How many headlines do you write?

The headline of your article, blog post or webpage is as important as the rest of the copy and many would claim, even more important. In fact, according to David Ogilvy,

On the average, five times as many people read the headline as read the body copy. When you have written your headline, you have spent eighty cents out of your dollar.

It is the headline that draws people to your link because it is the headline that often appears as the highlighted hyperlink on search results, social networking websites and other online places. It is your headline that gives an idea what your content contains. The words that you use in your headline can make or break your content marketing campaign.

Some of my clients insist on getting multiple headlines from me and I don’t mind. It is a challenging task. They say, “Send me 10 headline options for this blog post” and then they choose what they like the best. The same goes for an email subject line (just as your headline prompts people to read your webpage, your email subject line prompts people to open your message). Of course they pay me accordingly and that’s not the point, the point is when you create multiple headlines you cannot only test them out, you also have a better grip of what is the most compelling way of making your offer.

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