How to Write Stunning Blog Titles [a Template]

You see, writing is hard. I would know because this is what I’ve been doing for over four years now. I’ve written for different audiences, for different clients and on various platforms, and I know for a fact that the process can be tedious.

There are many factors to consider when writing, and this can vary depending on the type of writing and platform. But when it comes to writing blog posts, your title takes the crown.

Why are you reading this piece? Because you know me from somewhere? Most likely not. You sure decided to open this and read because you saw a title that spoke to you, a title that seeks to help you in writing stunning titles.

So, how do you write stunning blog titles like the one that brought you here?

You see, creating great content is one thing; getting it read and ranked is another, which is why you should nail your title.

A title is what sells a piece of content. They are what people see on social media, in emails, and in search engines. Therefore, it’s no surprise that crafting suitable titles is one of the challenges writers face.

Is there a length requirement for headlines? How should I phrase it? Is there any word that should be avoided? Does it need to be optimised for social, search engines or both?

In this post, you’ll find a formula for writing good headlines and blog titles. Let’s get started, shall we?

Related: How To Start A Blog in Nigeria

An Easy Guide to Writing Stunning Blog Titles and Headlines

1. Begin with a working title

Starting with a working title before getting into the nitty-gritty of picking the perfect title is an ideal approach. There is a tendency for people to confuse topics and working titles. Let’s clarify that.

Generally speaking, topics are vast and could result in several blog posts. Take, for instance, “raising healthy kids” or “kitchen storage.” Both of those topics might be approached in very different ways by a writer.

In contrast, a working title is particular and guides the writer’s creation of a particular blog post. To illustrate, here are some working titles you could derive from the topic “cryptocurrency in Nigeria”:

“Current Business Opportunities in Cryptocurrency in 2021“

“Nigeria- From cryptocurrency ban to CBDC launch in 9 months“

“Cryptocurrency and Its Future in Nigeria“

Aren’t they all different and unique? The reason for that is that they are working titles, not broad topics. It’s also worth noting that none of those titles is perfect – they should just be specific enough to guide your blog post. Making them perfect is what we will worry about later.

2) Be accurate

A title needs to be accurate if you wish to set clear expectations for readers. To begin with, the title should accurately reflect the content that follows.

How can you ensure accuracy? Clarify your headline with brackets, just as we’ve done here: 5 Excellent Tips to Attract New Customers (without leaving your office)

The key is to set clear expectations. According to one study, headlines that include clarifying information outperform headlines without it by 38%. That’s because, before the readers clicked, the brackets clarified exactly what they were getting into.

This should be the most crucial rule for titles: Respect the readers’ experience. Readers will lose trust in your work when you set high expectations in your title and then can’t fulfil them in the content.

3) Make it appealing

The fact that your title must be accurate does not mean that you cannot make it appealing to the eye. You can make a title look more appealing in many ways.

All of this depends on your understanding of your core buyer personas. Finding what resonates with them and knowing what they find valuable will help you to speak their language.

You can use the following tips to make your blog titles more appealing after you’ve learned your buyer persona’s preferred style:

• Play with alliteration. Alliteration makes your titles a little more appealing to read and it can have both a subtle and a strong impact on your reader.
• Put strong language to use. The power of strong phrases (especially negative ones) like “Things People Hate” or “Stunning” can hit really hard. Nevertheless, they must be used with moderation.
• Clearly state the value. Having your format and/or contents displayed to readers is a way to make your content look a little bit more appealng. Studies have shown templates to be very effective for increasing CTR: so, do not hesitate to put “Temlate” in a bracket whenever your blog content can pass for a template.
• Give it a visual appeal. Would it be possible to include visuals within your post? The title should reflect that. A study found that headlines that included the word “photo(s)” performed 37% better than those that did not.
• Don’t get caught up in the whys; focus on the “whos”. Would you like your audience to be intrigued? Highlight the “who”: Headlines containing the word “who” attracted 22% higher click-through rates. As an example, let’s say you’re writing a post titled, “15 of Our Favorite Brands on Snapchat.” What could we add to our accurate-yet-boring working title? The following options may be considered:

15 Brilliant Brands Who Are Killing It on Snapchat

15 Must-Follow Brands That Are Seeing Snapchat Success

Snapchat Success: 15 Inspiring Brands Who Just Get It

4) Keep it short

It’s impossible to set a definitive length or length requirement for your title. You need to consider your goals and where you’ll place your headline.

Would you like this post to rank well in search? Keep your title under 70 characters, so search engines won’t cut it off.

Are you optimizing your title for social sharing? In a study by Hubspot, headlines with 8–12 words got more Twitter shares than those with less words. Among Facebook users, the most popular headlines were those with 12 or 14 words.

In addition, headlines with eight words received 21% more clickthroughs than the average title, according to Outbrain.

What is the lesson? Getting to know what works for your particular audience through testing is always a good idea.

Let’s asume I was writing a blog post with this working title: “Think Social Media Is Just for Kids? Here Are 10 Statistics Guaranteed to Prove You Wrong.” 

Shortening it simply requires rephrasing it and eliminating extraneous words. Here’s how I might approach it:

Before: Think Social Media Is Just for Kids? Here Are 10 Statistics Guaranteed to Prove You Wrong

After: 10 Stats That Prove Social Media Isn’t Just for Kids

See? That’s how easy it is. Think about how your titles will sound in your head to ensure that readers will be able to understand them. Keep your titles short and sweet.

5) Optimize for social media and search

Optimizing a title for your audience is paramount, but if you can also optimise it for search and social factors, that’s fantastic.

What’s the secret to looking at all three at once? Make sure you are using keywords your audience is already searching for, then find out how many people are searching for them.

In order to catch your readers’ attention, you should place your keyword as close as possible to the beginning of your headline. (Again, your headline should not exceed 70 characters, so that it doesn’t get cut off by search engine results.)

Another important factor? Ensure your headlines are tweetable. An analysis of 200,000 tweets with links found that the 120-130 character range provides the highest clickthrough rates.

In conclusion

Your blog title can make all the difference for your blog, so getting it right is quite crucial. The above tips will help you come up with stunning titles that will change your blog performance forever.

Do you have other ways of creating blog titles that have proven effective? Share in the comments.

If you read this in preparation for starting a blog, you will find this guide useful in successfully launching a profitable blog.