Thursday, August 14, 2014

Wrapping Your Head Around Headlines

The Moz Blog nailed it (again) - this time, about those "mind-blowing" headlines I refer to as hype-lines. 

Clickability & SEO vs. Real Readers

Yes, I know putting an outside link in the opening line of my blog virtually guarantees readers will click away, but on the other hand, I like my writing to be more helpful to readers than it is to me. Hello, usefulness. Or as The Moz calls it, credibility. The point is, if your content matters to real readers, you have to write for them, not for click-metrics and the continually changing rules of SEO engagement.

Old School Optimization

Someday the dust may settle on the Google ranking algorithms and we'll all wake up and realize that business hasn't changed that much. Products and services still need good word of mouth and good reviews to sell. A product with an especially strong USP is a little easier to sell and easier to charge a premium for than a runner-up. And if you don't know your audience, you can't write to them, or sell to them. 

But there I go dreaming again. Until common-sense copywriting is what every client wants, do the next best thing - read The Moz blog. The latest post about headlines asks the right questions, and has quite a few smart answers. 

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