Blog post titles are powerful. They are the deciding factor between a widely read article and one that dies an immediate death.
The cold hard reality is that no matter how great your blog content might be, if you don’t come up with a catchy title, your article may never see the light of day.
Why a Catchy Title is SO Important
Think of your title as the front entrance sign to your business. Do you want a flashy sign that drives traffic to your blog or a lackluster sign that encourages those who might have been interested to keep on moving? I can’t imagine the jury is out on this one.
To maximize blog traffic, you need to write not only alluring and persuasive blog titles to entice customers to click on your post, but also keyword rich titles that will give search engines the ability to find you.
So what exactly does that mean?
Your Blog Title Should Have 4 Goals:
- Pique curiosity and create excitement
- Spell out the purpose of your article
- Give a reason to take immediate action
It’s the why, what and how of your article.
Your 4th Goal | Why Keywords Matter
While content is still King, keywords are the reigning Queen of your blog. Keywords are the words or phrases that people are typing into search engines when looking for information on a specific topic.
In essence, keywords are how your clients will find YOU!
Keywords are also an inexpensive way to find out what your potential clients are looking for.
Let’s take a look at an example: If you are writing a post on the “Top Mistakes Sellers Make,” the consumer might type in “what mistakes do home sellers make” or “top mistakes home sellers should avoid.”
This is why it’s important that you use words or phrases in your title that:
- Your client would actually type into a search engine i.e. Are they looking for just a Realtor® or a “Colorado Springs First Time Homebuyer Realtor® Specialist?”
- Would not be used by every blog on the web (that accounts for the hyper local and very specific keyword phrase above)
- Would also be used throughout your post
If you can create a blog post title that grabs readers attention and is search engine optimized then you’ve hit the lottery! Just make sure that your keywords are relevant to your post.
This is crucial for two reasons:
- There’s nothing worse than reading a blog that has nothing to do with the great headline you just clicked on.
- The more specific your keywords are to your websites overall content, the better your search engine rankings will be.
Start your research with these free keyword research tools:
Don’t Forget!
Do your research first and determine how people are searching for that particular subject before you finalize your blog article and title.
If you want to learn more on how to effectively use Keywords, Active Rain has a fantastic weekly class on SEO Blog Training. Whether you are new to blogging or just need a refresher on how to best optimize your blog posts, this class will get you up and running!
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