Headlines are the first thing that people see when they visit a website. They need to be catchy and intriguing enough for the reader to click on it.

Here is a list of tips for writing headlines:

• Capture the reader’s attention
• Promise something interesting
• Create curiosity which is compelling
• Use keywords in your headline to increase SEO rankings.

Capture the reader’s attention

Readers are first, simple scanners. They will pick up on all that is relevant but won’t always go for the entire text. Therefore, it comes down to presenting your message in a way that will be noticed and picked up quickly.

They might be scrolling through your copy and looking for keywords, or reading bits and pieces to see if it’s worth their time to read.

Online readers only have a few seconds to decide whether to read an article or not. The headline is key to catching their attention and must be a compelling offer for them to stay awhile.

Take this headline from this law firm

In short this headline really focus in on that this team knows divorce law and they are going to guide you through the process. This headline has enough interesting and easy-to-read text so as to capture the attention of a qualified buyer, who will hopefully stop to read it.

Promise something interesting

Once you’ve caught your readers’ attention, tell them how they will benefit.

Use your headline to make a promise which hold interest and is going to help their problem and make things overall easier for them. example :

• Save them money
• Help them with their pain
• Delight them

Here’s an example from a performance coach. This is from the portion of their website where they talk about their services to unlock your potential within.

The moment your website visitors read your promise, they’re imagining what life would be like if that promise came true. That means you’ve made an emotional connection with them and have them imagining the future. That will help engage customers now, but also make it easier to sell in the future.

Create curiosity which is compelling

You’ve attracted their interest. You’ve hooked them with a promise.

But, how do you get readers to keep reading?

The best way to write headlines is either by building in some curiosity which you explain, by having some mystery to be solved or by answering a question.

Our brain is hardwired to focus on unresolved tasks. This concept has been coined as the Zeigarnik effect, named after a Russian psychologist who’s responsible for the discovery that we are more likely to remember unfinished tasks.

The same logic applies here. Avoid finishing the thought in your headline, so that your readers keep reading and are able to figure out what it’s all about by themselves.