By: Derek Gerry
RSS is a great way to get your message out, but it's also a very easy way to get your message lost. Nobody will simply have your RSS feed in their RSS reader or ticker; you'll be one of dozens, perhaps hundreds of sites competing for someone's attention. Whether or not you get noticed depends on how well you write your headlines, since that's the only thing most readers will see.
Elements of Good Headlines
There's no one approach to headline writing that's a guaranteed winner. Take a look at some different news sites, and you'll see several ways of generating interest. Some news outlets use lurid stories about celebrites, others post dire warnings about imminent danger to you or your family.
What all of these headlines have in common is a small set of well-chosen words. Here are some tips for making blog and Web site headlines that will spark interest in your content.
- Keep it brief. Good headlines don't stretch past 10 words, and the best headlines have 6 words or fewer. Lengthy headlines get ignored, and they may not be displayed in their entirety by RSS readers, which could leave the most important part of your message hidden.
- Make an appeal. You've got one second to convince the reader that your story is relevant, so you need to explain what the story is about in a tantalizing way. Some headlines write themselves, especially if famous people are involved. Get an endorsement from a celebrity, and all you need to write is, "Why Madonna loves our handbags." Others can be tricky. Say you're writing about tire safety. "It's Time to Get Your Tires Checked" isn't compelling, but "Could Your Tires Kill You?" certainly is. It may be overly dramatic, but it generates readers.
- Don't summarize. If you give away all the information in the headline, nobody will read the story. "Our tires are ranked #1" tells the reader too much and sounds promotional. "Who has the top-rated tires in America?" will generate interest, because readers have to click to get the answer. The one exception is a major news event, such as a death, natural disaster or significant accident. In these cases, describing the extent of the damage or offering a significant detail about an individual can help readers recognize the significance of the story.
- Avoid marketing language. "We're having a sale." "Our biggest sale ever." "Come to our grand opening." Yawn. At least you've been kind enough to let your readers know that your article is nothing but self-promotion, so they can avoid it. Promotion should never try to disguise itself as news. Readers know better, and they'll avoid your posts. If you're trying to promote a sale, wrap the message in something relevant, and stay away from superlatives like "best," "greatest," or "fantastic."
- Don't mess with the text. Don't capitalize every letter in a headline. It looks like screaming and it's difficult to read. Don't use numbers for letters or insert symbols into words to make them catchy, as in the onerous "l@@K." Nothing makes you look more amateurish and foolish. A badly written headline is much more effective than one that uses gimmicks.
- Don't mislead your readers. Headlines tease a story, but there are limits to how far you can go. The headline needs to accurately represent what's in the story. Running a headline such as "Massive Tire Recall" and linking it to a story that's about replacing tires, with no mention of a recall, is deceptive and will cost you readers. Inserting celebrity names or popular search terms are two other major mistakes to avoid. You'll only fool readers once. After that, they'll avoid your site.
- Publish only when necessary. News outlets have it easy. News happens every day, so they've always got something to write about. Depending on your site, you may not have something to say every day. Don't force it. Write about your business or events only when something worthwhile happens. It's a good idea to update your feed a couple of times a week, but you're not bound to do it daily.
Writing good headlines is a bit of an art, but it's not impossible to build some skill at it. Think about who you want to read your content and the best way to reach those people, and you'll be on your way to creating effective RSS headlines.
