How to Choose Good Article Titles
Good article titles are tricky and will require that you experiment to see what your audience is interested in. Different article types require different types of titles; is your article for SEO or viral, or specifically created for social media?
While that must be taken into consideration when creating a title, there are some consistencies between the different content types. Here is how to create a general article title for anything you have.
Don’t make the mistake of going too broad with your keywords or you will never get any kind of ranking. “Kettlebell” is not a keyword phrase, but “kettlebells for fighters” is. You have to be specific enough to set yourself apart from the general mass of content.
The only way you will rank on broad phrases is if you have an entire section of your website dedicated to that keyword (and good SEO techniques).
Step-by-Step Guide to Choosing Good Article Titles
Step #1: Reference Your Keyword(s)
You wrote your article after finding the keywords, now it’s time to name that sucker. For our example, the keywords are “kettlebell goblet squat” and “kettlebell training.”
Step #2: Configure the Keyword(s)
If possible, combinations of the keyword phrases are ideal for the title. At the very least, you need to use your primary keyword phrase (kettlebell goblet squat). If you could work “kettlebell training” in there too, that would be awesome but isn’t necessary. Here’s the cheater way to do it:
Kettlebell Training: Kettlebell Goblet Squats
Not bad, but if we get rid of the “kettlebell training,” we can create something more likely to be typed in by someone looking for instruction on the exercise. How’s this:
How to do Kettlebell Goblet Squats Properly
Again, not too shabby, but still kind of generic and boring; let’s add some spice.
Step #3: Add Some Spice
Adding spice could take away from your SEO-points, but in this case it will not. Challenging your reader is a good way to get them to click. Look at this:
You Are Doing Kettlebell Goblet Squats WRONG
Take that reader! You might get some blow back from this, but you’ll also get more clicks, especially on social media. Just make sure the content is good. Here’s another example:
Kettlebell Goblet Squats in 3 Easy Steps
It’s all the same content, but each type will change who the interested reader will be. Try each style out to see what works.
