How to SABOTAGE Your Business Blog Article with a Bad Title in 4 Easy Steps!

Posted by yoni67 under Social Media
From http://jobshuk.com 4573 days ago
Made Hot by: Sun Tzu Business Guide on March 21, 2011 1:38 am

Want to Sabotage your business blog articles and make sure nobody reads them?

Here are four highly-effective and user-fiendly ways to accomplish your goal!

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Comments

Written by TheAlternativeToAttorneys
4566 days ago

Getting a blog rated as "popular" seems to be a difficult objective. Never thought about how the title could impact your visibility. Thanks.

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Written by yoni67
4566 days ago

AA,

I'm not sure my blog could be considered "popular" in the grand-scheme of things. I think it has found a niche though. As far as titles go, I have gone through a process of making them more colorful, descriptive and a bit odd. It seems to have paid dividends as my average post views have gone from about 100 a year and a half ago to about 950 today. Reader feedback has definitely told me that the titles are one reason people are clicking.

Yoni

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Written by swssem
4570 days ago

I guess if we're all becoming publishers, we need to think like a journalist. And they all know the importance of a catchy headline!

Thanks for all the creative examples of how to write a catchy headlline!

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Written by yoni67
4570 days ago

Cindy,

Journalism is a great example. As they say, "Dog Bites Man" is hardly news-worthy. On the other hand, "Man Bites Dog" sells papers. I guess there is a sensationalist component to writing.

Yoni

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Written by Adam_Gottlieb
4571 days ago

Yep, I do this all the time...

For those who are creatively-challenged or who have very limited time to give to their blogs (like me), there are actually headline "formulas" you could try to stick to. A good article to look at is over at copyblogger: http://www.copyblogger.com/10-sure-fire-headline-formulas-that-work/

Great post (and illustrations), Yoni.

Adam

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Written by yoni67
4570 days ago

Adam,

Thanks! I checked out the link...it's pretty cool. My problem is the opposite: I'm businessly-challenged. I might come up witch creative, catchy headlines, but I have problems filling the rest of the article with business substance :) Maybe why I compensate with so much silliness and humor?

Yoni

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Written by William1Will
4571 days ago

great title catchy

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Written by yoni67
4571 days ago

Thank you Will!

Yoni

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Written by alinisrael
4572 days ago

Bullet points?

Alan

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Written by yoni67
4571 days ago

HAAHHH!!!! Clever! You got me on that one!

Yoni

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Written by m4bmarketing
4572 days ago

Hi Yoni,

Titles are important especially when combined with a great image, like the one you have on this post. One tip I would add especially if you the whole headline to show up in the search engines is to make sure it is no longer than 60 characters.

Susan

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Written by yoni67
4572 days ago

Susan,

You are right. Images are a great addition to a blog. They can so enhance the message. Great point about the titles; I never even considered the Search Engine aspect.

Yoni

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Written by ronika
4572 days ago

You are certainly the master of creative, clickable titles, Yoni!

I have a hard time coming up with titles that are both informative and catchy.

I shall refer to this the next time I am struggling. Also, it never occurred to me that punctuation marks impact a link's "shareability". I will definitely keep that in mind.

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Written by yoni67
4572 days ago

Ronika,

Certainly not the master; I just have a rather weird side to me, part of which comes from being a literary writer.

The analogy I think of when I think of titles is that punk-rocker you and I see every once in a while in a crowd of people. He's got a big green Mohawk hairdo, black leather coat and a collar around his neck with spikes. You might not like him or relate to him if you meet him, but you are compelled to look. A title I feel is the same, capturing peoples' attention and making them curious enough to look further.

Thanks for reading!

Yoni

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Written by hamed1
4572 days ago

Great job Yonatan. The title is important as you state. Without making it stand out to the reader they might just ignore your blog and go on to the next one. Losing the reader might also mean losing the customer.

Peace/Salaam/Shalom

Hamed Ji'Bril

http://www.odesk.com/contractors/palestine

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Written by yoni67
4572 days ago

Hamed,

You are indeed correct. When you take into account that income can be gained by a successful blog, having it read increases in importance. It then becomes crucial to give a title that will maximize the chances that people will be attracted enough to click.

Peace,

Yoni

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Written by rush
4573 days ago

Yoni

Nice article, but I would say this. Creativity and titles are especially important for people who are trying to find a niche and gain an online reputation. Once that's done you can write just about anything in a title and people will read. I see with the bloggers who are really big that no matter what they use readers will flock. It goes with the turf. That being said, for the millions who are trying the reach that height you must have great titles.

Rush

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Written by yoni67
4572 days ago

Rush,

You are 100% correct...having that elusive reputation as a thought-leader (I just learned that expression) has benefits. If you take Guy Kawasaki (I just learned about him and began reading him), you have a guy that can title his articles however he wants. His expertise preceeds him, therefore, just having his name attached will bring readers in droves. It doesn't hurt that his content is among the best in the business.

Yoni

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Written by ben.corporate@ILforums
4573 days ago

Great advice sir. It's all about creativity.

Benjamin

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Written by yoni67
4570 days ago

Ben,

Israel Forum is indeed a great place to get blog exposure. I have had a few articles climb the rankings as you said. Business articles, in general, don't seem to do as well on the site though. It is much more geared toward current-events, politics, etc. I like the sites though and like the extra article views and readership that it provides.

Thanks,

Yoni

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Written by yoni67
4572 days ago

Ben,

Some people like their coffee plain. Many prefer theirs sweet and with frothy milk. I'm not sure what I mean, but I think it means that some people look for flair?

Yoni

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Written by ben.corporate@ILforums
4573 days ago

I also noted that your blog is climbing the vote rankings at Israel Forums. Your last post hit number 2 on Thursday. Great job!

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Written by BradenM
4573 days ago

Yonatan, your titles are sometimes crazy and a bit outlandish. As Shosh says, they say READ ME! I think the creativity you inject is one of the reaons I am an avid reader and one of the reasons why you have so many fans! I remember one in particular that your I Phone is going to murder you. How could you not click on something like that?

Braden

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Written by yoni67
4572 days ago

Braden,

1) I'm a bit crazy!

2) I have learned from being a lit writer that the title is of great importance. Without one, many won't check out the underlying content.

Yoni

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Written by ShoshFromJobShuk
4573 days ago

Your are right Yoni, creativity attracts. A blog with a boring title is not one that says "read me!".

Shosh

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Written by yoni67
4572 days ago

Shosh,

READ-ME is important. It is the advertisng and marketing aspect of a blog. It is selling yourself and selling your thoughts and expertise.

Yoni

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