Weekly Challenge 2--It Starts at the Top: Writing Great Headlines

[Michele Martin]

A blog post headline is what first captures a reader's attention, especially if they're reading your post in a feed reader. You can have the best post in the world, but without a good headline, people may blow right past your post.

Headlines are something I really struggle with. I want them to be descriptive and informative, but at the same I want them to be catchy. Sometimes I spend more time editing my headlines than I do my posts. Even when I do, they're still bad.

The challenge this week, then, is to focus on headlines. It's actually a two-parter and you can do one or both parts.

1. Check out these recent posts on headlines that grab attention and try to incorporate them into your headlines this week:

How Problogger Inadvertently Gave Me 359 Headline Ideas

Warning: Use These 5 Surefire Headline Formats at Your Own Risk

How to Write Headlines Even a Corpse Would Read

10 Headline Formulas That Work Like Magic

2. As you're reading through your feeds this week, note which headlines get your attention and make you read further. Note your favorite examples here in the forum and what it is you liked about them. As you go through the process, also consider if there are particular types of headlines that capture your attention. Do you like questions? What about headlines that include numbers or facts? Wherever you notice some kind of pattern or theme to the headlines you see, mention it here. I'm also curious if there are patterns related to particular niches in the blogosphere--are edubloggers attracted to particular types of headlines, for example?

Bonus Activity: If you come across any good headline resources or blog posts during the week, drop a link for them here.

Another bonus activity comes from Robin--scroll down to her post here and try to write some "poetic" headlines.

By the end of the week, we should have a nice collection of ideas about headlines that we can use to improve our own headline-writing.

Have fun. I know that this will definitely be a challenge for me!

[Al Upton]

Hi Sue (and Everyone) Great Headlines
In edublogs.org you can 'accidently' publish a post, go back, change the title PLUS change the address. The ending of your address is called the 'slug'. EG In http://alupton.edublogs.org/hi/where-r-u/ 'where-r-u' is the slug - I could change it to 'pls-let-us-know' if I wanted. When editing the post, on the right hand side are 'Categories', 'Discussion', 'Post Password', 'Post Slug', 'Post Status' and 'Post Timestamp'. These are worth checking out.
Thanks also Sue for recommending others to visit the link above and encouraging them to spread the word about the miniLegends latest attempt at global connections. Please everyone have a look at who has already left a comment and let us know 'Where you are and What you're doing' :)
I love your Wallace Stevens approach Robin. Like Sue my class and I always devise a working post/page title first considering the purpose and audience. This is all important. Then we write the post and change the title before publishing if necessary.

[Talia Carbis]

That's the same on Wordpress (com or org) as well. :-) just so everyone knows.

[Sue Waters]

Thanks Al

Glad to know when I make that mistake I can change it so will do so in future.

Sue

[May Evans]

This is the best way to title ANYTHING in my opinion! :) good advice

Also, today my blog post is "MySpace.com Will Kill You"... I think that's about as attention grabbing as I'm going to get.

Sue, I especially love your Technorati headline!

May

[Mike Fitch]

It does partially depend on what your goal/niche is, but headline writing is essential. There's an art to it all in itself. I'll try to take notes on what catches my eye and what doesn't.

[Vic Grace]

I write my piece then choose my headline. Also I incorporate the headline if possible in the first line of text. It is not alway possible. If possible using Technorati tagging that matches the headline.

[Vic Grace]

Some of my headlines. My blog is in a niche so I don't think a lot of the headline suggestions would work.

Bear Invasion
Morphing not just for computers, how about your brain?
Why do women take so long in washrooms?
Warm the globe thru friendship
You're never too old!
Look what happens when I come out of my cave?
Poop by any other name!
StarTrek to Dragonflies

[Kate Foy]

You know, much as I hate formulaic stuff, it's true that outrageous headlines, clever 'punny' headlines, and just plain different headlines grab attention. Once upon a time, newspaper banner-headlines were in the business of attracting readers this way.

Touching base half way in this week's challenge, I've tried to do a couple of question headlines, 'How to's' to keep the traffic incoming as the business types suggest, whilst balancing with other kinds. So working backwards from today, it's

How Digitally-Native are Gen-Y? (an open question)
How I Keep Blogging: Make it a Habit. (a question and an answer)
Power of the Personal: Mena Trott on Blogging (a catch-phrase with a real person in the title ... thanks Mena)
and I'm cheating here because it was last Saturday's post
The Proverbial Can (maybe not lyrical but catchy again)

So I'm going to keep trying out variations for the next few days.
This is fun Michele. Delete Comment

[Michele Martin]

Well I'm glad that YOU are having fun, Kate--I seem to be continuing to stick with the bad headlines. :-)

[Sue Waters]

Actually Kate I agree I thought your titles were really good these week. They really grabbed my attention and I wanted to read.

So I think you also deserve the big tick for task completed.

[Michele Martin]

I'm realizing as I look at my blog posts this week that I didn't really do this challenge. There must be something in me that resists writing headlines. Here's the best one I did this week (I think):

"Brent Schlenker Teaches Me About 'Blearning' and I Teach Him About the 31 Day Challenge"

I'm not even sure why I think it's the best one--maybe because I like Brent's term "blearning".

Anyway--clearly I need to follow my own advice here.

[Carter-Ann]

I've been keeping this challenge in mind while trying not to let it consume to much time. Here's this weeks:
Trying to get in shape, while learning about French history
Bill Maher Booby-Bashing
Open Letter to the Guardian Regarding Nicholas Lezards
Walking with Bea

It's hard to tell whether it's helped increase traffic because I blogged about two semi-high profile people, which usually brings in readers. But the challenge is making me more conscious about how unhelpful title can be.