5 Types Of Titles That Can Get More People To Read Your Article

Copyright (c) 2010-2011 Lee Dobbins

You probably already know that article marketing is a great way
to get your story in front of people that can benefit from it. It
helps to drive targeted traffic to your website and is the
beginning of the relationship that you build with your customers.

But in today’s fast paced world where visitors take only about 4
seconds to scan a webpage, you are competing with thousands of
other article writers so you need to write a compelling title
that draws in readers like a magnet so that your article stands
out from the crowd.

Here are 5 different types of titles that are sure to get more
people “clicking in” to read your article:

The Question Title

People are curious by nature, so phrasing your title as a
question can cause an irresistible pull for them to satisfy that
curiosity.

But not any type of question will do. You need to use an open
ended question – one that compels the reader to click into your
article to find the answer. This is a question that has more than
just a “yes” or “no” answer.

For example, you might want to use the title:

“Do You Know The 1 Trick That Will Stop Your Dog From Jumping?”

As opposed to:

“Do You Want To Stop Your Dog From Jumping?”

See, how the first title peaks your curiosity more? What is the 1
trick? Do you know it already? Even if you do, you feel compelled
to click into the article to see what the author knows that you
might not.

The List Of Tips Title

Another great way to get people to click on your title is to
formulate your article into a list of ideas or tips. For some
reason people love a list of tips. Not only will that help make
your title compelling, but having a list format in your article
with subheadings for each “point” on the list is a great way to
structure the article itself and makes for easy reading.

Almost any topic can be written as a list, you just need to think
vertically instead of horizontally when writing your article.

Then once you have the topic and the number of “points” on your
list, you simply write the title in this format:

“X Ways To {Solve Your Problem}”

So, you might try something like:

 * 10 Ways To Help You Lose Belly Fat

 * 5 Ways To Get Your Dog To Obey You

 * 6 Tips For Growing Bigger Tomatoes

…. And so on

Does this type of title work? Well, it enticed you to click into
this article, didn’t you?

The How To Title

Let’s face it, most people are surfing the web looking for
information on “how to” do something. Whether it’s buying a
product or trying to figure out how to do something related to a
hobby, or clearing up their acne, there’s a “How To” for it.

So why not just give them what they want?

 * “How To Teach Your Dog To Sit”

 * “How To Choose The Best Laptop”

 * “How To Clean A Saltwater Aquarium”

Think about what you search the web for – wouldn’t an article
with the title of “How To” followed by your subject matter be
something you would want to read?

The Benefits Title

If you can, you should try to work your benefit into every title
- even the other types listed on this page. But sometimes, it’s
just not feasible to combine these different types and you might
want to simply use the benefit as your title.

Benefits are very powerful because the illicit emotion in the
reader. Benefits are what make people pull out their wallets and
buy.

Yet, a lot of people confuse features with benefits and end up
highlighting the wrong things!

A benefit is something that you can feel – that makes someone’s
life a little better, less painful or easier. A feature is
something about the physical product or service.

For example, someone who has insomnia doesn’t want a list of
herbal remedies or relaxation techniques, what they really want
is to get a good nights sleep. The “good nights sleep” is the
benefit.

So, you would want to use a title like:

“Get A Good Nights Sleep Tomorrow By Using These Relaxation
Techniques Today”

Tell them what the end benefit will be and you’ll have more
people clicking into your article to learn how they can realize
that benefit for themselves.

The Why Title

They word “Why” grabs attention – after all, who doesn’t want
to know “Why”? Using “Why” in your title can turn a boring
drab title into one that commands interest in your readers.

Consider this title:

“A Memory Foam Mattress Helps Ease Back Pain”

Now add the word “Why” in the front:

“Why A Memory Foam Mattress Helps Ease Back Pain”

Which one seems more interesting to you?

Using “Why” is actually one of the easiest ways to make your
titles more engaging. You can add it to almost any title you
currently have and make that title more interesting.

The next time you write an article and are considering the title,
try to fit your subject into one of these types of titles and I
think you will see that you get a better click through rate into
your article.

But, of course, the title is only the first part of getting the
visitor to your site. Next, you must deliver on the information
you promised in the title by answering the questions or listing
the tips indicated and, of course, making your article body and
resource box compelling enough to get the click to your website
or offer.

By using an irresistible title, you’ve done the critical first
step of getting the reader into your article – the rest is up to
you!
About The Author:
After 5 years of creating and promoting websites, Lee Dobbins has
boiled the whole process down into a series of easy to follow
steps.  Get her free report and spreadsheet on the 10 step
process that will streamline your link building efforts and start
a flood of traffic at http://www.websitepromotionblueprint.com/pw

Read More Articles From Lee Dobbins:
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