{"id":105482,"date":"2017-07-24T10:01:06","date_gmt":"2017-07-24T10:01:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/?p=105482"},"modified":"2017-07-24T10:01:06","modified_gmt":"2017-07-24T10:01:06","slug":"how-to-write-a-killer-headline","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.vuelio.com\/uk\/blog\/how-to-write-a-killer-headline\/","title":{"rendered":"How to write a killer headline"},"content":{"rendered":"

The perfect headline can encourage click-through rates, audience engagement and the holy grail of social \u2013 going viral. At newsrewired<\/a>, Steve Rayson from BuzzSumo<\/a> presented an analysis<\/a> of 100m headlines.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The first thing they looked at was the most engaged-with three-word phrase on Facebook, discovering \u2018will make you\u2019 had extraordinary engagement over anything else.<\/p>\n

It has the \u2018promise\u2019 element that is key to a headline\u2019s success. It also ties in with an emotional angle \u2013 whether the article will make you<\/strong> happy, laugh, cry or feel old, it is likely to be highlighting an emotion \u2013 another element that\u2019s vital for Facebook success.<\/p>\n

\"Most<\/p>\n

The inclusion of top phrases relying on numbers is perhaps less surprising in the age of BuzzFeed, with listicles still going strong. In terms of how long that list should be, on Facebook the most engaged with were 10 items long, followed by 5, 15, 7 and 20.<\/p>\n

The worst performing headline phrases are also helpful for all headline writers, though they do reveal the difference between popular social platforms.<\/p>\n

\"least<\/p>\n

While \u2018on a budget\u2019 is one of the worst phrases that can be used on Facebook, it is conversely one of the most popular on Pinterest.<\/p>\n

This reminds us all to consider the platform we\u2019re writing for and not just mindlessly repeat content irrespective of medium.<\/p>\n

Another example of this can be seen in the optimum length of headline. On Facebook, the most engaging headlines are perhaps longer than you would think, with 15-17 words achieving the most success. On LinkedIn, the audience has less patience for such long titles (it\u2019s business after all) so the optimum length is a much reduced nine words.<\/p>\n

A possible reason includes the B2B\/B2C divide, with shorter, snappier content appealing to those that are using social media at work on company time.<\/p>\n

\"linkedin<\/p>\n

Steve finished his talk at newsrewired with an example of the perfect headline. Unsurprisingly from BuzzFeed, it hits all five elements that are important to a successful viral headline.<\/p>\n

The five elements are:<\/p>\n