Article Titles that Get Noticed
By Serena Carcasole, President of Virtual Business Solutions ON DEMAND

So you’ve spent hours writing a killer article and are ready to submit it to online article directories. Good for you! But wait a minute; what about the article title? Did you spend some time trying to phrase the perfect title, or did you just throw a few keywords together in your haste to get the article published? Maybe you have no idea what constitutes a great title. No problem; by the end of this article, you’ll have some pointers that will guide you on your way to creating an eye-catching article title.

There are thousands upon thousands of articles being submitted online every day, so you have to use your article title to make your work stand out from the crowd. One method is to try approaching your article from an unusual angle. Readers might come across numerous articles about article marketing, but if they see an article titled, “Article Marketing: How the Wrong Approach Could Actually Hurt Your Business,” they’re more likely to stop and take notice. Another approach is to be as specific as possible. “The Art of Copywriting” isn’t nearly as intriguing as “Top 10 Copywriting Tips to Grow Your Business.”

Your article title should pique a reader’s interest and immediately send an intriguing question to the top of their minds. The promise of an answer to their burning question will almost guarantee entry into your article body, which should then quickly deliver the sought-after information. Don’t waste their time with a bunch of fluff just to keep them reading or to give the appearance of a longer article. Your readers should be able to find the answer they’re looking for within the first 10 seconds of reading your article. If you can deliver the answer in an interesting, creative way, they’ll likely keep reading in an effort to learn even more about the topic at hand. As an added bonus, the reader will see you as a valuable source of information and will be more likely to click through to your site to find more helpful resources. They may even bookmark your website for future reference, or, if you’ve really impressed them, decide to purchase your products or services right there on the spot.

Now that you’re more aware of the significance of creating good article titles, I want to stress the importance of staying away from deceiving titles. Don’t play on your readers’ emotions by including keywords that you know will capture their attention unless you’ll actually be able to deliver the desired information in your article. For example, in your article about copywriting, don’t use a title like, “Easily Write Your Way to a Million Dollars!” Sure, it’ll capture some interest, but can you honestly show your reader an easy way to earn a million dollars through writing? Probably not, and once the reader finds out that your article doesn’t deliver the information they wanted, they’ll be frustrated and angry that you wasted their time. The next time that they come across an article that bears your name, they won’t even give you the time of day. They most definitely won’t click through to your website for more information, which is the ultimate goal of article marketing. You have to establish a relationship built on trust if you want to have any hope of gaining new business through your article readers.

If the perfect title still eludes you, take a few minutes to brainstorm titles using your top two or three keywords. Write down the different variations you came up with and narrow them down until you’ve found the one that seems to work best. Then scrutinize it some more.

Ask yourself if the title is too broad for one article. It should be specific and tell readers exactly what to expect. There should be no surprises. So, if your article covers the art of copywriting to grow your business, and you touch on the subject of blog writing, don’t branch off into a discussion on the best blog creation software out there. Sure, it’s related somewhat, but not closely enough for your current article, which should only cover the act of writing itself. If you want to talk about the ease of creating and publishing your own blog, that’s great; just be sure to save it for its own article.

---Source: Duct Tape Marketing Dec 2, 2008 (www.ducttapemarketing.com). Serena Carcasole is a business consultant and the President of Virtual Business Solutions ON DEMAND. Reach her at info@vbsondemand.com.