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The title you choose for your blog plays a pivotal role in how much traffic your blog post is capable of generating. Not focusing on the blog title is a common mistake that most bloggers make, they tend to believe that if the content is perfect, the title can be comprised. A compelling headline entices people and ensures they click your blog post and read the content you spent hours crafting located further down the page. 

When it comes to crafting a headline for a blog post, the first thought that usually  crosses our minds is, “What is the best way to grab people’s attention?” This is true given the fact that people are more inclined to read posts with captivating headlines than those without any kind of sensational hook.

Now, if you do not have an idea on how to create engaging blog titles, worry not. We’re going to precisely tell you how to create engaging blog titles that will drive traffic and make people want to stop by.

Structure Of A Title

It should be a single-line summary that grabs their attention, convinces them that your post is worth reading, and encourages them to click through. In the Search Engine Results Page (SERPs), the title is generally followed by a hyphen ( – ) or pipe symbol ( | ) followed by the site/ brand name.

Titles are shown in a single line on desktop(s) and two lines on mobile(s). Take advantage of the double lines, when you are posting content that caters to a better reading experience on mobile phones.

Title & SEO Aspects

Headlines are an important factor in Search Engine Optimization (SEO). SEO optimization tools like RankMath and YoastSEO implement separate weightage exclusively for blog titles. 

The current consumer habit is that only 8 out of 10 people read headlines but only 2 out of 10 people read your entire post.

Titles should contain compelling words in them to increase the click rate. The more the number of visitors that click on your post, the higher your post moves up in the rankings.

Google also alters the title to display relevant results according to the searched queries. For example, see the image below.

Do you know? The first three ranked sites get 74% of the clicks.

How To Write Engaging & Clickable Blog Titles

1. Title Length

Google has a strict character limit to display titles in the SERPs. These are measured in the form of pixels. A title can be displayed up to 600 pixels maximum, between 50 and 60 characters. The reason for the “range of characters” is that different letters occupy different pixel spaces. For instance, The capital “M” and “W” occupy more pixels than the small letters “l” and “i”.

Minimize the use of capital letters in the headline. On average only 40 characters will be shown if all the letters are capitalized.

This is important because Google truncates the tail end when the title length exceeds the limit with three dots at the end. Ensure you stay under the limit to display the full title, thereby, increasing the click-through rates.

For instance, any article written by ISRO or NASA would get more clicks –  provided the site name is displayed in the title. Short titles shown along with the site name are really important.

Another study has interestingly found that the first-page results in titles averaged 49 characters, second-page titles averaged 55, whereas page 10 averaged 60 characters. So to conclude – the ideal title length can be between 46 and 54, with a minimum of 46 and a maximum of 60 characters.

Calculating the pixels and length of characters manually every time is a daunting and exhausting task, and fortunately, you do not have to. To preview headlines on mobile and desktop, use this headline preview tool. It also displays the pixel length of your title.

2. Add Special Characters

Special characters are common punctuation marks that are used to break the title into parts – brackets [ ], parentheses ( ), the colon ‘:’ hyphen ‘–’ question mark ‘?’ exclamation mark ‘!’ and commas ‘,’ are commonly used special characters in blog titles.

Now, do not update all of your blog post titles with parentheses. Add only wherever it is meaningful, or adds value. 

For instance, phrases like “that works in 2022,” “a step-by-step guide,” free downloadable checklist,” “printable templates,” etc., belong in brackets. 

So, a good title that includes any of the above phrases would look like this: 

100 Pinterest Blogging Templates (with FREE printables)

Consider this title, How to write a blog – 10 simple steps for beginners – twinsontoes 

This is an example of a bad title as the second part of the title will not be noticeable. Google just reads the first part of the title and assumes the second part is also the name of the website. It might go unnoticed. Thus, it is a good practice to use a colon instead of a hyphen, as a hyphen usually separates the brand or website name, and a colon combines short titles with longer subtitles that provide additional details.

The best example with colon would be,

Natural Weight Loss: Expectation vs Reality – <site name>

For diseases, studies, and professions, you can pump keywords in the title separated by commas. For example,

Cataracts: causes, symptoms, and treatment – <site name>

3. Include Numbers

Numbers work like a charm and rake in those coveted click baits. Google ranking algorithm rewards list-type blog posts with numbers. An average reader tends to scan until the very last point on the list post thereby increasing the session time.

Not only in list-type posts, but you can also add numbers to display the years and in creating urgency. Urgency can also be created by adding words like last chance, limited offer, today, etc.

For example, Learn digital marketing for free: become a PRO in just 30 days

When researching with clickable headlines, the stereotypical psychological traits work wonders. Here are a few study results:

• Include numbers at the beginning of the blog title in your posts.
• Odd-numbered headlines are found to be clicked 20% more than even-numbered headlines.
• Threshold numbers like 10, 25, and 100 perform well too.
• If you analyze the numbers on the search results page, higher valued numbers with at least a difference of 10 get more clicks than the numbered titles with less value. For example, if 5 results have numbers less than 10 and one with 25, the obvious clickable one will be 25. You can utilize it with the utmost advantage when it comes to posts like quotes. They also generate more social shares and engagement.

Next time, if you are writing a title that includes a number, remember these tips and craft the most effective headline possible.

4. Use Power Words / Adjectives

The use of power words emphasizes quick actions when placed at the front, just before the target keywords. These power words are mostly in the form of adjectives evoking emotional responses.

For example,

• 25 solo travel tips for women
• 25 practical solo travel tips for women

Here are two similar headlines but using a power word outperforms and gets higher clicks. Few such power words include – healthy, cheap, free, practical, essential, lessons, secrets, top, best, quick, best, etc.

You can easily find and collect them in the SERPs. Another trick to acquiring similar words is by browsing the target keyword phrase in Google followed by an underscore and a space. Google displays recommended for the keywords that you are targeting.

5. Append Modifiers

Modifiers persuade the users to click the title and read the entire content. The modifiers are usually added at the end after the target keyword. A few examples of such modifiers include phrases like:

• and beyond
• in the <current> year
• still works
• right now

6. Target Keyword At First

A target keyword is a phrase that describes the subject of the article. Always place your target keyword phrase (the one you want prospective readers to notice) in the first half of the title. It does make a lot of difference. As already discussed, Google cuts off the tail end of the title if the length exceeds 600 pixels. The simple trick is to make your first 6 words count.

For a search term keto diet, the top results (observed in Aug 2022) are

• The Ketogenic Diet: A Detailed Beginner’s Guide to Keto
• 20 Foods to Eat on the Keto Diet – Healthline
• What’s a Ketogenic Diet? – WebMD
• Diet Review: Ketogenic Diet for Weight Loss
• Ketogenic Diet – StatPearls – NCBI Bookshelf
• Keto diet: Benefits and nutrients
• The Keto Diet: 7-Day Menu and Comprehensive Food List
• Ketogenic diet – Wikipedia

Do not ever spam by stuffing keywords on your headline. Google can recognize keyword stuffing and this might affect the ranking of your page when flagged.

7. Pictures Get Clicks

You must be aware of the saying that “one picture is worth a thousand words.”

There is no doubt that readers are attracted to content with images. Similarly, when a featured image is added to your blog posts, it is displayed in the right corner of the title in the SERPs. A title when displayed with a picture gets more attention and clicks when compared to one which doesn’t.

So, it is a best practice to add images in the titles to get more click-through rates thereby eventually climbing up the rankings.

8. Negative Or Contradictory Words

A study showed that the use of negative words in the blog title outdo the positive words by 30%. Negative words like to destroy, and worst, not only increase the curiosity but also quickly grasp the attention of the reader.

You can take advantage of social and consumption trends, yet you should avoid cheesy click-bait headlines that detract from the content’s perceived value.

Contradictory words or oxymorons also have similar results when used in the headlines. 

For example, A wealthy barber – the words wealthy and barber compels the reader to find how and why the barber became wealthy.

9. Personal Words Like “you” Or “your”

After the list type blog posts, the second most clicked ones are those that have a personal touch in their title. Readers like articles that they can relate to, or feel like the content are speaking to them directly.

The words “you” and “your” connect and captivate your readers, on a personal level thereby generating clicks. Unless your blog post is about a very formal topic, the best way to connect to the majority of prospective readers is to use an inclusive and first-person tone.

10. Question Words

Ah, you cannot forget the question words in your title. “How to” articles beats any other question words.

Perfect Headline Formula

Odd number + power word/adjective + target keywords + modifier

Combine two or more of these techniques for maximum impact. Don’t spend too much time figuring out the perfect headline. But do spend a considerable amount of time as the title matters.

How To Check If Your Headline Is Unique?

Thousands of people might be targeting the same keyword. But your goal is to write a headline that no one else has written (for the same targeting keyword). This is an important factor because if two sites, one with higher domain authority (DA) and the other with lower domain authority display similar titles, then Google ranks the one with higher DA first. But if your title is unique, you can outclass the click-through rates with a unique title.

To check if your headline is unique, go to the google search bar. Enclose your title with a double quotation mark. Google renders the exact result that matches. If no results found are displayed, then it means that your title is unique and one of a kind.

Helpful Tools

Analyze and get a score of your written title – Coschedule’s headline analyzer 

For generating blog title ideas – Portent’s title maker, SEO Pressor’s blog title generator 

The best title generator tool is google itself. Whenever you come across an interesting or different headline, note it down in a notepad or excel. This is what we do and it does save you a hefty amount of time.

Best Practises

• Be Precise, clear, and understandable yet creative. 
• Keep it short, simple, and to the point.
• A headline should accurately describe your page. Tell what people can expect and deliver them. Never write a misleading title.
• Avoid using unnecessary words that don’t add value.
• Try to write different blog titles and choose the best.

“Words have power. Use them wisely”

A headline is just the beginning. Writing a catchy headline will make them visit your site but your content is what makes them stay. Do not ignore the second part. Rewrite your titles if needed. The smallest tweak can make a huge impact on your rankings.

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