If you’re in sales or marketing, you’ve probably spent hours agonizing over just the right words to try and capture your prospect’s attention.
But even after all that hard work, there’s a good chance your message was never even read. Why? Because we’ve become masters at filtering out the irrelevant. We only read what catches our attention based on what we’re interested in at any one point in time.
It seems almost impossible to create a headline that stands out from the crowd. Some people can do it though – and do it well.
For example, there is one company that sends an email to me every day, and it always captures my attention. Read these titles and think about whether or not you feel compelled to learn more:
- 7 Health-Destroying Foods to Ditch Right Now
- Why is this Prescription Drug Legal, When it’s Just like Heroin?
- One of the Dirtiest Foods, and You Probably Eat it Several Times a Week
I find these headlines fascinating. They’re so compelling I can barely stop myself from clicking on the emails. I want to find out what they’re talking about.
I don’t know about you, but I want to maximize the chances that my message will get read. Here are 2 strategies that can help you create engaging headlines:
1. Mimic Good Headlines
I recommend signing up for a variety of newsletters – your competitors, industry leaders, and even just topics you’re interested in. When you see headlines that really grab your attention, save them! That way, you can mimic their formula for your own subject lines.
2. Use a Thesaurus
There are so many great words out there, but it’s hard to think of them all. Using a thesaurus can jump start your thinking.
One day I noticed that I kept looking up the same types of words all the time. So, I made a list of the most common main concepts I try to convey, and the words that are associated with them. From there, my Create Engaging Headlines Reference Guide was born! It’s designed to help brainstorm subject lines and titles.
Your titles are the most important part of anything you write. If you want your stuff to get read, make sure to take the time to really think about how you can make your target audience think, "What is that? I need to find out more!"
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