Think of the title as the storefront of your blog post. If it isn’t appealing and eye-catching, then why would anyone venture inside? For such a small part of a blog post, the title has to do a lot of heavy lifting. It needs to:

• Grab the reader’s attention
• Convey the value of the blog post
• Stand out from other similar search results by competitors

That’s a lot of responsibility for something that shouldn’t exceed 55 characters! But crafting curiosity-piquing titles doesn’t have to be high-stress. Here are six simple tips for writing catchy blog post titles.

#1 Hook your readers

Your title needs to be catchy, strong, and succinct, while still conveying your message.

Be unique and bold!

Experiment with rhymes or puns, hint at secret wisdom that you’re going to reveal, use alliteration — there are a ton of ways to add a little pizazz or mystique to your title.

One great way is to include numbers! For example, “9 Surefire Ways to Lock Down That Deal!”

#2 Be accurate

Being truthful about your content is important.

The goal isn’t to trick readers into clicking — if you do that, will they trust your titles in the future? Probably not. So be accurate and make sure that your blog post will deliver what its title promises.

#3 Keep it short & sweet

As I mentioned earlier, titles should be kept to 55 characters or less.

Ideally, you want the full title of your blog post to appear in search engine results — longer titles will be cut off, which dampens their impact and could result in the most pertinent information being hidden!

You also want to grab attention as fast as you can, as most people tend to skim pages very quickly. A short, punchy title is preferable.

#4 Use key words … sparingly

Key words are less important now than they used to be, but it’s still worth it to include one or two in your title.

Do your research and find key words with a high search volume. Avoid packing 4-5 into your title, just pick a couple of the best and most relevant. Remember, they need to fit into your title naturally! Your audience will recognize when you’re just filling an unreasonable key word quota, and it will turn them off.

 #5 Do your research

Search for blog posts on subjects similar to yours.

How are the highest-ranking titles formatted? What kind of language do they use? Is there a successful formula that seems to attract the audience that you’re trying to appeal to?

Use these titles as a model for your own efforts.

Many writers come up with their title before they start writing their piece, as a way to guide their thoughts. Sometimes I'll spend 30 minutes brainstorming a big list of titles – write down anything that comes into your mind – so you can more easily refine the final title for your post.

Sometimes, as you write your piece, you may find your focus shifting. Remember that you’re not married to your title! You can always change your blog post title. You can even test different titles to see which one works best.

Now it's your turn! Share some of your best blog titles with us in our Facebook Group!