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9 Tips for Writing Irresistible Blog Post Titles

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Blog post titles are hard. You need to communicate a lot of information and capture the attention—and the clicks—of your audience, and you only have so many characters to do it.

That’s why I’m sharing nine tips for stronger blog post titles here:

  1. Avoid words that sound like spam
  2. Check the SERP for numbers
  3. Remember your keyword
  4. Follow a “how to” formula
  5. Add brackets
  6. Use the first person
  7. Include your audience
  8. Stress speed
  9. Make the value clear

First, let’s cover why it’s important to spend the extra time getting these tricky titles right in the first place.

Why should you spend extra time on your blog post titles?

Your blog post titles deserve extra attention because they’re often the first thing your potential reader sees. This is especially true on the Google SERP, where your title has a huge impact on your click-through rate and, because of this, your organic traffic.

Now, it might seem like a lot of effort to devote to what’s often the first or last 60 characters of your content. But with the potential to boost CTR and organic traffic, your blog posts titles are worth the extra time.

In fact, according to an Orbit Media study, bloggers who spend time drafting and workshopping their titles see better results.

How to write stronger blog post titles

We’ve shared tips for writing better headlines for your blog posts before, and those tried-and-true tactics are still great to use. But there’s recent industry data and a slew of new content marketing trends to consider. With that in mind, here are nine ways to write blog post titles to entice your audience and boost your traffic.

Here we go.

1. Avoid words that sound like spam

With over two billion blog posts published each year, it’s no wonder that common phrases go from recognizable to cliche quickly.

Take “ultimate guide,” for instance. Interest in these has pretty much declined over the past few years, and it’s more than halved in the last decade. Why? Because we see ultimate guide so often in the SERP that the modifier becomes boring—and, if we’re being honest, lazy.

Great content? Sure. Terrible blog post titles? Absolutely.

Standard constructions like “The Ultimate Guide to X” or “X Secrets Revealed” are not just boring for your potential readers, but also harmful for your brand authority. In fact, HubSpot found that using words like “magic” and “amazing” can actually decrease your CTR. These cliches get spammy, which does a disservice to your blog content.

So instead of leaning on these overused, ineffective words, find new ones that are great for marketing. Focus on using fresh, powerful words that align with your brand.

2. Check the SERP for numbers

Numbers are appealing—this is a standard tip, and there’s data that supports that including numbers in your title increases your traffic.

But adding any old number isn’t going to boost your organic traffic.

Once you’ve got your blog post idea, you should check the SERP for your keyword to see what’s ranking before settling on a title. This is good to make sure you’re matching search intent, and it’s also good for avoiding an embarrassing duplicate title, like the “ultimate guide” example above.

It’s especially useful for making numbers in your title appealing.

Honestly not sure if this is better or worse than the duplicate “ultimate guide.”

If you were trying to rank for “spring planters,” like these blog posts in the example above, you would know to go for 15 or 16 options—at least. Now, consider these results for the search query “best email subject lines:”

The post from Engagebay actually stands out because it has significantly fewer email subject lines. If I’m looking for lots of quick examples for inspiration, I might click on Sleeknote’s post. But if I’m short on time or looking for a quick idea to run with? 25 is way more accessible than 80 or 115.

Check the SERP so you can use numbers strategically in your blog post titles.

3. Remember your keyword

This is a simple reminder, but it’s important: Your primary keyword needs to be in your blog post title.

Most of your blog posts should start with keyword research. An effective content strategy for most blogs involves growing traffic organically, which requires keyword-targeted blog posts. Sometimes great blog post ideas come out of discussions with your team or customer pain points. But even those ideas are better when you can align them with a keyword.

And when you do, make sure to include that keyword in your title.

4. Follow a “how to” formula

Remember how we talked about avoiding cliche words and phrases to keep your titles engaging? That doesn’t mean you need to start from zero every time you’re brainstorming headlines.

Starting from zero every time is so hard. That’s why copywriting formulas are so useful.

When you’re using a formula, you’re starting with some structure that you can add to, adjust, and make your own. (Read: You’re not plugging your keyword into a run-of-the-mill title and calling it a day.)

Using “how to” to frame your blog post works. Most of the time, we’re sharing education resources or explaining our own processes for our audience, like how to create DIY marketing videos or how to improve your Amazon SEO. (An alternate title for this post, for instance, could have easily been “How to Breathe New Life Into Your Blog Post Titles.)

In fact, these blog posts are a great way to grow organic traffic. Semrush found that 72% of marketers report “how to” blog posts are their best traffic drivers. So next time you’re writing a post on strategy, use this framework and see if that works for your audience.

5. Add brackets

I’ve been seeing this used effectively more and more lately: brackets in blog post titles. And it works. Here’s an example.

This could be because original research, like the data study from Semrush above, has become more common in content marketing over the last few years. Orbit Media found that almost half of content marketers published original data last year, up from 35% the year before.

The good news? These brackets work. HubSpot found that using brackets to provide extra information or clarification can increase click-through rates by 38%.

Here are some great things to include in brackets in your relevant blog post titles:

  • [Data]
  • [Updated]
  • [Infographic]
  • [Video]
  • [Step-by-Step Guide]
  • [Report]
  • [Template]
  • [Study]

6. Use the first person

According to recent HubSpot research, the number one reason that people read blog posts is to learn something new.

That means that authority is especially important. When there are tons of different blog posts on any given topic to choose from, it’s important to produce accurate, authoritative resources in order to compete and provide value to your audience. The best way to do this? Have an expert share advice.

Using first person in your blog post title makes it clear that it was written by someone who knows what they’re talking about.

Google Ads mistakes blog is a great resource, and it’s also super clickable. That’s a lot of money, and a lot of mistakes. I want to know what Asi did—and what I can learn from it.

7. Include your audience

While using first person in your blog post title lets the audience know exactly who is sharing the advice (and why it’s worthwhile), including your audience in your title makes no mistake about who the blog post is for.

The best way to think about this is with beginner’s guides. When you see a post like The Beginner’s Guide to YouTube Marketing for Small Businesses, you know that it’s going to tell you what you need to do to get started and it’s not going to assume much specific knowledge. If I’m a beginner, that’s the post I’m clicking.

You can use the same technique to describe your ideal audience in your blog posts—even if it’s not beginners.

For example, when I was brainstorming a title for a recent blog post about CRM automations, I knew that, while the blog post would discuss CRM automations in general, the ideal audience would be startup owners or marketers. I ended up including this in the title to make it more appealing to that target audience: 7 Essential CRM Automations Every Startup Needs.

Bonus: This technique is awesome for targeting long-tail keywords, too.

8. Stress speed

Are you busy? I’m busy. Sometimes I’m looking for an involved how-to post when I have the time to sit and learn how to get better at something; other times, I need a quick overview to get an answer fast so I can move on to the rest of my to-do list.

If your blog post solves this second need, a quick solution, make sure you’re advertising this in your title. You can include words like “quick” or “fast,” or you can get specific with a number of steps or minutes.

9. Make the value clear

The best advice I’ve received about writing blog titles (thanks again, Elisa) is to make sure that it communicates the value. The reader should never have to second guess why they’re clicking on the article, and the blog post should deliver on its promise.

This last part is key.

It might be tempting to overhaul your blog post titles based on these tips, but a new title doesn’t lead to meaningful traffic if it doesn’t actually provide the original data or expert advice or audience-specific information. Even worse, it can hurt your brand to oversell in a title.

Instead, make sure your blog post titles clearly convey the value that they do provide—and then go from there to make them as appealing as possible.

Spend the time on your blog post titles—you won’t regret it

Your blog post title frames your content for your audience, lets them know what they can expect to read, and convinces them to click. That’s why it’s so important. So use these tips to spend more time brainstorming and drafting until you land on a blog post title that will appeal to your reader—and boost your traffic. Here’s a recap:

  1. Avoid words that sound like spam
  2. Check the SERP for numbers
  3. Remember your keyword
  4. Follow a “how to” formula
  5. Add brackets
  6. Use the first person
  7. Include your audience
  8. Stress speed
  9. Make the value clear

Originally Appeared Here

6 Email Marketing Tips for Virtual Association Events

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This is a guest post from Fonteva.

Effective email marketing strategies are vital for associations, nonprofits, and businesses alike—especially in a time of uncertainty. Organizations everywhere are trying to stay top-of-mind for consumers, and the amount of digital clutter has only increased. That’s why walking through some top tips (and mistakes to avoid) for event marketing is crucial.

This article will provide a deeper understanding of effective email marketing tactics. You will learn how to:

  1. Personalize your messages.
  2. Leverage intriguing subject lines.
  3. Use graphic elements wisely.
  4. Establish a drip campaign.
  5. Ensure mobile-friendliness.
  6. Conclude with a clear call to action.

As a result of COVID-19, organizations across the globe have shifted to virtual events to maintain engagement levels while social distancing. However, it’s important to recognize that even once things begin to settle down and return to a “new normal,” virtual engagement will continue to be a communication strategy for associations and other organizations.

Whether you’re planning a brand new virtual event for your association, or pivoting an existing event to the virtual realm, spreading the word is crucial for the best turnout. Ready to dig in? Let’s get started.

1. Personalize your messages.

When it comes to crafting an effective marketing email, personalizing your messaging is vital. Consumers, members, and other recipients get so many emails every day that it can be too easy to slip through the cracks. To avoid this, you have to make sure your messages stand out— and personalization is a great way to go.

Here are two ideas you want to implement as you begin drafting your email copy:

  • Address recipients by name. Any effective email starts out with a personalized greeting. “Dear John,” is always going to be a better opening than “Dear member,” or worse, “To whom it may concern.” After all, this is your chance to make a first impression on the reader as they skim over your message and decide whether to engage. From the beginning, it’s important the recipient feels that it is a personal invitation to your event, rather than a blanket, pre-written message.
  • Segment your audience. Personalization can go farther than just your greeting. Be sure your entire message is customized based on content type and relationship to each recipient. That’s where audience segmentation comes in. For event marketing outreach, you may choose to segment based on whether the recipient is registered already (you can send detailed event information) or not (send a generalized overview and an invitation). Further, you can segment based on a recipient’s previous event history as well.

Each of these tasks, while possible to complete by hand, can be streamlined by using the right email marketing software—thus saving your team time and effort to be used elsewhere. For even better results, be sure your marketing tools and CRM are fully integrated. When you start your engagement off on the right foot, your readers are more likely to respond to your marketing attempts in the way you seek.

2. Leverage intriguing subject lines.

A well-crafted subject line for your email is one of the most important elements in your entire campaign. After all, the subject line is what originally grabs (or loses) the reader’s attention even before opening the email.

If you’re overwhelmed or unsure of where to start, here are some examples of strategic subject lines to market your event:

  • Hurry! Register by midnight for 50% off your ticket price. This subject line expresses a sense of urgency and the fear of missing out which can lead to increased clicks and conversions.
  • Introducing our virtual event series: [Name of series]. This subject line makes it clear that the contents of your email include new information that the reader does not want to miss out on.
  • 7 reasons to attend our annual event. This subject line implies that the body of the email will clearly spell out a string of reasons why the reader should attend the event, which inspires the curiosity to continue reading.
  • 8 out of 10 association members want this one thing. This subject line peaks the reader’s curiosity, encouraging them to open the email and find out more. What exactly do 8 out of 10 members want? If they’re a member too, it will be relevant to them!
  • Warning: Event may cause too much fun. This subject line combines shock-value and humor to grab the recipient’s attention. Of course, the reader will want to know what kind of exciting event necessitates this type of warning.
  • [Recipient’s name], we want to see you at this event. This subject line uses personalization (as described above) to position your marketing email as an individual event invitation.

On the other hand, here are some not-so-great examples:

  • [Name of event] Association Event. Not only is this subject line bland, it gives no information about the event or even why the reader should open the email.
  • [Name of organization] weekly newsletter. If you’re trying to drive registrations for your event, this subject line will do no good. An event marketing email should be independent of any regular newsletters and demonstrate that with a unique subject line.
  • Event on [Date of event]. Stating the date of your event is not enough to convince recipients that they want to attend. What’s happening at your event that will inspire registrations?
  • Register for our event here. This subject line is simply telling the reader to register but fails to tell the reader why they should register (or even open your email in the first place!).

Writing the best email subject lines can be tricky, but it is of utmost importance for your marketing campaign to yield results. Doing some research on businesses and organizations that have seen success in their email marketing is a great way to gather inspiration and emulate effective strategies.

3. Use graphic elements wisely.

Studies show that communications containing visuals see up to 650% higher engagement levels than those solely composed of text. That’s because visual elements are a great way to grab the attention of the reader and they provide a more aesthetically pleasing experience overall.

Email campaigns should use several types of graphic content to take your messages to the next level, including: 

  • Images: Images are a classic example of graphic email content, whether it’s your own photography, stock photos, or clipart. Including pictures is a great way to brighten up your emails and increase engagement rates.
  • Videos: Video elements can be an excellent contribution to email marketing content, especially when you’re promoting events. You might include a video recap of a previous event, or a series of interviews with past attendees sharing their favorite memories and urging members to register.
  • Gifs: As a sort of combination of photo and video, gif content is a new and exciting way to grab the reader’s attention. There are plenty of pre-made gifs you can find online, or use online tools to turn your own short video clips into unique gifs!

However, visual elements can also have negative consequences when used incorrectly, as they can lead to sensory overload and distract the reader from the message in the text. Finding a solid balance between too little and too much graphic content is a great way to optimize your content for engagement.

4. Establish a drip campaign.

A drip campaign is a marketing strategy that utilizes a predetermined cadence of emails to nurture leads and eventually direct recipients toward a desired action. In this case, the action is registering for your upcoming virtual association event!

These examples of successful email drip campaigns demonstrate the way in which triggered emails can effectively lead to higher levels of recipient engagement. Simply put, the process is as follows:

  1. Your association team comes up with a collection of created emails.
  2. You utilize an email marketing automation tool to schedule emails at particular points in time.
  3. A recipient receives their first email in the campaign.
  4. Depending on whether they opened the first message, they might receive a second email pushing them further down the conversion funnel.
  5. If the user does not open the first, they might receive a follow-up email or the campaign could stop there.
  6. The process continues based on your predetermined email sequence.

Email drip campaigns are a great way to engage with your network without becoming too overbearing to those who are uninterested. Because the campaign takes cues from a user’s own behavior, the strategy allows you to pursue leads that continue to show interest and are the most likely to become registrants.

5. Ensure mobile-friendliness.

Did you know that more than 50% of web traffic comes from mobile devices? That means if your association’s materials are not mobile-friendly, you’re missing out on a huge opportunity to boost your online registrations.

Be sure these two elements are as easy to use on mobile devices as they are on desktop:

  • Emails: Most smartphone users have their email accounts signed in on their mobile devices for ease of use and increased accessibility. As soon as they receive an email notification, they can quickly decide whether to engage or ignore it. If a user opens your marketing email on their cell phone only to find that reading it involves endless scrolling and zooming, they’re likely to click out and never return. Instead, mobile-friendly emails are more likely to be consumed and responded to.
  • Registration forms: For your event marketing campaigns, not only should your marketing materials be mobile-friendly, but your registration tools should be too. Using mobile-friendly event registration software allows association members to register and pay on-the-go, rather than waiting until later (which may never come).

In order to ensure the most conversions, it’s important your campaign is easy to engage with. A member may have the desire to attend, but if the registration process is too difficult, they have a much higher risk of abandoning the process altogether.

6. Conclude with a clear call to action.

There’s nothing worse than getting to the end of a marketing email and thinking “so what?” The next steps in a marketing campaign should never be unclear— especially when it comes to event promotion. Because the end goal has a clear deadline (the date of the event or close of registration), it’s more important than ever to include a clear call to action in any email you send.

Large, colorful, and easy-to-read CTA buttons with actionable language are a great way to encourage recipients to take the next step in the registration process. Even if the reader starts to skim the text, the CTA will still be clear and persuasive.

Wrap up

By employing these tips in your next event marketing campaign, you can ensure higher levels of virtual event registration and attendance for your association. When you personalize your messages, grab the recipient’s interest, and design an easily accessible campaign, you’ll create a system of communication that each recipient will actually want to read and take action.

Originally Appeared On:  https://www.campaignmonitor.com/blog/email-marketing/how-email-drives-online-registrations/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+CampaignMonitorBlog+%28Campaign+Monitor+Blog+Only%29

Designing Emails With Images: Advice From a Pro

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We’ve partnered with Unsplash to bring millions of beautiful, and best of all, free stock images directly to our customers.

Our Free Image Gallery is available in our email builder, saving you the time and hassle it would normally take for you to find a stock photo site, search for the perfect image, download, and then upload that image back into our builder. Our customers have already saved over 300 hours by using our Free Image Gallery.

We want our customers to feel confident about every send, so we’ve asked Meghan Sokolnicki, Senior Email Designer & Developer at CM Group, to share her best advice when it comes to designing emails with images.

Ready to give it a try?

Here are her best email design tips.

What is the best way to use images in emails?

Bottom line, it’s best to use images to help support your message. Images can be a great and effective way to capture an audience’s attention and add some visual interest to your emails.

While I’d encourage using images in emails, it is important to make sure that images do not contain the most important pieces of information. They should be used to help support your message, not be used as the only way to deliver the message. As a rule of thumb, deliver important information with live text and support that information with images.

Keep in mind that not everyone receiving the email will be able to view images. Many people use screen readers or voice commands to listen to emails. Even people who are reading the emails may have images turned off or have spotty wifi that delays the time it takes for the images to download.

As email designers, it’s our job to make sure that everyone receiving the emails has a consistent experience no matter how they interact with them.

What is the wrong way to use images in emails?

Don’t send image-only emails! I see this all the time and do not recommend it. Sure, it may be beautiful artwork, but that doesn’t make it an effective email.

When images contain all of the key information in a given campaign, this can greatly limit the amount of your audience who can interact with the email. Think about all that information getting squished down on a smaller screen! It can be so hard to digest, and who wants to have to zoom in to read the message? Not me.

A common mistake designers make is to take a print design and paste it into an email without making any adjustments for the new medium. Print and web are completely different experiences so it’s best to design with those differences in mind.

For example, instead of copy/pasting, make sure you’re adapting your designs for email. Be thoughtful about how your audience will interact with an email. In email we have the opportunity to click around, scroll, and engage with the campaign on a variety of different devices. Let’s use that to our advantage!

How do designers choose the right image for their email?

Most importantly you want to make sure that the image fits with your content. Consumers are less and less interested in seeing generic stock photography that serves no purpose. Instead, think about how you can use images with specificity to emotionally connect readers with your brand.

Everyone’s needs are going to be a little different, so choosing the right image comes down to if that photo makes sense for your brand and makes sense for the content.

As a tip, we as humans seem to love seeing other humans! So our designers see a lot of engagement come from images using pictures of faces. I also love using illustrations and icons as a way to break up space. Even a small clock next to content about an upcoming deadline can help draw attention.

If you’re sending a letter or a quick announcement, you might not need an image, but there are other ways of adding some visual interest to your email design. Instead, use bold headlines or add a background color to help emphasize text. While I encourage using images where possible, they may not always be needed and that’s okay too!

How can an email marketer measure whether their email design was successful or not?

Success is measured differently for every marketer. Sometimes the purpose of an email is to drive clicks or promote sales and that could be “successful,” and other times an email is about sharing relevant content to help your audience stay engaged with the brand.

In my opinion there’s not a blanket answer for how to tell whether an email design is successful, but every brand needs to define success for themselves and work their design around that.

An overall successful design for email is one that feels effortless for the consumer. This means making sure the content is compelling and styled in a way that takes out the guesswork: Clear hierarchy marked with headlines, bold calls-to-action, and whitespace used throughout the design to help give your text and images some breathing room.

Also never underestimate the power of relevant content paired with a compelling subject line.

What is your design pet peeve?

I have a few actually! As you can tell, one major pet peeve is copying and pasting a print design into email and not considering the mobile experience. (See answer #3!) Another pet peeve, when there is too much text included on images, it can be such an awful experience. Some text can be included on images—just not all of your text. It’s such a quick fix to include live text in emails!

Also, trying to cram too much information into one email. This can feel so overwhelming for your audience—give your content room to breathe!

Where do you look for email design inspiration?

I love looking at Really Good Emails and seeing what other email designers are coming up with. Email design can sometimes feel like a very limited medium, because we’re designing with so many factors in mind. I love seeing how other designers use those limitations and make it work for them! Litmus is always testing the limits of what’s possible in email, and I love receiving their emails.

It’s not supported everywhere, but I still love seeing simple movement in emails. A well-designed .gif can brighten my day.

What are your final design tips?

  • Make sure you use a balance of images and live text in your campaigns. Images are great to include in emails, just make sure they support the message. We don’t want “seeing” the image to be the only way to absorb your content.
  • Use alt text when you include images! This is text that helps describe the image or the image’s intent for those who cannot view the image. You can still include some text as images (for example: Sale Today! You’re a winner! Happy St. Patrick’s Day!, etc.) just make sure when you, do you include alt text, so anyone not seeing the image still gets the full experience.
  • Don’t shy away from .gifs! Movement can be really fun in email.

Wrap up

There you have it, some of our best design tips from one of our in-house email design pros. If you’re ready to put these design tips to the test, you can start building an email in our drag-and-drop email builder right away for free.

Originally Appeared On: https://www.campaignmonitor.com/blog/email-marketing/designing-emails-with-images-advice-from-a-pro/

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