SEO: 16 Killer Effective Article Title Strategies Guaranteed to Put Money in Your Pocket

 SEO and article title effectiveness is virtually a dedicated science that all too often does not get the attention it deserves. After all, what is the use of spending hours researching a topic, adding additional content based on personal experience, checking grammar, structure, spelling, key word density and flow and eventually publishing the article, just to have the majority of your potential audience ignore the article because the title is simply unappealing in whatever form.

It is almost like exhaustively spending hours of your time on preparing for a job interview, and then inadvertently arriving a day late. When it comes to SEO and having articles published generally you only get one bite of the cherry with you potential reader, so be careful of blowing it. Robert.C.Gallagher was once quoted as saying "A good title is the title of a successful book". The bottom line is simple. The title is as important as the content, and without the former, the latter becomes insignificant, no matter how good the quality of the work is.

Also keep in mind that in terms of general SEO strategy Ezinearticles suggests longer titles attract more traffic than shorter titles, and more specifically that your article title should be a minimum of 70 characters but not more than 100 characters.

OK so what approach makes for an effective and absorbing eye-catch article title, keeping in mind that for your key words or key word phrase to be impactful these need to be positioned preferably within the first five words (if at all possible within the first 3-4 words) of the article title (and preferably in the first sentence of the article).

In other words, let's assume your keyword phrase is Popular Memory Techniques. A poor article title would be "9 Tips to Discover Popular Memory Techniques". A good article title would be "Popular Memory Techniques-9 Tips to Develop a Mind-Blowing Memory". In the poor example you only have 1 keyword in the first 5 words (Popular) and none in the first 3-4 words, whereas in the good article title you have all 3 keywords in the first 3 words of the article, i.e. your article title is keyword rich and SEO friendly and will be located much easier by a search engine looking for the keyword phrase "Popular Memory Techniques". In addition you have used a powerful, emotional adjective "Mind-Blowing" which makes the title even more eye-catching.

In terms of specific approaches a combination of the following is recommended:

Combination of contrasting words-use contrasting words grouped together, eg "Snatching defeat from the jaws of victory" or "What classic SEO mistakes to make to improve your ranking with Google"

Use outrageous phrases-as long as these words or phrases are directly relevant to the article. Do not use an article title for effect that has very little relevance to the article content. The title must have direct and sustainable relevance, eg "How taking up mountain biking can save your marriage". Ensure the article really does explain how mountain biking can save a marriage.

Use numbers, either at the start of the title or during the title, eg "Panic attacks-10 Strategies to eliminate anxiety and panic disorders"

Use emotional adjectives to reinforce your title. This approach can be very effectively combined with numbers as well, eg "Panic attacks-10 Stunning strategies to eliminate anxiety and panic disorders". Emotional adjectives that work well include fabulous, stunning, mind-blowing, shattering, awesome, unbelievable etc.

Use some form of perceived guarantee to support the title. This approach can similarly be very effectively combined with numbers and adjectives, eg "Panic attacks-10 Stunning, fail-proof strategies to completely eliminate anxiety and panic disorders"

Introduce the concept of myths and secrets. Most people are intrigued by the possibility of a conspiracy. Introduce and suggest the resolution of a myth or secret, eg "Pay less tax-What the Politicians don't want you to know about paying tax", or eg" Successful digital photography secrets finally revealed" or "The Dirty Secret which the Financial System is Using to Keep You Poor-Use these 9 Strategies to Beat the Financial Gurus at their Own Game", or "How To Learn the Forgotten Art of Flower Arranging-the Wrong Technique Could Cost You".

Use your own individual personal experience reference. People are attracted to an approach that you personally endorse through previous experience, eg "How I published an eBook in less than three months".

Use roguish adjectives. Contrast the situation of the potential client with a service provider in the environment you are offering a product of service, by use of roguish adjectives and by creating a controversy. Be careful not to become directly negative in the description, eg "Reduce your lending rate-What the Fat-Cat Bankers don't want you to know about mortgage lending rates", or eg "Reduce your monthly gas bill-What the Billionaire Oil Industry does not tell you about gas prices".

Introduce a "how to" solution with an obvious benefit, especially one that is fear based. Most people love solutions to their problems, especially situations that cause them pain or fear in whatever form. Offer them an opportunity to eliminate that pain and you have a potentially interested client, eg "Blood pressure breakthrough-lower your blood pressure within 8 weeks with a natural herbal remedy". Make this title even more eye-catching by ratcheting up the fear component of the offering, eg "Blood pressure breakthrough-Do you want to die of heart disease before the age of 55? Lower your blood pressure fast with a natural herbal remedy". Emphasis the benefit to the prospect. Nobody wants to die of high blood pressure. The prospect is inversely incentivized to act fast.

Introduce an element of measured personal engagement with a prospect. This can be very effectively used with a "how to" approach, eg "Give me 1 week and I will improve your memory 1000%" Articulate your engagement with specific metrics, eg "1 week", "15 minutes a day", "1 month" etc

Appeal to your prospect's sense of community psychology and collective belonging. Most people feel more comfortable in some form of group. Very few people are comfortable in being excluded or rejected. Play on this concept in the title, eg "Double your income in 6 weeks-Act now-Don't hate yourself later"

Use emotive, impactful words in your title. Words like guarantee, discover, scintillating, eliminate, fail-safe, independent, sensational.,unprecedented, confidential, immense, revealing, catastrophic, provocative, secret, avoid, little known, victim, greed, envy, explosive, provern, stunning, overlooked etc

Play on people's fear of mistakes. It is human nature to want to avoid mistakes at all costs and sometimes people will employ disproportionate measures to avoid mistakes. Introduce this theme in the article title, eg "Internet dating-Avoid these 7 catastrophic mistakes". Nobody wants to make a catastrophic internet dating mistake, not even one, never mind 7. Another classic example would be "SEO strategy-Avoid these 5 Critical Mistakes which can Destroy your Business"

Use Capital Letters with the main words in the titles. Capital letters are just far more visually impactful compared to lower case in any title.

Instant gratification continues to drive the 21st century. Technology just accelerates and fuels that social trend. We want it all and we want it now. We all want an instant fix. Use it to your advantage when developing the title for an article, eg "Currency trading-Become instantly financially independent from the comfort of your study" or "Roulette gambling-7 tips to drive instant success, despite no previous experience".

Advance notification approaches. Everyone loves knowing something in advance. Why experience a painful situation when you can avoid it entirely, eg "Cell phone addiction amongst teenagers-how to recognise the 5 advanced warning signs". This is another approach that can be very successfully coupled with a fear strategy, eg "Avoid being a victim of retrenchment-Be one step ahead in recognizing the 6 advanced warning signs of impending retrenchment".

Another approach entirely is to use a software package which generates suggested article titles based on a series of inputs from your perspective. This can be time- consuming, but should not be ignored as an alternative SEO resource.

Last but not least remember "it ain't over until the fat lady sings". Just ensure she is allowed to sing in the first place. A good, eye-catching article title is key to having your article read and thereby optimizing your overall SEO effectiveness.

About The Author

Derek K Elliott is an authority on web traffic and related SEO activities. As an Author on the subject, he is at the forefront to provide solutions to information related to driving high-volume web traffic to web sites.