Article Title Checklist: Write 3 Key Winning Titles for Your Article
Three Titles for Every Article
You want search engines to deliver your content to answer queries. To get a potential customer to click, you need a heading that entices. But titles also bring visitors to your web page through search engines as a result of a query. To coordinate all this, you need three winning titles.
You may spend hours creating your article for the web, but it may never be read unless you title it correctly. Not only that, you need three titles to help search engines guide the right readers to your article.
When I wrote about writing blog articles for maximum impact, I mentioned creating three titles. Now it's time to go into detail.
Recently Google, the world's largest search engine, has been changing titles when displayed in search results. The changes reflect the original title relevancy to the page.
You have three opportunities to title your article or blog post. Take advantage of the differences. We can't outsmart Google, but we can take the best actions to create relevant titles and show up in search while grabbing reader attention.
Here you can learn the SEO (Search Engine Optimization) actions that make your titles perform for your business.
The Function of Each Title
Each title you create for your article has a separate function in the online world. The way the title is used influences how it works for search engines.
Search engines help people discover your content, so creating titles that help search engines display your information is important. Equally important is what a site visitor reads once they are directed to your web page.
Get all three titles in alignment for maximum discoverability and reader interest.
The H1 Title - The title of your blog when a viewer arrives on the page. Header 1 (H1) is the first header of the article. This title stresses the benefit for the reader for continuing to read your blog post. It needs to be so clear your reader understands the benefit within a second. Create this one first because it describes the point of your blog post. It’s aimed at your reader.
The Title Tag - The page title on your website. Keep it to 60 characters max. This is the HTML title tag. It is displayed in the browser tab for the page of your blog post. All browsers use it the same way. It is displayed as the name of the page in search results. Search engine crawlers use it as a key to the content and meaning of your page.
The URL Title - Also known as the slug. This title appears after the forward-slash of your URL. Keep it short, readable by humans, with words separated by hyphens.
Here are examples of the difference:
H1: The 3 Best Ways to Cut a Pineapple to Save Your Fingers and Your Sanity
Title: 3 Best Ways to Safely Cut Pineapple
URL: TropicalFruitStand.com/blog/best-ways-to-cut-pineapple
Now let's look at each type so you understand how to create the best titles for your content.
The H1 (Header) Speaks to Your Reader
The H1 title is your engagement title, the headline of your article. The purpose of this headline title is to make your reader want to read your article. You have seconds to grab a reader's attention before they back out to find something else.
This title gets the most online advice from marketers—How to Create Winning Headlines in 5 Steps, The Simple Benefit Headline, Six Easy Tricks to Write Headlines to Grab Attention, etc.
The H1 title speaks to the key topic of your article and the benefits to the reader. A well-constructed Header improves time-on-page. The site visitor reads the article to discover the benefits promised in the title.
Specific benefits in the header title entice your visitor, so make them clear, emotional, and specific.
Andy Crestodina of Orbit Media offers a formula for title creation, so you cover the basics:
keyword+colon+number+benefit
Start with the topic of the article, the keyword or phrase covered in the article. Add a colon. Then give a specific benefit that tells the reader what they will learn by reading the article.
Write the number as a numeral. Numerals stand out in text.
The 3 Best Ways to Cut a Pineapple... - Right
The Three Best Ways to Cut a Pineapple...- Wrong
Headline Examples
You want your audience to read the article. So your headline needs to be interesting, to the point, easy to remember, and different from your competitors.
Start with the impact words. These are the words that address your site visitor's query. Then add the emotional quotient.
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Interior Curb Appeal: 10 Easy and Quick Tips to Help Your Client Sell an Older Home Fast
Overwhelmed by Clutter? 5 Decluttering Ideas to Clear Space in An Afternoon
Don't skimp words in the Headline Title. Long titles generate interest in the subject (keyword/topic) and add emotional triggers for your site visitor to read. That's the purpose: get your site visitor to read what you have to say.
The Title Tag
The title tag is the title of your web page. It shows in the browser as the title for the page of the article. Every browser displays this title the same way.
The title tag is important for search results when someone is searching for the answers your article provides.
Keep it short. Use no more than 60 characters. You'll ensure that a potential site visitor can read the entire title when it appears in search results.
Longer titles, like the H1 title, get truncated by search engines. The person searching for the right answer can't see the last part of your title.
Because the title tag is displayed as the page’s name, make the title clear and to the point. Potential customers will click.
Because the title is an HTML tag, search engine crawlers use it to determine the key content and meaning of the page. Be on target with the title tag. Succinct clarity is your goal.
Avoid title tags that don't reflect the core of your article message. Clickbait doesn't work.
The URL Title
The URL title displays after the forward-slash of the URL of the page, the web page address. So it will look like: mywebsite.com/my-url-title.
This title functions like shorthand for the complete title. Words are in lower case and separated by hyphens. Keep it short. Simple phrases or words that indicate the page content.
In the image example, the full HI title, Why Your Realtor Matters in Your Search for the Perfect Home, is shortened in the URL title to: why-your-realtor-matters.
Most content management systems (CMS) like WordPress have a setting that shortens the H! title.
Why Three Titles Matter for Your Content
An article H1 title is a critical part of your content’s purpose. If a title isn’t catchy, a reader may give up on the article before the first paragraph is read. Include emotional hooks describing the benefits the reader will receive by reading your content on the page.
The Title Tag title tells search engines the key concept of your article and how it can answer a query. It displays in search results so the potential customer can see an accurate and concise description of a page's content. Concise and to the point, this title will display without being truncated.
The URL title is as descriptive and brief as possible. Make it just enough so a visitor who sees only the URL may have a good idea of what to expect on the page.
Effective title creation gives your reader a reason to read your content.
