Perhaps nothing has frustrated more bloggers than writing the perfect blog post title. It’s very tempting to simply overlook the importance of a title, but, when you think of it, it’s the first thing that readers glance at.
As such, it’s also very instrumental in helping readers decide whether to go on and actually read your blog post’s body copy.
Doing a rush job on your title is definitely what you shouldn’t do. It’s something that has to be carefully crafted with a good deal of thought, planning and relevance to your readers. One of the best ways of approaching this is by consciously making the effort to write a catchy title. Here’s what you do.
Rely on the Four U’s
The four U’s are the words “useful,” “urgency,” “unique” and “ultra-specific.” According to American Writers & Artists Inc., these are the most important elements in any great title. When you craft your blog post title, be sure that it:
- Is useful to your readers
- Offers your readers a sense of urgency
- Tells your readers that the main benefit of reading your blog post is unique
- Performs all the previous three requirements in an ultra-specific way
Does that sound like a tall order? It’s really not, when you think about it. To satisfy getting all of the four U’s into your title, you have to spend some time and thought on getting your title just right, to be sure. The end result will pay off in droves when more readers go on to read your entire body copy. And that’s certainly worth a little bit of extra thinking and planning!
Limit Titles to Only Six Words
While limiting the length of your blog post titles to just six words may seem somewhat restrictive, there’s a good reason behind this piece of advice. Usability research strongly suggests that limiting a title to six words is the best way to go. According to the research, people are fond of reading just the first three words and last three words of the average title. That’s where we get the recommendation of six words for your average title.
So what does this mean in practical terms that you can implement? Make every single word of your title count! If you want to go longer than six words, at least focus on the first and the last three words of your title. That’s where your readers’ eyes will drift, so you’ve got to impress them and then persuade them to continue reading in the space of those six words.
Use Numbers, Adjectives, Your Target Keyword, Rationale and a Promise
Should you be able to fit these five elements into your blog post title, so that it still makes sense while being catchy? Yes, according to in-depth research that has identified the most vital aspects of the perfect title to ensure greater click throughs. Here’s why:
- Numbers draw readers in
- Adjectives make things interesting
- A rationale for reading makes it worth the reader’s time
- A promise gives readers a value proposition
- The target keyword is just for your own SEO purposes
So what would a catchy title look like? Something like this:
20 Hottest Destinations on Your Paris Vacation
Okay, so that was seven words, but if readers read just the first three and last three words in this title, they’ll still completely understand its gist.
Spend Lots of Time on Your Title
The title is the great persuader of your blog post. Think of it as the gateway through which you’re inviting your readers to spend their precious time on the real meat of your content, which would be the body copy. That’s why we advise you to spend a bit of time on crafting the perfect, catchy title.
Don’t obsess over the title, by any means, but definitely don’t neglect it. The payoff for spending more time on your title will be more readers, more click throughs and greater reader engagement, which all work toward a more popular and thriving blog!
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