When it comes to grabbing attention for your blog post title, one really effective tactic is to grab attention by using a famous name or title in the blog post title.
Your blog post titles are very important… so choose them carefully.
Eighty percent of your blog readers will read your blog post titles…. a mere twenty percent will read the content of a particular post. A great blog name combined with a great blog post title will attract clicks whether it’s via search or RSS feeds or sharing on Facebook or Twitter.
I have a confession to make. I ADORE the movie Fight Club. I’m sure my love of this dark and twisted tome reveals a definite “crack” in my psyche. What does Fight Club have to do with grabbing attention? In a word – EVERYTHING! Any blog post with “Fight Club” in the title instantly GRABS my attention as it does the other fans of the movie. Take for example:
- Microsoft and the Rules of Fight Club
- Anti Virus Fight Club Results
- Blog Fight Club
- Fight Club Quotes
- and one that ESPECIALLY attracted my attention: Christian Fight Club
(Exceptional! Is it possible that watching the movie hasn’t tainted my immortal soul?)
I could “justify” this tendency of mine by claiming that most posts which reference Fight Club are witty and well written. They usually are. But this is an illustration of WIIFM (What’s In It For Me) syndrome in action- something that all the “potential” readers of your blog suffer from in varying degrees.
Successfully tapping into the WIIFM (What’s In It For Me) of your target audience is a key element in building traffic and attracting readers to your blog.
The first step to tapping into the WIIFM of your target audience is to determine what movies or celebrities do they follow?
Fans of Paris Hilton are an entirely different audience than those who adore Mitt Romney. Fans of the show “RuPaul’s Drag Race” are decidedly different than fans of “Texas Walker”. Sure – there may be a straggler or two who watches both – but it’s safe to assume that as a general rule, if you begin blogging about RuPaul’s Drag Race you’re not going to need to worry about offending any Chuck Norris fans who might be reading your blog.
Determine who your target audience is and then try to “get inside” their heads to discover what famous names and movies will grab their attention. It’s a great way to attract readers to your blog.