have a look at how one word can change the outcome of your headline:

Sharethrough gives you great tips on how you can improve your headlines. Check out how the score changes each time I change a word.

3. Monster Insights Headline AnalyzerMonster is a great little tool to help you get better at writing headlines. The scoring is a little different from the above ones, but it also gives you some incredible tips on how to improve. Let’s look at my example.

Look at the detailed analytics here.

You can start using these tools today. Don’t however forget to use your own judgement. Not everything that scores high will guarantee you great results. Use your discernment as a writer.

Thank you for reading.

©D. Sahaya

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