What do you do if your headlines aren't grabbing attention?

It's easy to get writer's block and brain fog when it comes to writing anything, especially headlines. Good newspaper writers and editors write headlines that are appealing because they know readers usually don't read past the headline or the lead. Find the buzz words (SEO key words) that your target audience gravitates to. Make sure your headline copy is appropriate to the subject. Using grammar styles such as alliteration can help make your headline memorable and catchy. But don't get too cute with it.

It's all about getting noticed and giving people what they want! Think about how your audience talks and what they're searching for. Then, use those words in your headlines so your content pops up when they're looking. They have to be just right to stand out.

Just follow these 4 steps: 1. Write down your story in the simplest language. 2. Ask yourself, "If I only had one sentence to tell this story, what would I say?" 3. Pen down the answers to question 2. 4. Choose the headline that looks the best and re-write it with an aim to sell it. Voila!

When a movie series is really good, it keeps us in suspense that we eagerly anticipate the next episode to be shared. That's what curiosity is all about. Humans can easily get curious when there's a valid reason to be. Make your headline as curiosity-invoking as possible so that your target audience would see themselves opening the main copy.

Use questions in your headlines to get people curious. Hint at what's in your article without telling everything. Say something unexpected to grab attention. Leave some mystery so they want to click and find out more. Make sure your headline matches what's in your article.

I learned this from Alex Cattoni: A good headline has a hook, an open loop and it speaks to its target audience. Ask questions, make contradictory statements, use numbers and stats, get super-specific in the headline.

Don't use "Start", use "Ignite" Don't use "Change", use "Transform" Don't use "Want", use "Desire". You get the point. Stop using common over-used words, and use power words that invoke emotions in the reader and that set apart the copy from the rest.

You should consider doing this if you write in the sciences: The science community is notorious for producing boring contents because they're hellbent on following all academic and grammar rules. Scientific people mostly read research manuscripts only when they're looking for something. Barely will they read articles because of how engaging it's. Same thing applies to the kind of titles you see in the sciences—boring and hardly grab attention. My advice to science writers is to learn how to take risks and write creative, engaging and attention grabbing titles. They could decide to use creative language to partially communicate findings in the title. It'll spark curiosity and draw the reader's attention.